International Journal of Education and Social Science

Common favorable attributes within the marine culture include readiness, self-reliance, discipline, unit cohesion, and mission accomplishment. These attributes enhance the soldiers ability to adapt under pressure but can also delay or complicate the need for professional mental health intervention due to the perception of such help as weak, perceived loss of control, or possibly a threat to trust and career standing. This narrative examines the mental health stigma and barriers to mental health care in the Marine population and other closely related military groups while focusing on Marine-specific areas related to identifying and seeking out mental health help. In addition, a culturally responsive clinical framework with an emphasis on solution-focused practices, narrative methods, attention to military identity, and collaboration with leaders, chaplains, families, and community resources are explored. Changing the hesitation of Marines to seek mental health requires trustworthiness in the system, supportive leadership, accessibility to care, effective messaging, framing help seeking as a strength, responsibility, and readiness. There is a limited amount of research on the Marine population in this areas and future research should examine subgroup differences, confidentiality perceptions, intervention effectiveness, and the transferability of findings across branches and international military contexts.