ABSTRACT
This chapter focuses on theory and data concerning the motives and reasons that play a role in determining why adolescents do or do not use health services, especially those offering psychotherapy or psychological counseling. There is a difference between an adolescent's awareness of illness and seeking medical or psychosocial treatment. The relationship between adolescent and health care provider is affected by the patient's motivations for seeking care. In the case of the adolescent patient, this factor becomes highly important. Health care professionals often find it difficult to distinguish between normal and pathological processes exhibited in adolescence. In contrast to clinically referred adolescents, nonclinical samples made quite accurate evaluations of psychological dysfunction. The adolescents were thus well-informed about the prevalence rates and types of treatment for behavioral and emotional symptoms, and were also convinced that psychological disturbances can be treated successfully. More specifically, male and female motivations for seeking care become different in adolescence.
