INTERPERSONAL DEPENDENCY AND HEALTH-SERVICE UTILIZATION IN A COLLEGE-STUDENT SAMPLE

The relationship between interpersonal dependency and health service utilization (i.e., ''medical help-seeking'') was examined in 92 healthy undergraduate subjects (60 women and 32 men). Subjects were prescreened for level of dependency before the start of the study, and then provided monthly reports of health status and health service utilization over a one-semester (i.e., three-month) period. Level of dependency predicted number of visits to the college health center and number of visits to private physicians in both men and women, even when health status was controlled for statistically. Results are discussed in the context of previous research on dependency and help-seeking in laboratory, classroom, social, and medical settings.