The Relationship Between Access to Mental Health Resources and Use of Preferred Effective Mental Health Treatment

Objective: Certain marginalized groups do not have equal access to mental health resources. This study examined whether variables related to access to mental health resources (racial-ethnic group membership, education level, number of community-level treatment providers, and facilities) were associated with current mental health treatment use; and, whether they moderated the likelihood that individuals would receive their preferred effective treatment. Methods: In a preregistered (osf.io/z28wr) online study, 5,626 individuals completed a mental health history form and measures of implicit and explicit beliefs about the effectiveness of therapy vs. medication. Results: Only individuals with higher education levels were more likely to report current use of treatment. Individuals who were Black/Latinx or who lived in a community with fewer treatment providers sometimes had a lower probability of accessing preferred effective treatment, though results varied across implicit and explicit measures. Conclusions: Findings support initiatives to increase access to mental health resources among marginalized groups.