Barriers and Facilitators to Seeking Psychological Assistance in School Education System

Abstract

Optimization of the models for the provision of professional psychological assistance to students is one of the priority tasks of the Concept for the development of psychological services in the education system of the Russian Federation. The aim of this study was to identify the barriers and facilitators in seeking psychological help among Russian secondary school students from the perspective of experts who provide such assistance. Two series of semi-structured interviews (before the COVID-19 pandemic and during it) with 10 experts from seven regions of the Russian Federation responsible for organizing psychological work in the region were carried out. The barriers and facilitators of help-seeking identified as a result of the thematic analysis were compared with the AAAQ model (availability, accessibility, acceptability, quality of help) (WHO, 2017). Among the barriers, a special place is held by factors associated with acceptability and the perceived quality of provided assistance. Among the facilitators, experts especially highlight the factors related to the availability and the acceptability of psychological help (knowledge of the possibilities of obtaining it, its credibility, the use of new communication technologies of with a psychologist). Associated with the pandemic waving up in psychological difficulties and the expansion of remote communication have become powerful factors in the increase of availability and acceptability of psychological services.