2 - (SYM 108) Accessing and Utilizing Campus Mental Health Services: A Mixed-method Investigation of Black College Students' Perceptions and Experiences

Researchers have documented staggering racial disparities in mental health service utilization among emerging adults, such that Black emerging adults are significantly less likely to seek and use formal mental health services compared to their White peers. Given emerging adulthood is a time characterized by increased risk for psychological distress and disorders, research is needed to better understand factors that inform Black emerging adults’ perceptions of mental health services as well as their experiences while in treatment. Five factors that may be most influential are self-stigma, perceived stigma from others, perceived accessibility, perceived cultural trust, and perceived clinician culturally responsiveness. For Black emerging adults in college, college counseling centers (CCCs) are typically one of the most accessible mental health treatment centers available. Thus, understanding Black college students' cumulative perceptions of this mental health agency may yield key insights into how to best encourage Black students to seek care, retain them in treatment, and ultimately reduce their distress in college. The current sequential mixed-methods study aimed to provide key insights into Black college students’ impressions of and experiences with seeking mental health services at their collegiate counseling center and its affiliated telehealth service. Latent profile analyses from the quantitative sample (n = 217) resulted in four latent profiles of students' perceptions, with one related to significantly less willingness to seek CCC care. Quantitative findings were complemented by qualitative results from interviews with 26 participants with varying levels of experience using CCC and/or telehealth service treatment. The study identified existing strengths as well as areas for growth of both services and detailed recommendations for improvement, most of which focused on the provision of culturally responsive therapy and transparency. Findings can inform interventions aimed at increasing service utilization and effective service provision to Black college students experiencing significant psychological distress.