College Student Concealment and Disclosure of Mental Health Issues in the Classroom: Students’ Perceptions of Risk and Use of Contextual Criteria

ABSTRACT

Through an application of Communication Privacy Management Theory, this study examines students’ perceptions of risk and the criteria that influence student decisions to conceal or disclose mental health conditions to their college instructors. Participants included 228 college students who self-identified as struggling with depression or another mental health condition. The findings of the study indicate that the contextual criteria important reason is a significant predictor of student intention to disclose a mental health issue to instructors. In addition, students who had previously reported a mental health condition to an instructor perceived disclosure to be a higher risk than those who had never previously shared their mental health condition with an instructor. Implications of student disclosures of mental health conditions in the classroom and the impact of concealment or disclosure on student-instructor relationships are also discussed.

KEYWORDS:

• Student-instructor disclosures
• mental illness
• communication privacy management theory
• stigma
• risk-benefit ratio
• contextual criteria

Declaration Of Interest Statement

The authors state no conflict of interest.

Additional information

Notes on contributors

Andrea L. Meluch

Andrea L. Meluch (PhD, Kent State University) is an assistant professor in the School of Communication and the Department of Management at The University of Akron. Her research explores how individuals manage their health information in organizational settings. Dr. Meluch’s research has appeared in a variety of outlets including Communication Education, Southern Communication Journal, Journal of Communication Pedagogy, and Journal of Communication in Healthcare.

Shawn C. Starcher

Shawn C. Starcher (PhD, Kent State University) is an assistant professor in the Department of Communication, Media, and Theatre at Muskingum University. His research explores how parents and children discuss mental health in the family environment. His research has appeared in a variety of outlets, including Communication Quarterly, International Journal of Teaching and Learning in Higher Education, and Computers in Human Behavior.