Potentially Traumatic Experiences and Attitudes toward Mental Health Utilization among “Other” Documented Latinx Immigrants
Open AccessThe pitfalls in research studies addressing mental health service utilization among Latinx immigrants residing in the United States are the unrecognized heterogeneity of the population, the biased representation of some Latinx ethnic groups in research, and the limitations in the generalization of outcome research. The study explored the role of immigrants’ coping strategies in mediating the relationship between exposure to trauma and symptoms of exposure and attitudes toward mental health service utilization among the “other” documented Latinx immigrants, as well as the moderation of mental health stigma in seeking mental help. Data were collected using a web-based, self-report survey designed using Qualtrics and analyzed using LISREL 11 and the Statistic Package for the Social Sciences (SPSS) version 27.0. The study used path analysis to understand direct and indirect effects among exposure to trauma and symptoms of exposure and attitudes toward mental health service utilization. Negative coping strategies predicted better attitudes toward mental health service utilization after controlling for symptoms of the exposure, but not for exposure to trauma. In addition, public stigma moderated the relation between symptoms of the exposure and attitudes toward mental health service utilization but no self-stigma. The study endorses clarity of outcomes about Latinx immigrants’ attitudes toward mental health service utilization by recognizing the differences and similarities within and between this minority group. Keywords: trauma, Latinx, heterogeneity, immigration, coping strategies, attitudes toward mental health utilization, mental health stigma
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