Evaluation of school-based mental health promotion for adolescents. Focus on knowledge, stigma, help-seeking behaviour and resources

Abstract

Mental health problems in children and adolescents are common; approximately one in five experience some form of emotional disorder. Mental health promotion has been seen as one of the keystones in reducing mental health problems in young people.This study had two aims. First, to measure the basic knowledge of, attitudes toward, help-seeking behaviour and resources regarding mental health problems of 111 secondary school students in two schools, participating in a school-based mental health intervention. Second, to evaluate the impact of the school-based mental health intervention on these four factors for the intervention group relative to their control group in each school.A non-equivalent control group design was used, with pre-testing and post-testing one week prior to and one week after the intervention. The intervention was a short presentation, delivered by one mental health professional and three consumers of the mental health service. The intervention consisted of education, discussions and handouts.The results reveal that students in intervention group in School A had greater knowledge of mental illness, more positive attitudes and more previous contact with mental health problems at pre-test than their peers in School B. The effect of the intervention on the four subscales was substantial for both schools. After the intervention, knowledge, help-seeking behaviour and resources of the students in School A significantly increased. In School B knowledge and positive attitudes of students increased significantly after the intervention, as well as their resources.In conclusion, a brief mental health intervention can be effective in increasing adolescents' knowledge of, positive attitudes toward, help-seeking behaviour and resources regarding mental health problems. School authorities should emphasize implanting more health-promoting education into schools as a part of the school curriculum and focus on a whole-school strategy of supporting the wellbeing of students, their parents and school staff.

Geðrænn vandi barna og unglinga er algengur, um það bil einn af hverjum fimm upplifir eitthvað form tilfinningalegs vanda. Geðheilsuefling hefur verið talin einn af lykilþáttum þess að minnka geðheilsuvanda ungs fólks.Markmið rannsóknarinnar voru tvö. Hið fyrra var að mæla grundvallar þekkingu, viðhorf, hjálparsækni og bjargráð gagnvart geðheilsuvanda, hjá 111 nemendum í tveimur grunnskólum sem tóku þátt í skólamiðaðri geðheilsu íhlutun. Seinna markmiðið var að meta áhrif íhlutunarinnar á þessa fjóra þætti hjá íhlutunarhóp borið saman við samanburðarhóp.Lagður var fyrir spurningalisti viku fyrir íhlutun og aftur viku eftir íhlutun og borinn saman við samanburðarhóp (non-equivalent control group). Íhlutunin var stutt fræðsla sem flutt var af einum fagaðila innan geðheilbrigðisþjónustunnar og þremur notendum geðheilbrigðisþjónustunnar. Íhlutunin samanstóð af fræðslu, umræðum og dreifiritum. Niðurstöður leiddu í ljós að nemendur í skóla A voru með meiri þekkingu á geðröskunum, höfðu jákvæðara viðhorf, og meiri fyrri þekkingu af geðrænum erfiðleikum á forprófi samanborið við jafnaldra sína í skóla B. Áhrif íhlutunarinnar á undirþættina fjóra voru umtalsverð. Þekking, hjálparsækni og bjargráð nemenda í íhlutunarhóp í skóla A jukust marktækt eftir íhlutun. Í skóla B jukust þekking og viðhorf nemenda í íhlutunarhóp marktækt auk þess að jákvæðar breytingar urðu á bjargráðum. Niðurstöður gefa til kynna að stutt geðheilsufræðsla getur verið áhrifarík til að auka þekkingu unglinga, jákvæð viðhorf þeirra, hjálparsækni og bjargráð gagnvart geðheilsuvanda. Skólayfirvöld ættu að leggja áherslu á að auka heilseflandi geðfræðslu inn í skólana sem hluta af kennsluskrá skólans. Áhersla ætti einnig að vera sett á heildarstefnumótun til að styðja við vellíðan nemenda, foreldra þeirra og starfsfólks skólans.