The associations between coping resources and help-seeking intention in a sample of Chinese first-year medical students: mediation effects of coping strategies.

Background: Help-seeking is an adaptive coping process encompassing orientation, intention and actual behaviors. Help-seeking intention which promotes help-seeking behavior is a protective factor for mental health. However, the psychological paths for help-seeking intention in first-year medical students, a population vulnerable to mental health challenges, remain elusive. Thus, we aim to explore the associations between coping resources (i.e., perceived social support (PSS) and self-compassion) and formal/informal help-seeking intention, and to further test the mediating role of coping strategies (i.e., active coping and behavioral disengagement) in these relationships.

Methods: The sample included 792 Chinese first-year medical students. Validated scale was used to assess PSS. The Self-compassion Scale Short Form (SCS-SF) and the Brief COPE were employed to evaluate self-compassion and coping strategies. Multiple linear regression and structural equation modeling (SEM) analyses were conducted.

Results: Multiple regression analyses indicated that PSS, self-compassion, active coping, and behavioral disengagement were significantly associated with formal/informal help-seeking intention. SEM further demonstrated that active coping significantly mediated the relationships between PSS and formal/informal help-seeking intention, as well as the relationships between self-compassion and formal/informal help-seeking intention. Moreover, behavioral disengagement was found to significantly mediate the association between self-compassion and formal help-seeking intention.

Conclusions: The present study identified five significant mediation paths, indicating the intricate relationships between coping resources, coping strategies, and help-seeking intention. These findings offer actionable insights for interventions, suggesting that enhancing PSS and fostering self-compassion can promote active coping, reduce behavioral disengagement, and ultimately increase both formal and informal help-seeking intention among first-year medical students in China.