BARRIERS TO HELP-SEEKING FOR CHANGE IN DRINKING - A GENDER-FOCUSED REVIEW OF THE LITERATURE

Women with drinking problems are less likely than men to utilize alcoh ol-specific treatment services; they are comparatively more likely to seek help in general health and mental health care settings. These pat terns in service utilization may be attributable, in part, to gender d ifferences in barriers or disincentives to seeking and receiving care for alcohol abuse. In this paper we provide a gender-focused review of research on barriers to help-seeking for addictions behavior change. Two major categories of barrier, involving client and treatment progra m characteristics, appear to have a greater impact on service utilizat ion of women than men. Insights gained from barriers literature provid e valuable direction for future research and suggest applications in c linical service provision and treatment planning.