Assessment of Awareness and Practice for Promotion of Mental Health Among Students
Chapter One
Objective of the study
The general objective of the study is an assessment of awareness and practice for the promotion of mental health among students. Hence, the specific objective of the study is as follows:
- To examine if there is an awareness of mental health among students
- To find out if students develop a positive attitude towards the practice of mental health.
- To evaluate if school management promotes mental health among students.
- To investigate how to improve the awareness of mental health among students.
CHAPTER TWO
REVIEW OF LITERATURE
INTRODUCTION
Our focus in this chapter is to critically examine relevant literature that would assist in explaining the research problem and recognize the efforts of scholars who had previously contributed immensely to similar research. The chapter intends to deepen the understanding of the study and close the perceived gaps.
Precisely, the chapter will be considered in three sub-headings:
- Conceptual Framework
- Theoretical Framework
CONCEPTUAL FRAMEWORK
MENTAL HEALTH
Mental health is defined as a “state of well-being in which every individual realizes his or her potential, copes with the normal stresses of life, works productively and fruitfully and can make a contribution to her or his community” (WHO, 2005). It is viewed as a dimension of overall health that spans a continuum from high-level wellness to severe illness (WHO, 2001). The promotion of mental health consists of any action taken to create living conditions and environments that support mental wellness and allow individuals, families, groups or communities to adopt and maintain healthy lifestyles fostering optimal emotional functioning and social inclusion (O’Reilly et al., 2018). Over the past twenty years, mental health difficulties among children and adolescents have been on the increase worldwide, becoming a leading cause of disability (WHO, 2005). The incidence of diagnosable mental, emotional, or behavioural disorders is now estimated at between 10% and 20% among school children. Mental health difficulties can manifest as either externalizing or internalizing problems. The most common externalizing problems, from preschool age onwards, include disruptive behaviour issues, attention deficit hyperactivity disorders (ADHD), oppositional defiant disorders, and conduct disorders (Tremblay et al., 2004). The predominant internalizing disorders include depression, anxiety, panic disorder, mood disorders, social phobia, specific phobias, and obsessive-compulsive disorder. Data collected over the last decade indicate that self-harm, suicidal attempts, eating disorders, depression, and addictive disorders are growing problems among young people. Depression is the third leading cause of death among adolescents in the USA and Europe (WHO, 2001). Mental health difficulties have a significant adverse impact on different aspects of children’s and young people’s development, contributing to poor school adjustment, reduced concentration, and problems in achievement and social relationships. Mental health issues are also associated with poor school attendance, suspension, and early school dropout. Given these alarming statistics, for three decades now, the mental health of children and adolescents has been assigned priority status within the global child health agenda. As early as 1986, in the Ottawa Charter for Health Promotion, the WHO (2001) identified children’s and adolescents’ mental health as a key area of public concern, towards which policy-makers needed to target their actions. Based on this, subsequent WHO policy documents 2005) flagged the key role of the education sector in addressing children’s and young people’s mental health needs. WHO recommends that schools function as one of the primary mental health support systems for students, enabling the planning and implementation of a broad spectrum of mental health actions that encompass promotion, prevention, intervention, and rehabilitation (WHO,2005). In 1995, the WHO’s Global School Health Initiative (WHO, 2001) emphasized the importance of focusing on and enhancing the psychosocial environment in schools to foster emotional and social well-being. The following sections review the recent research on the promotion of mental health in schools, formulating an innovative school mental health framework that is intended to offer a comprehensive and conceptually broad guide to researchers, practitioners, and policy-makers involved in planning and evaluating sustainable school mental health programs for students and teachers.
CHAPTER THREE
RESEARCH METHODOLOGY
INTRODUCTION
In this chapter, we described the research procedure for this study. A research methodology is a research process adopted or employed to systematically and scientifically present the results of a study to the research audience viz. a vis, the study beneficiaries.
RESEARCH DESIGN
Research designs are perceived to be an overall strategy adopted by the researcher whereby different components of the study are integrated in a logical manner to effectively address a research problem. In this study, the researcher employed the survey research design. This is due to the nature of the study whereby the opinion and views of people are sampled. According to Singleton & Straits, (2009), Survey research can use quantitative research strategies (e.g., using questionnaires with numerically rated items), qualitative research strategies (e.g., using open-ended questions), or both strategies (i.e., mixed methods). As it is often used to describe and explore human behaviour, surveys are therefore frequently used in social and psychological research.
POPULATION OF THE STUDY
According to Udoyen (2019), a study population is a group of elements or individuals as the case may be, who share similar characteristics. These similar features can include location, gender, age, sex or specific interest. The emphasis on study population is that it constitute of individuals or elements that are homogeneous in description.
This study was carried out on the assessment of awareness and practice for promotion of mental health among students, using University of Lagos , Lagos State as a case study. Staff of University of Lagos form the population of the study.
CHAPTER FOUR
DATA PRESENTATION AND ANALYSIS
INTRODUCTION
This chapter presents the analysis of data derived through the questionnaire and key informant interview administered on the respondents in the study area. The analysis and interpretation were derived from the findings of the study. The data analysis depicts the simple frequency and percentage of the respondents as well as interpretation of the information gathered. A total of eighty (80) questionnaires were administered to respondents of which only seventy-seven (77) were returned and validated. This was due to irregular, incomplete and inappropriate responses to some questionnaire. For this study a total of 77 was validated for the analysis.
CHAPTER FIVE
SUMMARY, CONCLUSION AND RECOMMENDATION
SUMMARY
In this study, our focus was on the assessment of awareness and practice for promotion of mental health among students using University of Lagos as a case study. The study specifically was aimed at highlighting if there is an awareness of mental health among students, find out if students develop a positive attitude towards the practice of mental health, evaluate if school management promote mental health among students, and investigate how to improve the awareness of mental health among students. A total of 77 responses were validated from the enrolled participants where all respondent are drawn from staff of University of Lagos.
CONCLUSION
Based on the finding of this study, the following conclusions were made:
- There is an awareness of mental health among students.
- Students develop a positive attitude towards the practice of mental health.
- School management promote mental health among students.
- There can be an improvement in the awareness of mental health among students by promotion of positive self-esteem,encourage students to eat healthy and provide healthy eating options,provide outlets to relieve anxiety and stress and promote school policies that support mental health such as bullying prevention.
RECOMMENDATION
Based on the responses obtained, the researcher proffers the following recommendations:
- That an effective public mental health action is needed in the Universities to reduce the burden of disease and the cost of mental illness now and in the future.
- University healthcare professionals should be aware of their attitude and it effect on their patients.
- Attention must be paid to showing empathy to ensure that students with mental health issues feels taken As a result of this patients feel encouraged to comply with the therapy they engaged in
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