Beyond the Unitary: Direct, Moderated, and Mediated Associations of Mindfulness Facets With Mental Health Literacy and Treatment-Seeking Attitudes

Background and Objectives: Psychological disorders are prevalent and distressing. Early treatment initiation can prevent adverse outcomes and reduce healthcare impacts. Improving mental health literacy (MHL) and treatment-seeking attitudes (TSA) is key in early treatment initiation. Examining the facets of dispositional mindfulness, the capacity to pay attention to present-moment experiences with acceptance, may offer more granular insights in understanding MHL and TSA than examining it as a unitary concept. This study examined: a) associations between mindfulness facets and MHL and TSA, b) facets’ prediction of MHL and TSA beyond demographics, c) moderation of the MHL–TSA relationship by mindfulness facets, and d) mediation of mindfulness–TSA relationships via general self-efficacy (GSE). Methods: A community sample of 299 adults (49.5% cis women; Mage = 41.0) were recruited online (TurkPrime) and completed demographic questions and self-report measures: Five Facet Mindfulness Questionnaire-15, Mental Health Literacy Scale, Mental Help Seeking Attitudes Scale, and General Self‐Efficacy Scale. Results: Describe, Non-Judgment, and Act with Awareness were modestly associated with MHL; all five facets correlated with TSA. Hierarchical regressions controlling demographics showed Describe and Non-React predicted MHL, while Act with Awareness uniquely predicted TSA. Non-React moderated the MHL–TSA relationship, with higher non-react amplifying the relationship. GSE fully mediated relationships between Observe and Non-Judgment with TSA, suggesting self-efficacy as a key mechanism of these facets. Conclusions: Findings support examining mindfulness as multifaceted. Interventions cultivating Non-React may improve the translation of mental health knowledge into treatment-seeking behaviors. Future research should explore how mindfulness facets independently and interactively foster early intervention and treatment engagement.