Interventions to promote Mental Health Flashcards
Define what is meant by Mental Health.
- a state of well-being in which the individual realizes his or her own abilities, can cope with the normal stresses of life, can work productively and fruitfully, and is able to make a contribution to his or her community (WHO, 2001).
Describe the difference between Mental health promotion and mental illness promotion.
- WHO (2005)
- Have overlapping aims.
- often, mental health promotion are also relevant to mental health illness prevention.
- the scope for promotion is wider:
- Target of intervention (quality of life, employment, relationships, communities)
Target audience (those ‘at risk’, certain age groups, general population).
Requires action across many different areas (income, housing, transport, communities, employment, volunteering, education, consumer affairs, arts, sport, media, health and social care…).
Describe the benefits of mental health promotion.
- strengthens individuals - increases emotional resilience through interventions designed to promote self-esteem, life and coping skills, eg., communicating and relationship skills.
- strengthens communities - increases social inclusion and participation.
improves neighbourhood environments, developing a range of interventions which support mental health for people of all ages, e.g., anti-bullying strategies at school. - reduces “structural barriers” to mental health- tackles societal structures through initiatives to reduce discrimination and inequalities to promote access to education, meaningful employment, housing, services and support for vulnerable people.
Explain why mental health promotion is important?
- ‘Health professionals and health planners are often too preoccupied with the immediate problems of those who have a disease to be able to pay attention to needs of those who are “well”’ (WHO, 2005)
- mental health has intrinsic value to society:
- Essential for wellbeing and quality of life
- Important for functioning
- Contributes to all aspects of human life (relationships, physical health, social cohesion, productivity, employability, earning potential, education attainment, home life, crime reduction)
- Reducing/ preventing mental illness
- preventing suffering
- potentially very cost effective as mental illness costs are expensive
-estimated at £105.2 billion per year in 2010 (Centre for Mental Health, 2010)
Describe the impacts of better mental health (Keyes (2005)).
- compared to flourishing adults, moderately mentally health and languishing have:
- psycho-social impairment (e.g. poorer relationships)
physical health (e.g. more cardiovascular disease)
productivity (e.g. missed days at work) - this is correlational.
- there is longer term evidence ((e.g. Schotanus-Dijkstra et al., 2017; Lyubomirsky et al 2005)
Identify potential target groups for interventions to promote mental health.
- Children and adolescents
- parents of young children
- older individuals
- individuals that have experienced trauma
- general population
- those more at risk due to socio-economic factors or environmental factors
-individuals who already have a mental illness
Children and Adolescents (interventions)
- mental illness usually begins in childhood and adolescents (Kessler et al., 2007).
- there’s a difference in the development between the cognitive and emotional aspects of the brain (Steinberg, 2005).
- this is a time of remarkable turbulence and instability (Harrop and Trower, 2001)
-Friendship groups
- School environment
- Level of independence
- Dynamic with parents/guardians
- Long lasting negative impact of a mental illness AND long lasting positive impact of mental health
- independence away from parents/guardians
- educational attainment
- development of peer support networks
Describe Keyes’ (2006) study
- Flourishing was most common group in 12-14 year olds.
- Moderate mental health was most common group in 15-18 year olds.
- Adolescents without mental illness were not necessarily mentally healthy.
- Flourishing adolescents were found to be functioning better than moderately mentally healthy or languishing adolescents.
As measures of mental health increased:
Conduct problems decreased (arrests, truancy, alcohol, tobacco and marijuana use).
Psychosocial functioning increased (self determination, closeness to others and school integration).
Older individuals and interventions
threats to mental health in older individuals involve:
Age discrimination
Barriers to participation in meaningful activities
Social isolation
Poorer physical health
Poverty
‘It is widely acknowledged that the mental health and well-being of older people has been neglected across the spectrum of promotion, prevention and treatment services’ (National Institute for Mental Health, 2005)
Promoting mental health in older individuals can (Age Concern & the Mental Health Foundation, 2006):
… benefit each of us personally
… benefit society by maximising the contributions that older people can make
… benefit society by minimising costs of care related to poor mental health
Define what is meant by Socio-economic factors.
- APA: ‘The social standing or class of an individual or group. It is often measured as a combination of education, income and occupation’.
Socio-economic factors involve income, educational attainment, and financial security, as well as subjective perceptions of social status and social class.
Socio-economic and environmental factors (interventions)
‘Examinations of socioeconomic status often reveal inequities in access to resources, plus issues related to privilege, power and control’.
Related to the opportunities and privileges afforded to people within society thus highly relevant to health inequalities.
Lower SES status is associated with poorer health outcomes (Marmot, 2020) including mental health (Hoebel et al., 2017; Macintyre et al., 2018).
Effective interventions to reduce the effects of poverty and inequality on mental health at the individual/family level exist, but less evidence regarding community based interventions and policy level interventions (Wahlbeck et al., 2017).
Individuals who already have a mental illness and interventions.
- Usually with non-clinical groups, but not always.
Confidence, self esteem, hopefulness and social integration can influence clinical and quality of life outcomes for people with mental illnesses.
Social Exclusion Unit 2004;
Adults with mental health problems are one of the most excluded groups in society.
This is often caused by stigma and discrimination.
Two-thirds of men under the age of 35 with mental health problems who die by suicide are unemployed.
The general population and interventions
Just 18% of US adults are ‘flourishing’, suggesting over 80% of population may benefit from increased mental health (Keyes, 2005).
In Scotland, 14% of adults have ‘good mental wellbeing’, 73% have average, and 14% have poor mental wellbeing (Braunholtz et al 2007).
Describe Early Life and School approaches (Macro level interventions; meso and micro interventions).
Meilstrup et al (2020).
Aim: to investigate socio-economic status, emotional symptoms, self-efficacy and social competence.
Participants: 3969 adolescents aged 11-15
Design: Cross-sectional.
Results: Lower SES adolescents had higher rates of emotional symptoms and lower levels of self-efficacy and social competence.
High self-efficacy and high social competence buffer the association between SES and emotional symptoms.
What is meant by self-efficacy?
- self-efficacy describes a person’s belief in their ability to succeed.
Describe the methodology of the Perry Preschool Project.
- developed by school Charles Eugene Beatty and psychologist David Weikart in 1962.
- Goal: To improve disadvantaged children’s capacity for future success in school and in life by promoting young children’s intellectual, social, and physical development.
Participants: 123 African American preschool children ages 3–4 who were living in poverty and assessed to be at high risk for school failure. 58 were entered into the preschool programme.
Describe the programme components of the Perry Preschool Project.
- For one year a daily 2½-hour classroom session and a weekly 1½-hour home visit for each child.
- Children’s cognitive and social skills are built and supported through individualized teaching and learning.
- A key feature of the curriculum is active learning, in which children are supported to initiate their own play and activities.
Describe the results of The Perry Preschool Project with the children at age 27.
By age 27, the children who had experienced the programme (Schweinhart & Weikart, 1993):
Completed more schooling
Committed fewer crimes
Had higher rates of employment
Earned a higher income
By age 27, financially the programme had achieved a return of $7.16 for every dollar invested. Financial benefits were mainly accrued in the form of decreased welfare and criminal justice costs and higher earnings
