The DOI matches its Crossref record; 31 of the 31 references it cites were found in a registry or an index.
Adolescent Mental Health Literacy: Young People’s Knowledge of Depression and Social Anxiety Disorder
Abstract
Purpose Understanding why nearly 80% of youth ages 6-18 years with a mental disorder fail to receive treatment represents an important public health priority. International data suggest that underrecognition of mental illness and the need for treatment are barriers to service utilization. This study extends work to a U.S. sample of 1,104 adolescents.Methods High School students were invited to participate in a self-report study assessing knowledge and beliefs regarding mental illness. Participants completed the survey in groups at school and read vignettes portraying peers experiencing major depression, social anxiety disorder, and a situation where the individual has to cope with a common life stressor followed by a series of questions in reference to each vignette.Results Adolescents had better recognition of depression than social anxiety disorder and were more likely to recommend seeking help for it. However, <50% of youth recognized depression. Family, friends, and counselors were recommended as sources of help. Differences according to the sex of the respondent and person in the vignette were observed.Conclusions These data are among the first to provide information regarding the mental health literacy of American adolescents and suggest potential points for intervention. Pending replication of the findings herein, efforts to help adolescents recognize mental health problems and to increase the likelihood of recommending professional help will be important.
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“on the one hand, social anxiety seems to be underrecognized and elicit less concern and help-seeking recommendations by adolescents themselves [18];”
From The Prevalence of Adolescent Social Fears and Social Anxiety Disorder in School Contexts (2022) · cites this paper as [18]
In the citing paper
“This low engagement with mental health services appears to occur for a variety of reasons: the lack of motivation inherent in conditions such as depression (6), low rates of mental health literacy (7), and the stigma, discrimination and embarrassment surrounding mental illness (8).”
From What Works and What Doesn’t Work? A Systematic Review of Digital Mental Health Interventions for Depression and Anxiety in Young People (2019) · cites this paper as [7]
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Metadata
- Authors
- Coles, M. E., Ravid, A., Gibb, B., George-Denn, D., Bronstein, L. R., & McLeod, S.
- Affiliations
- Binghamton University (US)
- McLean Hospital (US)
- Corresponding author
- Coles, Meredith E.
- Venue
- Journal of Adolescent Health
- Publisher
- Elsevier BV
- Published
- 2016-01
- Volume
- 58
- Issue
- 1
- Pages
- 57-62
- ISSN
- 1054-139X (ISSN-L)
- OpenAlex
- W2221002602
- Cited by
- 223
- References
- 31
- Citations by year
- 2026: 13 · 2025: 26 · 2024: 24 · 2023: 28 · 2022: 27 · 2021: 25 · 2020: 22 · 2019: 32 · 2018: 17 · 2017: 8 · 2016: 1
- FWCI
- 14.20
- Type
- journal article
- Language
- en
- Open access
- closed
- Locations
- Journal of Adolescent Health (publishedVersion)
- PubMed (publishedVersion)
- Topics
- Health Sciences › Medicine › Psychiatry and Mental health › Mental Health Treatment and Access
- Social Sciences › Psychology › Clinical Psychology › Child and Adolescent Psychosocial and Emotional Development
- Social Sciences › Psychology › Clinical Psychology › Psychology and Mental Health
- Keywords
- depression, social anxiety disorder, help-seeking, mental illness recognition, barriers to treatment, sex differences, vignettes, high school students
- MeSH terms
- Adolescent, Anxiety Disorders, Depression, Female, Humans, Health Knowledge, Attitudes, Practice, Male, Mental Health, Patient Acceptance of Health Care, Surveys and Questionnaires, Sex Factors, United States, Health Literacy
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