Introduction
First-year university students represent a diverse cohort navigating a critical period of transition. While they share the experience of entering higher education, recent school leavers and mature-aged students often differ markedly in life circumstances, developmental stage, and support needs. These differences may shape how students perceive and respond to psychological distress, particularly in relation to seeking help. Despite growing attention to student wellbeing, universities often adopt a one-size-fits-all approach to mental health support and help-seeking promotion, overlooking how age and life stage shape students' needs and behaviours. Understanding the psychological factors that drive or inhibit help-seeking across these subgroups is essential for inclusive and effective support.
Purpose
This study aimed to identify predictors of mental health help-seeking intentions in first-year university students using an extended Theory of Planned Behaviour (TPB) framework. It examined the roles of attitudes, subjective norms, perceived behavioural control, shame, and stigma, and compared predictors across professional and non-professional help-seeking pathways for recent school leavers and mature-aged students.
Method
Participants (N = 458) completed validated measures of TPB constructs, shame, and stigma. Hierarchical multiple regression analyses were conducted separately for professional and non-professional help-seeking intentions.
Results
Attitudes toward help-seeking emerged as the most consistent and robust predictor across both models. For professional help-seeking, shame significantly improved model fit and uniquely predicted intention, particularly among mature-aged students. In contrast, non-professional help-seeking was more strongly influenced by perceived behavioural control and subjective norms, especially among school leavers. Shame and stigma did not significantly predict non-professional help-seeking intentions.
Conclusions
TPB constructs remain central to predicting help-seeking intentions, but shame and stigma offer additional predictive value, particularly for professional support. These findings highlight the need for tailored interventions to promote professional and non-professional help-seeking, noting that the predictive influence of attitudes, social norms, and shame differ across diverse student populations.