Status and Perceived Barriers of Psychological Help-Seeking Behaviors for Perinatal Depressive Symptoms Among Chinese Women: A Cross-Sectional Study

PURPOSE: To investigate attitudes, intentions, and behaviors toward seeking professional psychological help among Chinese perinatal women with depressive symptoms, and further identify influencing factors and perceived barriers to such help-seeking. METHOD: Individuals who were pregnant or within 42 days postpartum were recruited from two tertiary hospitals in Hunan Province, China. A comprehensive questionnaire and list of possible perceived barriers to seeking psychological help were collected from participants. RESULTS: The prevalence of perinatal depressive symptoms was 28%, with only 11.3% of participants having sought psychological help. The most frequent perceived barriers to seeking psychological help were lack of knowledge of perinatal depressive symptoms and negative attitudes about perinatal depressive symptoms and psychological help-seeking. CONCLUSION: Participants had low levels of professional psychological help-seeking behaviors. Further studies should explore this mechanism and develop interventions targeting perceived barriers.