Selection Criteria for Choosing Mental Health Service Providers: A Pilot Study

Abstract

Although there is an established literature concerned with the manner in which consumers select providers of general health care, far less attention has been given to the nature of the process used by consumers to select providers of mental health services. The present study provides further insight into this process by identifying dimensions used by consumers to differentiate among potential providers. A sample of 153 undergraduate college students was asked to read a scenario describing a situation in which they had decided that they were in need of mental health services and then to complete a questionnaire pertaining to the importance of a therapist possessing various characteristics. The results indicated that whereas demographic characteristics of potential providers were not heavily weighted as selection criteria, credentials, specific expertise, as well as personal characteristics of the therapist were of considerable importance.

Conversations about conducting marketing research in mental health

“…Extant work ranges from broad examinations of the effect of materialism on consumer mental wellbeing (Flurry and Swimberghe, 2021; Reeves et al , 2012) and coping strategies to improve mental wellness (Machin et al , 2019), to understanding specific mental disorders such as addiction (Berry et al , 2017; Hirschman, 1992; Martin et al , 2013; Shoham and Makovec Brenčič, 2003), depression (Callaghan et al , 2013; Griffith et al , 2022; McCosker and Gerrard, 2021), anxiety (Bujisic et al , 2017; Kemp et al , 2021) and eating disorders (Faber et al , 1995; Peterson, 1987). Marketing research helps practitioners identify optimal pricing (Ogden and Ogden, 1992), product design (Larson and Bock, 2016), distribution channels (Purani and Kumar, 2018; Rosenbaum et al , 2016) and promotional strategies (Callaghan et al , 2013; Donohue and Berndt, 2004; Jones, 2001), supports understanding of the mental health consumption journey (Lipscomb et al , 2010; Wyllie and Carlson, 2018) and informs mental health public policy (Berthon et al , 2019; Kelly et al , 1996; Wolburg, 2005) and stigma reduction (Gelb, 2008; Kemper and Kennedy, 2021; Mirabito et al , 2016; Yeh et al , 2017). Scholarship at the intersection of mental health and marketing is vital with interest from scholars continuing to grow rapidly.…”

Addressing Barriers to Mental Health Wellness: Prescriptions for Marketing

“…Mental health is often complex and dynamic, involving individual, community, and societal-level components. Limited research in the marketing discipline has examined mental health (Andreasen 2004;Lipscomb, Shelley, and Root 2010;Machin et al 2019Machin et al , 2022Mirabito et al 2016;Yeh, Jewell, and Thomas 2017); yet, marketing can utilize both theoretical and empirical knowledge to advance the understanding of mental health and to inform social marketing and policy initiatives.…”