From Service Member to Student: Predictors of Psychological Help-Seeking Attitudes in Student Servicemembers and Veterans

Abstract

Post-secondary institutions have experienced increased enrollment of student servicemembers and veterans (SSM/V), thus prompting renewed interest in the academic and acculturation needs of SSM/V. Despite the breadth of psychological literature surrounding military and college student populations, there is a gap in knowledge concerning the psychological needs of SSM/V. The primary aim of this study was to explore predictors of attitudes toward psychological helpseeking among SSM/V. In the spring of 2017, SSM/V (n = 103), including 26 females and 77 males, completed self-report questionnaires. Results from the study demonstrated that selfstigma, public-stigma, and gender were significantly correlated with attitudes toward psychological help-seeking. A multiple regression analysis revealed that self-stigma and gender significantly predicted attitudes toward psychological help-seeking. Consistent with previous studies, self-stigma fully mediated the significant relationship between public-stigma and attitudes toward psychological help-seeking. Ultimately, this study highlights the process in which external events adopt internal psychological significance and furthers the discourse surrounding the specific psychological needs of SSM/V.