Student Mental Wellbeing Research Articles

Yuva school life skills programme: Its role in promoting physical and mental well-being of students

Adolescence is the growth phase when psychological and physiological changes take place. India has the largest population of adolescents in the world, being home to 243 million individuals aged 10-19 years. About one-quarter of India's population comprises of adolescents. India's adolescents constitute 20% of the world's 1.2 billion adolescents (UNICEF, 2009). Investing in the world's 1.2 billion adolescents, aged between 10-19 years, can break entrenched cycles of poverty and inequity, said UNICEF in its 2011 State of the World's Children Report entitled 'Adolescence: An Age of Opportunity'. It is time for India to address the issues of empowering its adolescents who are now part of global village through electronic media and internet.The surveys conducted by Government agencies and Non-Governmental Organizations present us a picture about the physical and mental well being of India's adolescent population. Some of the figures are being presented here. 30% of the billion-strong population of the country is young people while 20% would qualify as adolescents (Census of India, 2001). The projected number of drug abusers in India is about 3 million, and most are in the age group 16-35(UNODC, 2003). More than one-quarter (27%) of Indian women age 20-49 married before age 15; over half (58%) married before legal age of 18, and three-quarter (74%) married before reaching age 20 (NFHS III, Vol. II p. 212, 2007). Only 15% youth reported that they had received family life or sex education in school or through special programs sponsored by the government or NGOs ('Youth in India: Situation and Needs 2006-07'). 83% young men and 78% young women in the age group 15-24 expressed that they perceived family life education to be important (IIPS: Pop Council Youth survey, 2006-07). As regards discussion on sexuality issues with parents, low figures of 0-2% of young men and 1 -6% of young women had discussed romantic relationships and reproductive processes with either parent. An extremely significant 47% of women and 16% men reported having never received any information on sexual matters from anybody. 19% of young women aged 20-24 were married before age 15,49% before age 18 and 67% before age 20. In contrast, just 7% of young men aged 20-24 were married before age 18 and 16% before age 20 ('Youth in India: Situation and Needs 2006-07'; conducted by the International Institute for Population Sciences, Mumbai, and Population Council, New Delhi). Among women age 25-49,20% had sexual intercourse before they were 15 years old, and 55% before age 18 (NFHS III, Vol. II p.217,2007). Overall, one in six women age 15-19 has begun childbearing (NFHS III, Vol. II p.33, 2007). 35% of all reported AIDS cases in India occur among young people in the age group of 15-24 years and more than 50% of the new HIV infections occur also among young people (NACO, 2005). Over 50% of all new HIV infections in India take place among young adults between 15-24 years (UNICEF India). In spite of heavy campaigning, 60% women in India had never heard of HIV and AIDS (NFHS III, 2007). According to a national level Indian study on child abuse conducted by the Ministry of Women and Child Development in 2007, out of a total of 12,447 children, across 13 states, 53.22% reported having faced severe and other forms of sexual abuse. Among them 52.94% were boys and 47.06% girls. Approximately 70% of abused children have never reported the matter to anyone. In Uttar Pradesh, only 8.7% of married women ages 15-19 reported use of condoms. (NFHS-3,2005-06: UP 2007).These figures make us aware about the alarming conditions. Many state governments as well as NGOs have taken initiatives to address these problems. Uttarakhand's Government launched Vidyalayi AIDS Shiksha Karyakram (Schools AIDS Education Programme) and Rajasthan's Government launched Jivan Kaushal Shiksha (Life Skills Education). Rajasthan Govt, introduced Life Skills Education as a compulsory subject for class XI in all Govt, and Private schools in year 2005; they used the framework of Core Life Skills with a focus on empowering adolescents to make informed choices and decisions. …

Promoting Law Student Mental Health Literacy and Wellbeing: A Case Study from The College of Law, Australia

<p>A number of studies have been undertaken about the mental health of law students and the reports as to the findings of those studies have all expressed concern about the high levels of psychological distress suffered by them. Australian studies indicate that while university students suffer from emotional distress at a rate greater than that of the general population and at a higher rate than their non-student (age group) peers, law students are more distressed than their university peers. This has led to many calls for action.</p><p><br />Most law students undertake their degree with a view to practising law. It is now also accepted that legal practitioners suffer depression or emotional distress at higher rates than other professionals, other workers more generally and the general population. Research shows that there is a strong correlation between high levels of emotional distress and the incidence of mental illness. Law students suffering high or very high distress levels are therefore at an increased risk of suffering a mental illness, most commonly anxiety and/or depression.</p><p>Faced with this problem, the question arises: how should legal education institutions respond? This article describes the approach taken by one legal education institution, The College of Law, Australia (the College), in answering this question. The College identified the value in improving students’ mental health literacy and stress management and now trains its lecturers to deliver an educational workshop (the workshop) in these areas. The workshop forms part of the core curriculum for the College’s practical legal training program (PLT).</p><p>Part 2 of the article reviews some of the literature about health promotion, health literacy, mental health literacy and promoting student wellbeing, providing the underpinnings for the intervention. Part 3 describes the development of the workshop for pre-admission graduate law students. Part 4 outlines the content of the workshop and delivery methods. Part 5 considers evaluations of the workshop, from both the student and teacher perspective and student learning outcomes, and Part 6 contains recommendations based on our experience in designing and delivering the workshop.</p>

An Initial Exploration of the Association between Psychological Distress and Sedentary Behaviour in First Year Undergraduates. A Practice Report

University students are reported to have a higher prevalence of psychological distress than the general population. Consequently, research surrounding factors that may contribute to poor mental health of students is imperative in order to identify interventions for this at-risk population. Previous research has determined that sedentary behaviour is associated with physical health, with an emerging focus on the association between sedentary behaviour and mental health. As the role of student consists of primarily sedentary behaviours such as reading, writing and computer use, the relationship between these activities and student mental wellbeing is particularly relevant. The presentation reported on the findings of study conducted on a sample of first year undergraduates and their reported levels of psychological distress and use of time. The findings highlight the diverse and demanding lifestyles of today’s student and the need for further research into student mental well-being.

Results of a Transtheoretical Model-Based Alcohol, Tobacco and Other Drug Intervention in Middle Schools

BackgroundEarly use of alcohol, tobacco, and other drugs threatens the physical and mental well-being of students and continued use negatively affects many areas of development. An internet-based, tailored intervention based on the Transtheoretical Model of Behavior Change was delivered to middle school students to reduce alcohol, tobacco, and other drug use. This internet-based approach requires very little faculty and staff time, which is efficient given curricular demands. MethodsTwenty-two middle schools in the United States were matched and randomly assigned to either the intervention or control conditions (N=1590 students who had ever used substances). Participants received one pre-test assessment, three thirty-minute intervention sessions over three months, and two post-test assessments (3 and 14months after pre-test, respectively). ResultsRandom effects logistic models showed significant treatment effects for the intervention group when compared to the control group at the 3-month post-test. ConclusionsThis program has the potential to be applied as stand-alone practice or as part of more intensive interventions to promote substance use cessation.

University Campus Peer Support Centres: Benefits for Student Emotional and Mental Well-Being

Within undergraduate student populations, there has been a rise in the incidence of mental health issues such as depression and anxiety. These problems have been shown to negatively impact emotional wellbeing and academic success.1 Many elements of the undergraduate experience, including stressful transitions from high school to first year, contribute to mental health problems amongst this student body. Peer support is a relatively recent resource for universities to address growing mental health concerns on campus. Peer support, which involves trained students who voluntarily provide emotional support to peers, offers a unique function to student mental health. It can be useful throughout a student’s undergraduate career and is also beneficial to those who provide the support. While it may not replace professional mental health services, it may be a significant addition to the existing student wellness support systems on university campuses today.

Implementation of a Strengths-Based Approach to Teaching in an Elementary School

Schools play a significant role in addressing children’s mental health needs and this article contends that schools can further contribute to student mental well-being by adopting a strengths perspective model. A specific strengths assessment and treatment model is presented that extends to individual, peer and group interventions as well as discussions within the classroom that is applicable to every student in the school and not only students considered ‘at risk’. By engaging an entire class, or indeed an entire school, in a dialogue of strengths, the concept of strengths can become a part of the culture of the school and lead to a positive school environment. This article provides an overview of the model, its implementation in a school, including the theory informing the interventions, followed by two brief case studies showing how the model was applied in a classroom. The intervention not only transforms the way in which educators interact with students, but it changes the way students perceive themselves and the manner in which they perceive their own potential.

The Formation of the CanadaUnited States School Mental Health Alliance

School Mental Health (SMH) and education leaders from Canada and the United States (U.S.) have been meeting to explore collaboration across borders to enhance school success by supporting the social, emotional and mental well-being of students. Meetings in Minneapolis in 2009, under the auspice of the International Alliance for Child and Adolescent Mental Health and Schools (www.intercamhs.org), and in Washington, D.C. in 2010, resulted in a new CanadaU.S. Alliance for SMH. The Alliance focuses on four objectives: expand and integrate SMH research to build a cross-border, unified evidence base to be translated meaningfully into practice, build knowledge and connections incrementally amongst practitioners in an increasingly formalized way, seek funding to support communication and collaboration across disciplines, borders and organizations, and advocate for and support standardized training in professions working to implement SMH programs. Presented are conclusions and recommendations, goals and directions...

Health Research on the Current Agenda of School Psychology: Interview with Prof. Bonnie Nastasi

Health research, principally with a focus on student mental health and well-being, is a rising field in school psychology. The importance of the topic needs no explanation and yet, at the same time, there are both possibilities and challenges school psychologists face when engaging with this particular type of research, especially when studying cultural differences. One of the leading experts in this emerging field is Prof. Bonnie Nastasi who kindly accepted to answer our questions about the present state and the future of mental health research within school psychology.

KidsMatter: A Population Health Model to Support Student Mental Health and Well-being in Primary Schools

This article provides an overview of a new schoolbased mental health initiative currently being trialed in 101 primary schools in Australia. KidsMatter: the Australian Primary School Mental Health Initiative is a population model for supporting student mental health and well-being. Using a whole-school implementation model, it provides schools with a framework, a guided process and key resources to develop and implement a co-ordinated set of mental health promotion, prevention and early intervention (PPEI) strategies for the specific mental health and well-being needs of their students. Through KidsMatter primary schools are engaged in building their capacities for PPEI by promoting a positive school community, teaching social and emotional skills, providing parenting support and education, and facilitating early intervention for students experiencing mental health difficulties. The article describes the rationale and theoretical underpinnings of KidsMatter, outlines key features of the framework, impleme...

Transtheoretical-based bullying prevention effectiveness trials in middle schools and high schools

Background Bullying threatens the physical and mental well-being of students across a broad range of schools. Tailored interventions based on the Transtheoretical model and delivered over the Internet were designed to reduce participation in each of three roles related to bullying (bully, victim and passive bystander). Methods Effectiveness trials were completed in 12 middle schools and 13 high schools in the USA. A diverse sample of 1237 middle (6th–8th grade, with 45.1% in the 7th grade; ages 11–14) and 1215 high school (9th–11th grade, with 41.6% in the 9th grade; ages 14–17) students were available for analyses. Results Analyses showed significant treatment effects for both intervention groups when compared to control for both the middle and high school programs. Conclusions Given the relative ease of dissemination, these programs could be applied as stand-alone practices or as part of more intensive interventions.