1 - (SYM 66) The Mediating Role of Help-seeking Intention in a Non-clinical Intervention for Minoritized and First-generation College Students

Background: College students in the United States are facing a mental health crisis, with college counseling centers being unable to meet student mental health needs (Gallagher, 2007). This is especially true among BIPOC and first-generation college students who face additional barriers to accessing formal mental healthcare (Castro-Ramirez et al., 2021). Thus, it is necessary to develop non-clinical interventions to improve mental health outcomes in college students. The current analyses investigated the mechanisms of change of a help-seeking intervention for minoritized and first-generation college students. 

Method: Participants were 489 undergraduate students (45.4% first-generation college students) enrolled in a public university designated as a minority-serving institution randomly assigned to either treatment (Connected Scholars, a one-credit help-seeking course delivered by university staff) or waitlist control groups. Self-report measures included a demographics questionnaire, an academic help-seeking intention scale, global self-esteem scale, the Brief Symptom Inventory (BSI), and college self-worth measure at baseline prior to the semester the intervention was conducted (T1) and immediately after the semester the intervention was completed (T2). Path analyses examined direct and indirect effects of the Connected Scholars intervention on student psychological outcomes at T2 via changes in academic help-seeking intention from T1 to T2.

Results: Results from path analyses indicated that treatment had a direct effect on self-esteem (path a1; B = -1.44, 95%CI [-2.881, -.066]) and college self-worth (path a3; B = .13, 95%CI[.034, .215). Changes in academic help-seeking intention had a direct effect on self-esteem (path b1; B = 2.00, 95%CI[1.123, 2.784]), BSI (path b2; B = -2.072, 95%CI[-3.89, -0.154]) and college self-worth (path b3; B = -.13, 95%CI[-.181, -.073]). Mediation analyses revealed significant indirect effects of participation in the intervention on self-esteem (path ab1;  B = .29, 95% CI [.003, .696]) and BSI (path ab2; B = -.30, 95% CI [-1.032, -.002]) through changes in help-seeking intention. No indirect effects were observed for college self-worth.

Conclusion: Results suggest that a course taught by non-clinical instructors may be able to improve mental health and well-being outcomes by increasing students’ willingness to seek help. Implications for research and practice will be discussed.