Promoting mental health literacy in female students: A school-based educational intervention

Abstract

Background and objective:Considering the worldwide increase in mental health problems among adolescents and the hypothetical positive impact of mental health literacy (MHL) on mental health promotive behaviours, this study examined the effect of a MHL intervention in a sample of Iranian high school students.Design:Educational intervention with a pretest–posttest and control group design conducted among Iranian high school students in 2019.Setting:Four public schools in Shiraz, Iran.Methods:In this study, 220 students (110 in each intervention and control group) were selected using the cluster multi-stage sampling and participated in the study. Participants completed the adolescent MHL questionnaire at two stages (pretest and posttest). A training programme which comprised six 60- to 90-minutes sessions using collaborative learning techniques and printed materials was conducted with the experimental group. Data were subjected to covariance analysis.Results:No significant differences were found between study groups regarding demographic and MHL scores before the intervention. After completing the training programme, the intervention group showed a significant improvement in MHL and subscale scores ( p < .01). Covariance analysis confirmed an improvement of MHL in the intervention group after controlling for pretest scores but not in the control group.Conclusion:Study findings demonstrated the efficacy of the training intervention to improve adolescents’ MHL. Further research is recommended to examine the effects of the same intervention among boys and longer-term outcomes.