Mental Health
Leveraging mental health communication inequities among Latinx populations to further our understanding of mechanisms of mental health stigma Melissa DuPont-Reyes* Melissa DuPont-Reyes Alice Villatoro Lu Tang
Background: Public communication about the diathesis-stress model—the interactive neurobiological-psychosocial component causes of mental illness—has promoted reception to treatment yet violent/dangerous stereotypes have increased too. These efforts have diffused in English-language media only. We leveraged high vs low diffusion of mental health communication across diverse language/cultural media exposure among Latinx populations to examine the effects of neurobiological-psychosocial causal beliefs on help-seeking via stigma and treatment beliefs.
Method: A quota US-based Latinx sample ages 13-86 (N=2058) self-completed assessments (α=.72-.94) in 2021 ascertaining: frequency of Spanish/Latinx and English media use and mental health content scanning/seeking; beliefs about mental illness neurobiological-psychosocial causes—genetics, brain chemistry, environment, stress; treatment—improves with treatment or on its own; stigma—violent/dangerous, bad character, unwilling to socialize; and help-seeking to healthcare providers or family/friends. Structural equation models estimated direct effects of neurobiological-psychosocial beliefs from Spanish/Latinx and English media exposures on help-seeking behaviors via treatment and stigma beliefs, net individual/family factors.
Results: Spanish/Latinx media was negatively associated with neurobiological-psychosocial causal beliefs while English media was positively associated, indicating greater diathesis-stress information in English vs Spanish/Latinx media (p<.01). Neurobiological-psychosocial causal beliefs were then positively associated with treatment and rejection beliefs (p<.01) simultaneously. Rejection beliefs in turn reduced help-seeking to healthcare professionals and family/friends (p<.05); no significant association was observed for treatments beliefs on either help-seeking outcome.
Conclusion: Public communication about the diathesis-stress model appears to have increased treatment beliefs at the expense of increasing stigma beliefs that impede help-seeking. Innovation in public mental health communication is urgently needed to counter stigma and health inequity.