The dynamic of treatment-seeking in a community sample with obsessive-compulsive symptoms: A mixed method approach

This mixed-method study aimed to investigate factors associated with treatment-seeking behaviors in people with obsessive-compulsive (OC) symptoms in the community and explore their experiences along the dynamic of treatment-seeking processes.

Eighty-one subjects with OC symptoms (27 treatment seekers and 54 non-seekers) completed online questionnaires about treatment history, symptom severity, and factors influencing treatment-seeking. The characteristics of treatment seekers and non-seekers were compared using Pearson's Chi-square and independent T-tests. Qualitative data were derived from a subset of 26 participants undergoing a follow-up telephone interview and subsequently analyzed by thematic analysis.

Treatment seeking was associated with more severe overall OC and obsessive symptoms and more feeling out of control over the symptoms (p < .05). Qualitative analyses revealed three main themes of barriers (i.e., displacement of causation, perceived controllability, and thresholds to access treatment) intricately tied to the stages of help-seeking, from problem recognition to service utilization. The need to control was identified as a key determinant in shifting between the vicious OC-illusionary-control loop and the treatment-seeking-control loop along the dynamic of treatment-seeking processes.

The symptom severity and feeling out of control are critical factors associated with treatment-seeking among people with OC symptoms in the community. Enhancing the feeling of control could be pivotal in promoting help-seeking behaviors in this population.