Reasons for non-disclosure of depressive symptoms in primary care

This research aims to discover some potential reasons individuals in college settings might choose not to disclose depressive symptoms to their primary care physicians. Depression is one of the most prevalent mental health disorders, yet many people with depressive symptoms are not treated or referred to treatment by their primary care physicians. One potential reason that individuals with depression do not undergo treatment is because patients choose not to disclose their depressive symptoms. Research has shown that stigma plays a role in whether or not individuals with mental health illness disclose symptoms in primary care settings. The present study, with data collection recently underway, utilizes an online survey containing a vignette depicting an individual with depressive symptoms. Following the vignette, participants complete several objective measures aimed at discovering correlations between stigma and depression and assessing potential reasons for depression nondisclosure. The two main variables being measured in this study are participants\u27 attitudes regarding stigma and nondisclosure of depressive symptoms. Proposed analyses will examine associations between stigma and nondisclosure and will describe the range and scope of students’ concerns about disclosure. Proper identification of the reasons for depressive symptom nondisclosure in primary care may have implications for stigma reduction in this population and may generalize to other populations. Results may also serve to inform psychoeducational efforts aimed at increasing the likelihood of depressive symptom disclosure