ORCID

https://orcid.org/0000-0001-5703-455X

Date of Award

2025

Document Type

Dissertation

Degree Name

Psychology (Ph.D.)

Department

Psychology

First Advisor

Tamara Del Vecchio

Second Advisor

Melissa Peckins

Third Advisor

Lauren Moskowitz

Abstract

Parents of preschoolers are more likely to seek treatment for childhood depression compared to anxiety and behavioral disorders. Atypicality and stability have been implicated in relation to help-seeking, but it is not known how they differ between disorders and whether such differences impact help-seeking. The current study grouped mothers based on their atypicality and stability appraisals across disorders; tested for differences in appraisals between disorders; and then tested for differences in help-seeking based on group membership. Participants were 272 adult mothers of preschool-aged children. Mothers read a series of vignettes describing preschool-aged children with depression, anxiety, and ADHD, and then they answered questions to assess their perceptions of atypicality and stability and their likelihood of help-seeking for each of the problems presented. Results revealed three groups of mothers based on atypicality and stability appraisals. Further analyses demonstrated that mothers generally rated depression as significantly more atypical, but not more stable, than anxiety and ADHD. Finally, groups significantly differed in their likelihood of help-seeking such that mothers in the first group were generally more likely to seek help across disorders compared to mothers in the other two groups, while mothers in the second group were significantly more likely to seek help across disorders than mothers in the final group. These results show that atypicality and stability appraisals together provide a more nuanced picture of severity and help-seeking than either construct alone. Future researchers may want to test how these appraisals can be changed and improved via psychoeducational help-seeking interventions.

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