Abstract
BackgroundInvestigating variables associated with mental health literacy in the college-age population takes us one step closer to providing intervention for this vulnerable group, where growing rates of psychological disorders are a serious public concern. This study adds to the existing literature by incorporating, within a single model, multi-faceted variables (demographic, psychological, and academic) that contribute to mental health literacy in demographically and ethnically diverse college students.MethodsParticipants were undergraduate students enrolled at nine different colleges that are part of a large, urban, public university system. A total of 1213 respondents (62.0% female, 73.3% non-white) completed an in-person assessment of mental health literacy and answered questions about demographics, college experience, and mental health experience. Data were analyzed to identify which variables best discriminated between high, mid-level, and low performers on this assessment.ResultsDiscriminant correspondence analysis revealed that the difference between high and low performers (accounting for 90.27% of the total variance) was driven by participants who had taken at least one course related to clinical psychology and who typically majored in psychology and applied health science fields. These participants were more likely to report being white, female, between the ages of 28–32, and in the fourth year or later of their undergraduate program. In addition, high performers were more likely to have been diagnosed and/or treated for a psychological disorder, have more experience with psychological disorders through personal, family, or peer history, and have families who are open to discussing mental health issues.ConclusionThe main contributor to variation in mental health literacy scores was having taken a clinical psychology course, followed by majoring in psychology. Importantly, our findings identified not only the high performers, but also the low performers, for whom an increase in knowledge and awareness of mental health is crucial to overall psychological well-being. These results have important implications for the design of educational interventions aimed at improving mental health literacy at the college level, especially for students who otherwise would not have been exposed to this information from coursework or their major.
Highlights
Investigating variables associated with mental health literacy in the college-age population takes us one step closer to providing intervention for this vulnerable group, where growing rates of psychological disorders are a serious public concern
Current study Based on a comprehensive review of the literature, we identified several gaps in knowledge related to factors associated with mental health literacy
Descriptive findings Data were collected from 1255 participants, but due to missing data, 42 participants were excluded from the final statistical analysis, which resulted in a final sample size of 1213 participants
Summary
Investigating variables associated with mental health literacy in the college-age population takes us one step closer to providing intervention for this vulnerable group, where growing rates of psychological disorders are a serious public concern. Mental health literacy—defined as knowledge and beliefs regarding psychological disorders, which in turn fosters the ability to identify, manage, and prevent such disorders—originated in Jorm et al.’s [1] influential paper on this topic Included in this definition are recognition of the symptoms of psychological disorders, knowledge of their causes and risk factors, attitudes regarding mental health, and the capacity to access both mental health information and professional services. Concerns regarding the college population are further established by a recent national survey conducted by the American College Health Association, where when asked about their experiences in the past 12 months, more than 45% of undergraduate students reported having had difficulty functioning due to depression, and more than 65% reported having had overwhelming anxiety [5]. In a recent international study by the World Health Organization, more than 30% of first-year undergraduates reported that at some point in the past 12 months, they experienced at least one of the mood, anxiety, or substance disorders addressed in the survey [6]
Sign-in/Register to view highlights & summary Talk to us
Join us for a 30 min session where you can share your feedback and ask us any queries you have
Schedule a callDisclaimer: All third-party content on this website/platform is and will remain the property of their respective owners and is provided on "as is" basis without any warranties, express or implied. Use of third-party content does not indicate any affiliation, sponsorship with or endorsement by them. Any references to third-party content is to identify the corresponding services and shall be considered fair use under The CopyrightLaw.
