The Relationship among Stigma, Self-Concealment, and Attitude Towards Seeking Professional Help of college Students

The purpose of this study was to confirm the relationship between social stigma, self-stigma, self-concealment, and attitude towards seeking professional help in college students. To this end, stigma, self-concealment, and attitude towards seeking professional help were measured in 291 college students and analyzed using SPSS 29.0 and Macro PROCESS. As a result of the study, first, the correlations between social stigma, self-stigma, self-concealment, and attitude towards seeking professional help were all significant. Second, it was found that self-stigma completely mediated the relationship between social stigma and attitude towards seeking professional help. Third, in the relationship between social stigma and self-stigma, self-concealment showed a moderating effect. Fourth, in the relationship between social stigma, self-stigma, and attitude towards seeking professional help, self-concealment showed a controlled mediating effect. Based on these results, the relationship between each variable was verified and a practical intervention plan was suggested. Based on the results of this study, implications and suggestions were presented.