Help-seeking pathways: a unifying concept in mental health care

Abstract

The authors argue that the concept of help-seeking pathways, defined generically, oriented toward institutional structures, and put at the forefront of research, can help integrate much of what we know about the use of mental health care and how to make such care more accessible and effective among underserved populations. They focus the concept of help-seeking pathways on current issues and research findings pertinent to the onset of psychological distress, the contacting of mental health care facilities, and treatment in such facilities. Pathways are not random; they are structured by the convergence of psychosocial and cultural factors and have sufficient integrity to be studied directly as unfolding processes.