Awareness. Interaction. Direction. (A.I.D.): evaluation of a novel mental health awareness training

Abstract

ABSTRACT Objective The current study evaluates the effectiveness of Awareness. Interaction. Direction. (A.I.D.), a novel Mental Health Awareness Training (MHAT) that was developed to address training limitations of some existing MHATs. Method Between 2022 and 2023, data was collected from 1198 participants who were from a university, working for K-12 schools, or community members in the Mid-Western United States. Participants self-selected or were assigned by their supervisor to complete the A.I.D. training. Prior to and after completing the training, participants answered questions pertaining to mental health knowledge, their confidence in implementing the A.I.D. action plan, and personal stigma. Paired responses for the mental health knowledge questions before and after the A.I.D. training were compared using McNemar’s test. Linear mixed models were used to compare confidence and personal stigma outcomes before and after the A.I.D. training. Results After completion of the A.I.D. training, participants demonstrated a significant increase in mental health knowledge and confidence in implementing the A.I.D. action plan and a significant decrease in personal mental illness stigma. Significant differences by age and gender were identified. Discussion The current study demonstrated the novel A.I.D. training is an effective training. A.I.D. provides a MHAT option that is brief and that can be delivered in different formats (e.g. virtual or in-person) to best accommodate the individuals receiving the training. This presents organisations with another MHAT option.