A theory-based exploration of psychosocial factors influencing concussion health seeking intentions in college students

Objective: This mixed method study examined how psychosocial factors from the Theory of Planned Behavior and Reasoned Action (TPB/RA) influence health-seeking behaviors after concussion, expanding from student-athlete TPB/RA research to assess the influence of psychosocial factors within a general college population. Participants: Two hundred and forty-four students participated from a large Southeastern public university. Methods: A concurrent nested mixed-methods approach involving closed- and constructed- response survey questions. Results: Subjective norms (direct: B = .499, p = .002; indirect: B = .023, p = .046) and attitude (indirect: B = .034, p = .041) were significant predictors of intention to seek medical care after a hypothetical concussion. Open-ended responses were coded by anticipated post-injury behaviors. Only 36.2% of the sample indicated intention to seek medical care. The most common response (38.3%) was students would self-treat a suspected concussion. Conclusions: Subjective norms and indirect attitudes are important to understanding how general college students seek care after a concussion, particularly how the influence of others are important in the decision to seek healthcare.