Examining Lifetime Episodes of Sadness, Help Seeking, and Perceived Treatment Helpfulness Among US Latino/as

This study investigated episodes of sadness, help seeking for episodes of sadness, and perceived treatment helpfulness among
Latino/as. Specifically, we examined whether gender, ethnicity, and other socio-cultural variables predicted episodes of sadness,
help seeking, and treatment helpfulness. Data were taken from the National Latino Asian American Study which included service
use questions for episodes of sadness. We stratified the data by service provider and used multiple logistic regressions as
analytic strategy. Latinas had higher rates of episodes of sadness than Latinos, and everyday discrimination was positively
associated with sadness. Acculturation was associated with more help seeking. Puerto Ricans had the highest rates of help
seeking, and Mexican–Americans the lowest. Discrimination was the strongest predictor of treatment helpfulness from any professional
as individuals with discriminatory experiences found services less helpful. Interventions need to address cultural factors
but more focus needs to be placed on policies that seek to eliminate inequalities.