Psychological disabilities, stigma and service utilization for post-secondary students in the United States

J Am Coll Health. 2026 Apr 28:1-12. doi: 10.1080/07448481.2026.2663303. Online ahead of print.

ABSTRACT

OBJECTIVE: This study estimated the prevalence of psychological disabilities among university students, characterized associations between symptom severity and functional limitations, explored self-identification and service registration across mental health diagnoses, and examined mental health stigma’s effect on service access.

PARTICIPANTS: 104,729 post-secondary students from the 2023-2024 Healthy Minds Study.

METHODS: Descriptive statistics addressed the first three aims; multivariable logistic regression addressed the fourth.

RESULTS: Self-reported psychological disabilities comprised 13.1% of all disabilities. Self-reported functional limitations increased sigmoidally with PHQ-9 and GAD-7 scores. Students with anxiety and depression were least likely to self-identify as having a psychological disability despite reporting functional limitations. Personal and perceived stigma were not associated with DSO registration, but were negatively associated with mental health treatment access; help-seeking stigma was negatively associated with both.

DISCUSSION: Novel self-identification, self-disclosure and stigma data are provided to support improved reporting and service access for students with psychological disabilities.

PMID:42050382 | DOI:10.1080/07448481.2026.2663303