Barriers and Facilitators to Mental Health Help-Seeking among Young Adults in Saudi Arabia: A Qualitative Study

Abstract

While young Saudi adults are reportedly prone to experiencing a variety of mental health problems, they tend to delay seeking mental health support. Therefore, this study aimed to explore the barriers and facilitators of seeking mental health support among young adults in Saudi Arabia. A qualitative research design was implemented using semi-structured interviews with 12 young adult participants in Saudi Arabia, recruited through social media platforms, and the interviews were then analyzed using thematic analysis. Two major themes emerged: barriers that impede the process of mental health help-seeking and facilitators that assist individuals in seeking mental health support. The barriers included public stigma and lack of awareness, unprofessional mental health practitioners, lack of accessibility to services and information, unsupportive families, intrapersonal dilemmas, and misconceptions based on religious beliefs. Facilitators of help-seeking included increasing societal and family awareness, promoting the accessibility of services, enhancing sources of external support, personal motivation to change, and online therapy. The findings of this study emphasize the importance of promoting mental health literacy among the Saudi public, particularly with regard to young adults and their unique mental health needs. Exploring facilitators and barriers may also assist mental health providers in developing tailored mental health campaigns and interventions directed at young adults.

Mental illness and help-seeking behaviours among Middle Eastern cultures: A systematic review and meta-synthesis of qualitative data

“…“the solution is to go to a “Sheikh” to read the Quran and use “ruqyah”(a healing method that involves the recitation of verses from the holy Quran…)” [ 64 ].…”

Attitudes and Stigma Toward Seeking Psychological Help Among the General Population of Makkah, Saudi Arabia

“…Our findings showed that the stigma scores were significantly higher among male participants and those with lower levels of education, consistent with previous research conducted on mental stigma among the general Saudi Arabian population [ 18 ]. Additionally, a study on the facilitators of and barriers to seeking mental health help in Saudi Arabia found frequent delays in seeking support for psychological well-being due to barriers to seeking help, such as public stigma, difficulty in accessing resources and information, lack of qualified mental health professionals, insufficient knowledge, and unsupportive family members [ 19 ]. Another systematic review conducted in the Caribbean indicated that mental health stigma was negatively associated with help-seeking and suggested that stigma can lead to the underutilization of mental health services [ 20 ].…”

Lifetime prevalence and treatment of mental disorders in Saudi youth and adolescents

“…Arab adolescents tend to seek help through their social networks or traditional healers 20 . Additionally, web-based mental health resources are perceived as facilitators of help-seeking among young adults in the KSA, as these allow anonymity and stigma avoidance 107 .…”

“…First, causality cannot be implied by any of the significant associations found in our cross-sectional study. Second, respondents’ retrospective recall—subject to error and bias—in addition to stigma attached to reporting mental health concerns 107 , 112 , may have led to underestimates of lifetime prevalence 113 . Third, some segments of the population such as those who are institutionalized or do not speak Arabic were excluded from the SNMHS sample 59 ; the under-representation of these groups may also have led to lower prevalence and treatment estimates.…”