This study aims to compare use of traditional and online mental health care services between people with and without disabilities. Authors used a cross-sectional sample of adults aged 18 years and older from the 2019–2020 California Health Interview Survey (CHIS). Mental healthcare access in-person and online, or use of digital technologies for mental healthcare were compared between several disability groups to individuals without disabilities.

Findings: 15.3% of those in this sample reported being in one of the five reported disability groups: cognition, independent-living, seeing/hearing, self-care or multiple. Individuals with disabilities were 2.80 times more likely to access mental health care in person compared to those without disabilities. Several disability groups had increased odds of accessing mental health care online, using online technologies for referrals to mental health professionals and connecting to others with a similar condition online.

The study aims to evaluate the prevalence of adverse childhood experiences (ACEs) within a sample of Asian American respondents, the relationship of ACEs and psychological distress with help-seeking, and the association of ACEs with different types of help-seeking behaviors. Data from the 2021 California Health Interview Survey (CHIS) were analyzed. Pairwise comparisons examined differences in ACEs and covariates across the seven Asian American subgroups (Chinese, Filipino, Japanese, Korean, Vietnamese, South Asian, and Other Asian American). The joint effect between ACEs and Asian American subgroup was evaluated for each type of mental health help-seeking. Covariates included psychological distress, gender, age, marital status, insurance, education, English proficiency, self-rated health, and being U.S.-born. 

Findings: Asian American adults with 4 + ACEs were more likely to seek mental health help from primary care practitioners, mental health professionals, and social media/blogs/online forums than respondents with ≤ 3 ACEs. Moderate/severe psychological distress increased likelihood to seek mental health help. No significant interaction between ACEs and Asian American subgroup was found. Findings indicate that Asian American respondents with elevated ACEs and distress are more likely to seek mental health help from professional and emerging digital resources.

Digital mental health interventions (DMHIs) provide tools to seek mental health resources, providers, and facilitate and/or complement in-person treatment. Limited research has examined what factors are associated with DMHI uptake. Authors used California Health Interview Survey (CHIS) data to examine DMHI use among California adults (2019–2022), estimating three multi-variable logistic regression models to assess if DMHI use to seek mental health support (Model 1), connect with mental health professionals (Model 2), and connect with others with similar concerns (Model 3) varied by psychological distress or sociodemographic variables. Wald Chi-square statistics tests were used to examine reasons for not using DMHIs by the same variables.

Findings: DMHI use to seek mental health support and connect with professionals increased between 2019–2022. High psychological distress individuals used DMHIs for all three outcomes significantly more than low/no distress individuals. The top reason for not using online tools regardless of distress was in-person treatment. The second reasons were low perceived treatment utility (high/medium distress individuals), and low perceived need (low/no distress individuals). Overall, younger, female, more educated, insured, unmarried, and non-Hispanic White participants were more likely to use DMHIs than older, male, less educated, uninsured, married, and Asian counterparts. Adult DMHI use to seek mental health support and professional treatment increased between pre-pandemic and pandemic years. Many respondents who did not use DMHIs sought in-person support.

Future research can examine how to increase perceived DMHI efficacy among people with high/medium distress.
 

Authors aim to examine the extent to which patterns of adoption of counseling services and digital mental health interventions (DMHIs) shifted in recent years (2019–2021), the impact of distress on adoption of mental health support, and reasons related to adolescents' low adoption of DMHIs when experiencing distress.

Data were from three cohorts of adolescents aged 12–17 years (n = 847 in 2019; n = 1,365 in 2020; n = 1,169 in 2021) recruited as part of the California Health Interview Survey (CHIS). Researchers examine the likelihood of using mental health support as a function of psychological distress, sociodemographic characteristics, and cohorts. They also analyzed adolescents' self-reported reasons for not trying DMHIs as a function of distress.

Findings: The proportion of adolescents reporting elevated psychological distress was higher than those adopting counseling services or DMHIs. A higher level of distress was associated with a greater likelihood of receiving counseling and using DMHIs to connect with a professional and for self-help. Among those experiencing high distress, adolescents' top reason for not adopting an online tool was a lack of perceived need.

Adolescents' main barriers to DMHI adoption included a lack of perceived need, which may be explained by a lack of mental health literacy. Thoughtful marketing and dissemination efforts are needed to increase mental health awareness and normalize adoption of counseling services and DMHIs.