Mental health-related knowledge, attitudes and behaviours in a cross-sectional sample of australian university students: a comparison of domestic and international students.

BACKGROUND: There are growing concerns about the mental health of university students in Australia and internationally, with universities, governments and other stakeholders actively developing new policies and practices. Previous research suggests that many students experience poor mental health while at university, and that the risk may be heightened for international students. Mental health-related knowledge, attitudes and behaviours are modifiable determinants of mental health and thus suitable targets for intervention. This study assessed the mental health-related knowledge, stigmatising attitudes, helping behaviours, and self-reported experiences of mental health problems in the student population of a large multi-campus Australian university, and conducted a comparative assessment of international and domestic students. METHODS: Participants were 883 international and 2,852 domestic students (overall response rate 7.1%) who completed an anonymous voluntary online survey that was sent to all enrolled students in July 2019 (n = ~ 52,341). Various measures of mental health-related knowledge, attitudes and helping behaviours were assessed. A comparative analysis of international and domestic students was conducted, including adjustment for age and sex. RESULTS: Overall, there was evidence of improvements in mental health-related knowledge, attitudes and behaviours relative to previous studies, including higher depression recognition, intentions to seek help, and reported help-seeking behaviour. Comparative analysis indicated that international students scored predominantly lower on a range of indicators (e.g., depression recognition, awareness of evidence-based forms of help); however, differences were narrower difference between the two groups compared to what has been reported previously. Finally, some indicators were more favourable among international students, such as higher help-seeking intentions, and lower prevalence of self-reported mental health problems compared to domestic students. CONCLUSION: Though there were some important differences between domestic and international students in this study, differences were narrower than observed in previous studies. Study findings are informing the on-going implementation and refinement of this university's student mental health strategy, and may be used to inform evolving policy and practice in the university sector.

Effectiveness and application of an online leadership intervention to promote mental health and reduce depression-related stigma in organizations.

Addressing the stigma of mental illness and its effect in the workplace is a contemporary issue in occupational health. The role of leaders is a vital but relatively unexplored dimension of this phenomenon. This study examined the effectiveness and application of an online intervention to reduce depression-related stigma in organizational leaders. A randomized controlled, "in the field" study was conducted with 196 leaders. Participants completed an online survey and were randomly assigned to either the experimental or wait-list control group. One week later, participants in the experimental group were given access to a brief online workplace mental health intervention and asked to complete a postsurvey, whereas the control group had to only complete the online postsurvey. Six months later, participants completed a follow-up online survey. Results revealed significant reductions in behavioral and affective depression-related stigma scores among leaders who completed the intervention, compared with the control group. These reductions were similar at 6 months. The factors that enabled or hindered training transfer from the intervention were examined through semistructured interviews with 16 of the participating leaders. Results showed that positive attitudes and high levels of knowledge are not sufficient to ensure leaders apply intervention learning in their work environments. Factors including the nature of the work environment, the collective readiness and capability of the organization to address these issues, the attitudes of others at work, and the broader political context affected the application of learning from the intervention. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2019 APA, all rights reserved).

Developing an Integrated Approach to Workplace Mental Health: A Hypothetical Conversation with a Small Business Owner.

An integrated approach to workplace mental health encompasses three main areas of activity: (i) protecting mental health by reducing work-related and other risk factors for mental health problems, (ii) promoting mental health by developing the positive aspects of work as well as worker strengths and positive capacities, and (iii) responding to mental health problems as they manifest at work regardless of cause (work-related or otherwise). This represents an effort to distil what is a complex issue warranting a correspondingly complex set of responses into information for action that is accessible and engaging to workplace stakeholders, and that enables workplaces to begin from varying starting points to build over time towards mature multicomponent workplace mental health programs. This article, based on a plenary presentation at the Understanding Small Enterprises 2017 international conference (25-27 October 2017, Denver), is presented in two parts. Part I is a concise summary of our integrated approach to workplace mental health. Part II presents a hypothetical conversation with a small business owner/operator who has yet to implement workplace mental health programs, but is considering doing so. In this Conversation, representing an effort in knowledge translation, we attempt to convince the small business owner/operator to begin taking action.

MindSpot Clinic: An Accessible, Efficient, and Effective Online Treatment Service for Anxiety and Depression.

OBJECTIVE: The main objective of this study was to report the feasibility of delivering online cognitive-behavioral therapy (iCBT) treatments for anxiety and depression in a national public mental health service. METHODS: A prospective noncontrolled cohort study was conducted of all patients who began assessment or treatment at the MindSpot Clinic from January through December 2013. Clinic services were used by a representative cross-section of the Australian population. Mean age at assessment was 36.4±13.0 years, and age range was 18-86 years. Patients completed one of four online courses over eight weeks, during which they received weekly support from a therapist via telephone or secure e-mail. Primary outcome measures were the nine-item Patient Health Questionnaire (PHQ-9) and the seven-item Generalized Anxiety Disorder scale (GAD-7) administered at posttreatment and three months posttreatment. RESULTS: A total of 10,293 adults who self-identified as having problems with anxiety or depression commenced assessment, and 7,172 completed the assessment and were eligible for analysis. Of these, 2,049 enrolled in a course and 1,471 completed the course, for a course completion rate of 71.8%. Moderate to large noncontrolled effect sizes (Cohen's d=.67-1.66, 95% confidence interval=.08-2.07) were found from assessment to three-month follow-up. At posttreatment and follow-up, reliable recovery ranged from 46.7% to 51.1%, and deterioration ranged from 1.9% to 3.8%. Mean total therapist time per patient was 111.8±61.6 minutes. CONCLUSIONS: The MindSpot Clinic produced treatment outcomes that were comparable to results from published clinical trials of iCBT. This model of service delivery represents an innovative method of providing accessible, low-cost, effective, and acceptable mental health services to many people who currently are not receiving care.

A mental health training program for community members following a natural disaster.

This study reports data on a disaster mental health training program to enhance the capacity of lay people from disaster-affected communities, to provide assistance to others following a bushfire disaster. Local facilitators conducted training sessions which were actively promoted within communities. Participants were asked to complete an anonymous pre- and post-training survey to obtain data on the impact and quality of the training program. Responses from 462 (80%) of 577 people who attended 39 sessions showed substantial and significant increases in key competencies including confidence in their abilities to detect difficulties coping in others and to provide assistance. The quality of the program and materials were rated highly. The findings of the evaluation provide support for the program as a beneficial, acceptable and feasible community-level intervention following disaster.