HELP-SEEKING FOR BEHAVIOR PROBLEMS BY PARENTS OF PRESCHOOL-CHILDREN -A COMMUNITY STUDY

Objective: To identify barriers to seeking help for preschool behavior problems and understand the pattern of service utilization. Method: A ltogether, 320 preschool children from eight preschool centers were st udied using a two-stage design. After the initial screening, a more de tailed assessment was carried out in the second stage involving semist ructured interviews with parents and children. Parents also completed a service utilization questionnaire during the first stage and General Health Questionnaire, Family Assessment Device, and life events quest ions during the second stage. Results: Only 19% of those with preschoo l behavior disorder crossed all the filters in reaching for help. The most common perceived barriers to help-seeking were that problems woul d get better by themselves or that parents should be strong enough to handle them. The major blocks to help-seeking were at two levels, in p arents recognizing the presence of a problem and in overcoming the per ceived barriers by the parents. Parents sought help from the informal agencies more often than from the formal. Help was sought significantl y less often by those who had parental separation, low income, or mult iple adversities, all of which were known to be significantly associat ed with behavior disorder. Conclusion: These findings indicate the nee d to educate and influence the parents' attitude to help-seeking, targ et those at risk to develop behavior disorder, and develop better cons ultation-liaison service with the informal agencies.