Development and Psychometric Evaluation of a Mental Health Help-Seeking Scale for Korean Adolescents

Background/Objectives: Existing mental health help-seeking measures may not adequately reflect adolescents' developmental and sociocultural contexts. This study developed and evaluated a mental health help-seeking scale for Korean adolescents. Methods: Following DeVellis' guidelines, items were generated through concept analysis and in-depth interviews. Expert review reduced 50 initial items to 33 preliminary items. Data were collected from 500 adolescents in Gyeongsangbuk-do, Republic of Korea. EFA and CFA were conducted using separate samples of 250 participants. Results: The final scale comprised 16 items across three factors: Mental Health Help-Seeking Willingness, Overcoming Stigma in Mental Health Help-Seeking, and Knowledge of Mental Health Help-Seeking Resources. The factors explained 46.4% of the variance, and CFA provided preliminary support for the three-factor structure. Cronbach's α was 0.85 overall and ranged from 0.73 to 0.85 across subscales. Conclusions: The scale provides preliminary evidence of reliability and validity for assessing mental health help-seeking among Korean adolescents and may be useful in research and early-prevention settings.