Journal of Education and Health Promotion

Effectiveness of school‑based mental health programs on mental health among adolescents

Document Type : Original Article

Authors

. Fariba Shahraki‑Sanavi 1
. Alireza Ansari‑Moghaddam 2
. Mahdi Mohammadi 2
. Nour‑Mohammad Bakhshani 3
. Hamid Salehiniya 4

1 Department of Public Health and Health Promotion Research Center, Zahedan University of Medical Sciences

2 Department of Epidemiology and Biostatistics, Health Promotion Research Center, Zahedan University of Medical Sciences

3 Department of Psychiatric and Clinical Psychology, Children and Adolescents Health Research Center, Zahedan University of Medical Sciences, Zahedan, Iran

4 Social Determinants of Health Research Center, Birjand University of Medical Sciences, Birjand, Iran, Department of Epidemiology and Biostatistics, Tehran University of Medical Sciences, Tehran, Iran

Abstract
AIM: This study aimed to investigate the effect of school‑based interventions on mental health among
adolescents in the southeast of Iran.
METHODS: This interventional quasi‑experimental study included a total of 420 adolescent girls
studying 10th grade in the public schools of Zahedan, Iran. Data were collected using general health
questionnaire‑28 questionnaire. After pretest, multidimensional interventions (individual education,
group education, individual consultations, modern education, and parents’ educational packages)
were given to the intervention group from October 2015 to June 2016. After a 3‑month interval, the
posttest was conducted in October 2016. Data were analyzed by covariance analysis.
RESULTS: There was a significant statistical difference between the changes in the mental
health scores after the intervention among the two study groups (P < 0.05). Furthermore, after the
intervention, moderate‑to‑severe mental health problems decreased considerably among the students
in the intervention group compared to controls. The greatest impact was on individual psychological
counseling.
CONCLUSIONS: The results of the study showed that by applying group training and individual
counseling in the schools improves mental health. Therefore, identifying student problems and
parent–teacher cooperation as well as consulting with specialist counselors can be effective in
providing practical and effective solutions in this regard. Therefore, findings suggest that prioritizing
mental health and taking action on the field are of utmost importance.

Keywords

Adolescent
Iran
mental health
  1. US Department of Health and Human Services. Office of Disease
    Prevention and Health Promotion Healthy People 2010: National
    Health Promotion and Disease Prevention Objectives. US Public
    Health Service. Washington, DC: US Government Printing Office;
    1990.
    2. US Department of Health and Human Services. Healthy People
    2020: An Opportunity to Address Societal Determinants of
    Health in the US. Secretary’s Advisory Committee on National
    Health Promotion and Disease Prevention Objectives for 2010.
    US Department of Health and Human Services; 2020.
    3. Merikangas KR, Merikangas KR, Nakamura EF, Kessler RC.
    Epidemiology of mental disorders in children and adolescents.
    Dialogues in clinical neuroscience 2009;11(1):7‑20.
    4. US Department of Health and Human Services. The Mental and
    Emotional Well‑being of Children: A Portrait of States and the
    Nation. Rockville, MD, USA: U.S. Department of Health and
    Human Services; 2007.
    5. Fazel M, Hoagwood K, Stephan S, Ford T. Mental health
    interventions in schools 1: Mental health interventions in schools
    in high‑income countries. Lancet Psychiatry 2014;1:377‑87.
    6. Taras HL, American Academy of Pediatrics Committee on
    School Health. School‑based mental health services. Pediatrics
    2004;113:1839‑45.
    7. Kutash K, Duchnowski AJ, Lynn N. School‑based Mental Health:
    An Empirical Guide for Decision‑Makers. Tampa: University of
    South Florida, Louis de la Parte Florida Mental Health Institute,
    Department of Child and Family Studies, Research and Training
    Center for Mental Health: Tampa, Florida; 2006.
    8. Nazari I, Hosseinpour M. The effects of social skill on anxiety
    and self‑esteem among second grade girl’s high school in
    BAGHMALEK. J Soc Psychol (New Findings In Psychol)
    2008;2:95‑116.
    9. Maghsoudi J, Sabour NH, Yazdani M, Mehrabi T. The effect of
    acquiring life skills through humor on social adjustment rate of
    the female students. Iran J Nurs Midwifery Res 2010;15:195‑201.
    10. Power AK. Transforming the nation’s health: Next steps in mental
    health promotion. Am J Public Health 2010;100:2343‑6.
    11. Bayer AM, GilmanRH, Tsui AO, Hindin MJ. What is adolescence?
    Adolescents narrate their lives in Lima, Peru. J Adolesc
    2010;33:509‑20.
    12. Mundy LK, Simmons JG, Allen NB, Viner RM, Bayer JK, Olds T,
    et al. Study protocol: The Childhood to Adolescence Transition
    Study (CATS). BMC Pediatr 2013;13:160.
    13. Belfer ML. Child and adolescent mental disorders: The magnitude
    of the problem across the globe. J Child Psychol Psychiatry
    2008;49:226‑36.
    14. Raheel H. Coping strategies for stress used by adolescent girls in
    Riyadh, Kingdom of Saudi Arabia. Pak J Med Sci 2014;30:958‑62.
    15. World Health Organization, World Psychiatric Association,
    International Association for Child and Adolescent Psychiatry and
    Allied Professions. Atlas: Child and Adolescent Mental Health
    Resources: Global Concerns, Implications for the Future. World
    Health Organization; 2005.
    16. Sadeghian E, Moghaderi Kousha M, Gorji S. The study of mental
    health status in high school female students in Hamadan City.
    Sci J Hamadan Uni Med Sci Health Serv 2010;17:39‑45.
    17. Zareipour MA, Eftekhar Ardebili H, Kamal A, Movahed E.
    Study of mental health and its relationship with family welfare
    in pre‑university students in Salmas City in 2010. J Res Dev Nurs
    Midwifery 2012;9:84‑93.
    18. Paternite CE. School‑based mental health programs and services:
    Overview and introduction to the special issue. J Abnorm Child
    Psychol 2005;33:657‑63.
    19. Greenberg MT, Weissberg RP, O’Brien MU, Zins JE, Fredericks L,
    Resnik H, et al. Enhancing school‑based prevention and youth
    development through coordinated social, emotional, and
    academic learning. Am Psychol 2003;58:466‑74.
    20. Erfani Khanghahi M, Shafiei F, Tavakoli R. The effect of mental
    health education on pre university high school girls concerning
    their attitude beliefs, and the knowledge towards the subject.
    J Health Admin 2004;7:57‑63.
    21. Goossens FX, Lammers J, Onrust SA, Conrod PJ, de Castro BO,
    Monshouwer K. Effectiveness of a brief school‑based intervention
    on depression, anxiety, hyperactivity, and delinquency: A cluster
    randomized controlled trial. Eur Child Adolesc Psychiatry
    2016;25:639‑48.
    22. Rafee Far S. From Health Education to Health. 1st ed. Tehran:
    Tandees; 2005.
    23. Goldberg DP, Gater R, Sartorius N, Ustun TB, Piccinelli M,
    Gureje O, et al. The validity of two versions of the GHQ in the
    WHO study of mental illness in general health care. Psychol Med
    1997;27:191‑7.
    24. Banks MH. Validation of the general health questionnaire in a
    young community sample. Psychol Med 1983;13:349‑53.
    25. Goldberg D. Screening psychiatric disorders. In: Williams P,
    Willkinson G, editors. The Scape of Epidemiological Psychiatry.
    London: Routledge; 1989.
    26. Ebrahimi AE, Moulavi H, Mousavi SG, Bornamanesh A,
    Yaghoubi M. Psychometric properties and factor structure of
    general health questionnaire 28 (GHQ‑28) in Iranian psychiatric
    patients. J Res Behav Sci 2007;5:5‑12.
    27. Jolaee S, Mehrdad N, Bahrani N, Moradi Kalboland M.
    A comparative investigation on health behaviors of students
    in primary schools with and without health educator. J Hayat
    2004;10:55‑62.
    28. Zareipour M, Sadaghianifar A, Valizadeh R, Alinejad M,
    Noorani S. The effect of health promoting schools program in
    improving the health status of schools in Urmia, north west of
    Iran. Int J Pediatr 2017;5:4319‑27.
    29. Schulte‑Körne G. Mental health problems in a school setting in
    children and adolescents. Dtsch Arztebl Int 2016;113:183‑90.
    30. US Department of Health and Human Services. The Mental and
    Emotional Well‑Being of Children: A Portrait of States and the
    Nation. Select here to Read Report on Line and Click on Any
    Chapter such as. U. S. Department of Health and Human Services;
    2007.
    31. Ghaemi SZ, Khakshour A, Abasi Z, Hajikhani Golchin NA.
    Effectiveness of school‑based program to preventing mental
    disorders in school age children. Rev Clin Med 2015;2:118‑24.
  2. 32. Brown C, Dahlbeck D, Sparkman‑Barnes L. Collaborative
    relationships: School counselors and non‑school mental health
    professionals working together to improve the mental health
    needs of students. Prof Sch Couns 2006;9:332‑5.
    33. Ranjeh Bazoo K. Mistakes in training and education. Inform Bull
    2008;3:12‑5.
    34. Walker Z, Townsend J, Oakley L, Donovan C, Smith H,
    Hurst Z, et al. Health promotion for adolescents in primary care:
    Randomised controlled trial. BMJ 2002;325:524.
    35. Ozer EM, Brindis CD, Millstein SG, Knopf DK, Irwin CE.
    America’s Adolescents: Are they Healthy. San Francisco, CA:
    University of California, National Adolescent Health Information
    Center; 1998.
    36. Weisz JR, McCarty CA, Valeri SM. Effects of psychotherapy for
    depression in children and adolescents: A meta‑analysis. Psychol
    Bull 2006;132:132‑49.
    37. Sabella RA. A reaction to counseling psychology and school
    counseling an underutilized partnership. Couns Psychol
    2004;32:263‑9.
    38. Smith B. Why Students Need Guidance Councelors with Real life
    Experiences. USA: Helum Inc.; 2007.
    39. Gilman R, Fuurlong ML, Huebner ES. Handbook of Positive
    Psychology in Schools. New York: Oxford University; 2009.
    40. Stice E, Shaw H, Bohon C, Marti CN, Rohde P. A meta‑analytic
    review of depression prevention programs for children and
    adolescents: Factors that predict magnitude of intervention effects.
    J Consult Clin Psychol 2009;77:486‑503.
    41. Lopez MA, Basco MA. Effectiveness of cognitive behavioral
    therapy in public mental health: Comparison to treatment as
    usual for treatment‑resistant depression. Adm Policy Ment Health
    2015;42:87‑98.
    42. Hofmann SG, AsnaaniA, Vonk IJ, SawyerAT, FangA. The efficacy
    of cognitive behavioral therapy: A review of meta‑analyses.
    Cognit Ther Res 2012;36:427‑40.
    43. Gaete J, Martinez V, Fritsch R, Rojas G, Montgomery AA, ArayaR.
    Indicated school‑based intervention to improve depressive
    symptoms among at risk Chilean adolescents: A randomized
    controlled trial. BMC Psychiatry 2016;16:276.
Journal of Education and Health Promotion
Volume 10, Issue 6
June 2020
Pages 1-6

Home

Guide for Authors

Submit Manuscript

Reviewers

Contact Us