Mental Health Support Networks and Barriers to Using Them – Narratives of International First-Year Students at a Research University in The Netherlands

Ebert, Andreas Wilhelm (2024) Mental Health Support Networks and Barriers to Using Them – Narratives of International First-Year Students at a Research University in The Netherlands. Master thesis, Educational Sciences.

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Abstract

International first-year students in higher education are more likely to experience adverse mental health as opposed to domestic and second- or third-year students. For protecting these students from negative mental health experiences, formal and informal support networks are critical. However, barriers are encountered in reaching out to support networks. This research aimed to better understand international first-year students’ mental health support networks and barriers to using them. Six semi-structured interviews with international first-students were conducted at a research university in the north of the Netherlands. Students demonstrated rich use of informal mental health support networks. In order of preference, they would approach: their long-distance friends, local friends, partners, family, and classmates for mental health support. Students did either scarcely or not at all make use of a formal support network to discuss mental health issues. During thematic analysis, five themes of barriers were constructed: (1) negative self-talk, (2) university is not the place to (actually) talk about mental health, (3) (anticipation of) bureaucracy, financial issues & ignorance of formal support, (4) previous negative experiences with a mental health support contact and (5) lack of vocabulary for acute mental health conversations. Subjective norms regarding mental health played a major role in student’s support-seeking behaviours, particularly due to its potential to intensify barriers. Potential campus-relevant interventions are suggested to aid students in seeking mental health support. Future research ought to explore the relationship between subjective norms and stigma in mental health support-seeking. Keywords: international students, mental health, support networks, support-seeking barriers, qualitative research

Item Type:	Thesis (Master)
Supervisor name:	Mascareno Lara, M.N. and Hingstman, M.
Degree programme:	Educational Sciences
Differentiation route:	Other [Master Educational Sciences]
Date Deposited:	06 Aug 2024 12:32
Last Modified:	06 Aug 2024 12:32
URI:	http://gmwpublic.studenttheses.ub.rug.nl/id/eprint/4236

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