Search results for ‘Subject term:"mental health problems"’ Sort:
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Life in lockdown: child and adolescent mental health and well-being in the time of COVID-19
- Authors:
- SHARMA Manasi, et al
- Publisher:
- UNICEF. Innocenti Research Centre
- Publication year:
- 2021
- Pagination:
- 118
- Place of publication:
- Florence
COVID-19 lockdowns have significantly disrupted the daily lives of children and adolescents, with increased time at home, online learning and limited physical social interaction. This report seeks to understand the immediate effects on their mental health. Covering more than 130,000 children and adolescents across 22 countries, the evidence shows that higher levels of depression, fear, anxiety, anger, irritability, negativity, conduct disorder, alcohol and substance use and sedentary behaviours compared with pre-pandemic rates were commonly reported in children and adolescents in 2020, but there were also positive perceptions of time spent with family. Children and adolescents reported positive coping strategies, resilience, social connectedness through digital media, more family time, and relief from academic stress. Factors such as demographics, relationships and pre-existing conditions are critical. To ensure children and adolescents are supported, the report recommends building the evidence on the longer-term impact of the pandemic on child and adolescent mental health in low- and middle-income countries, including vulnerable populations. Several primary recommendations emerge from the report that have strong implications for policy and programming, including: begin early to build mental health assets of children and adolescents; foster family-friendly policies; Invest in age- and gender-sensitive child and adolescent mental health care interventions and services; promote physical activity and good nutrition for young people; make schools a safe space for positive mental health; focus on at-risk young populations; address stigma and discrimination in mental health, including new and emerging forms; support digital technologies as a force for change. (Edited publisher abstract)
How has Covid-19 and the associated lockdown measures affected mental health and wellbeing in the UK?
- Authors:
- HARDOON D., BRADBURY A., FANCOURT D.
- Publisher:
- What Works Centre for Wellbeing
- Publication year:
- 2020
- Pagination:
- 6
- Place of publication:
- London
This briefing provides insights into how mental health conditions have changed as a result of Covid-19 and what the risk factors are that need to be recognised when supporting people’s mental health. It draws on data of more than 70,000 people as part of the COVID-19 Social Study, which is run by University College London. Key messages include: anxiety and depression increased in the UK as the Covid-19 pandemic took hold, with people’s mental health affected by both adverse experiences regarding their health, jobs and finances as well as worries about what might happen in the future – anxiety and depression have fallen since the highs seen at the start of lockdown but remain above pre-pandemic levels; anxiety and depression have been highest among young adults, those living alone, those living in urban areas, and people with lower household income, with children, and with a diagnosed mental illness; outdoor exercise and gardening can improve our mental health, while spending too much time following the news can be harmful. (Edited publisher abstract)
Winter is coming: age and early psychological concomitants of the Covid-19 pandemic in England
- Authors:
- CARSON Jerome, et al
- Journal article citation:
- Journal of Public Mental Health, 19(3), 2020, pp.221-230.
- Publisher:
- Emerald
Purpose: This paper aims to demonstrate early psychological concomitants of the Covid-19 pandemic in England on a sample of younger and older people. Design/methodology/approach: A cross-sectional quantitative questionnaire (n = 1608) was conducted on the Prolific website. Participants completed the PERMA Scale (Flourishing), the four Office of National Statistics (ONS4) Well-being Questions, the Clinical Outcomes Measure in Routine Evaluation (CORE-10) and the short University of California Los Angeles Brief Loneliness Scale. Findings: Data were gathered on March 18, 2020, near the start of the Covid-19 pandemic. This study looks at the effects of the developing pandemic on younger participants (18 to 25 years, n = 391) and older participants (60 to 80 years, n = 104). Flourishing levels for older participants were significantly higher (M = 107.96) than for younger participants (M = 97.80). Younger participants scored significantly higher on the ONS4 for anxiety and lower than the older participants for happiness, life satisfaction and having a worthwhile life. Levels of psychological distress (CORE-10) were also significantly lower for older participants (M = 9.06) than for younger participants (M = 14.61). Finally, younger participants scored significantly higher on the Brief UCLA Loneliness Scale (M = 6.05) than older participants (M = 4.64). Research limitations/implications: From these findings, the Covid-19 pandemic was having a significantly greater effect on younger people in England, less than one week before the UK went into “lockdown”. Scores for both the Younger and Older groups on all the study measures were worse than normative comparisons. The study had no specific measure of Covid-19 anxiety, but nor was one available at the time of the survey. Practical implications: This study suggests that younger people (18 to 25) may be a more vulnerable group during the Covid-19 pandemic than many may have realized. Social implications: As a recent British Psychological Society report concluded, there is a lot of untapped wisdom amongst older groups in society. Originality/value: This is one of the earliest studies to look at psychological distress before England went into “lockdown.” (Edited publisher abstract)
COVID-19: mental health and wellbeing surveillance report
- Author:
- PUBLIC HEALTH ENGLAND
- Publisher:
- Public Health England
- Publication year:
- 2020
- Place of publication:
- London
This report presents close to real time intelligence on the mental health and wellbeing of the population in England during the COVID-19 pandemic. It compiles routinely updated indicators from multiple sources and summarises important recent findings from a pre-defined set of studies. It aims to inform policy, planning and commissioning in health and social care and is designed to assist stakeholders at both national and local level. The report includes 7 chapters: chapter 1 introduces the overall report; chapter 2 summarises important findings so far; chapter 3 triangulates different sources of intelligence to provide robust findings for anxiety, depression, loneliness and life satisfaction; chapter 4 presents weekly data on a range of mental health and wellbeing measures from the COVID-19 Social Study, ONS and YouGov; chapter 5 presents plain English abstracts of recent analysis from relevant research; chapter 6 presents service use data and commentary from a range of remote mental health and wellbeing service providers; and chapter 7 is dedicated to the experiences of children and young people. Chapters 2 to 7 will be updated regularly and will draw upon new intelligence that has become available. (Edited publisher abstract)
Visual art and mental health: a systematic review of the subjective wellbeing outcomes of engaging with visual arts for adults ("working-age", 15-64 years) with diagnosed mental health conditions
- Authors:
- TOMLINSON Alan, et al
- Publisher:
- What Works Centre for Wellbeing
- Publication year:
- 2018
- Pagination:
- 66
- Place of publication:
- London
This systematic review examines the subjective wellbeing outcomes for adults with mental health conditions taking part in visual arts. It also examines the processes that have an impact on subjective wellbeing. For the review, searches were conducted on ten electronic databases for research and grey literature. The review is based on the findings of eight research articles and six evaluation reports from UK-based visual arts programmes identified as relevant to the scope of the review. The arts practices featured in the studies included painting, drawing, art appreciation, and more general creative and craft activities. A total of 163 participants from across the four countries of Australia, Sweden, the UK, and the USA were involved in the studies. The review found limited high-quality evidence, though case studies from the UK provided important and consistent findings, corroborated by grey literature on interventions and projects. The evidence identified found that engagement in the visual arts for adults with mental health conditions can reduce reported levels of depression and anxiety; increase self-respect, self-worth and self-esteem; encourage re-engagement with the wider community. It also supports participants a potential renegotiation of identity through practice-based forms of making or doing. Ensure the provision of secure safe-space and non-stigmatising settings for interventions were identified as important factors in implementing interventions. Negative impacts of engaging with arts interventions included stress and pressure felt to complete activities and concerns about the end of an intervention. (Edited publisher abstract)
Is exercise helpful for women aged 50 and over with mental health problems and what are the barriers to exercise?
- Authors:
- TINKER Anthea, et al
- Journal article citation:
- Quality in Ageing and Older Adults, 18(2), 2017, pp.93-103.
- Publisher:
- Emerald
Purpose: The purpose of this paper is to examine the influence of exercise on the mental health problems of older women. Design/methodology/approach: The paper is based on information from academic literature, government publications and publications from other relevant bodies. It is a scoping study and is not a systematic review because of the constraints of the resources. Findings: There is growing evidence about the value of exercise for the mental health of older women but few evaluated examples of how this can be achieved. Research limitations/implications: There is a gap in the literature about this topic with few evaluated examples of how more older women can be encouraged to take more exercise. Practical implications: Policy makers, practitioners and older people themselves would gain from a greater emphasis on exercise as a means of improving quality of life and for reducing healthcare budgets through fewer referrals to services. Social implications: Greater emphasis on exercise for older women would increase their quality of life through a reduction in mental health problems. Originality/value: There is limited research which links mental health, exercise and older women, especially regarding the barriers to exercise that older women with diagnosed mental health problems may face. (Publisher abstract)
Museum object handling groups in older adult mental health inpatient care
- Authors:
- SOLWAY Rob, et al
- Journal article citation:
- International Journal of Mental Health Promotion, 17(4), 2015, pp.201-214.
- Publisher:
- Taylor and Francis
Emerging evidence indicates that museum object handling sessions offer short-term benefits to healthcare participants. This study aimed to further understand psychological and social aspects of object handling in mental health inpatients. Older adults (N = 42) from a psychiatric inpatient ward with diagnoses of depression or anxiety took part in a series of object handling group sessions with 5–12 participants per group. Session audio recordings were subjected to thematic analysis. Five main themes were identified: ‘responding to object focused questions’, ‘learning about objects and from each other’, ‘enjoyment, enrichment through touch and privilege’, ‘memories, personal associations and identity’ and ‘imagination and storytelling’. The first four were congruent with literature associated with positive wellbeing and engagement outcomes but the fifth was a new finding for group contexts. Limitations include the relatively small sample and variable week-to-week group attendance. Audio recordings did not provide information on non-verbal communication and how objects were handled. Future studies should control for attendance and examine effects of multiple sessions over time, ideally with video recording. This study offers preliminary support for museum object handling as a group intervention in mental health care with potential to develop therapeutic aspects of the sessions. Findings indicate that object handling is a novel yet effective intervention with potential for conferring additional advantages by conducting sessions in group settings. (Publisher abstract)
Staying well: a follow up of a 5-week Mindfulness Based Stress Reduction programme for a range of psychological issues
- Authors:
- MITCHELL Melanie, HEADS Gary
- Journal article citation:
- Community Mental Health Journal, 51(8), 2015, pp.897-902.
- Publisher:
- Springer
112 women and 37 men, with an average age of 50 years were referred for MBSR training with a range of chronic psychological issues. All participants completed the Warwick–Edinburgh Mental Wellbeing Scale (Tennant et al. in Health and Quality of Life Outcomes 5:63, 2007) before and after the mindfulness training programme. A significant overall effect of pre/post training was found and this difference was not related to a specific disorder. The results suggest that a ‘brief’ dose of MBSR can have a positive impact on measures of well-being in a manner that is not related to patient characteristics. A follow-up of 28 participants confirms that participation in the 5-week Living Mindfully MBSR programme significantly enhances psychological well-being immediately after training, and this benefit is maintained up to 4 years after training. Continued practice in mindfulness meditation showed an insignificant relationship to well-being scores at follow up. Qualitative data suggest that the 5 week MBSR is an effective means of developing emotion regulation and psychological well-being. (Publisher abstract)
Causal and mediating factors for anxiety, depression and well-being
- Authors:
- KINDERMAN Peter, et al
- Journal article citation:
- British Journal of Psychiatry, 206(6), 2015, pp.456-460.
- Publisher:
- Cambridge University Press
Background: The relationship between well-being and mental ill health is complex; people may experience very low levels of well-being even in the absence of overt mental health problems. Aims: This study tested the hypothesis that anxiety, depression and well-being have different causal determinants and psychological mediating mechanisms. Method: The influence of causal and mediating factors on anxiety, depression and well-being were investigated in a cross-sectional online questionnaire survey hosted on a UK national broadcasting website. Results: Multivariate conditional independence analysis of data from 27 397 participants revealed different association pathways for the two constructs. Anxiety and depression were associated with negative life events mediated by rumination; low levels of subjective well-being were associated with material deprivation and social isolation, mediated by adaptive coping style. Conclusions: The findings support the ‘two continua’ model of the relationship between psychological well-being and mental health problems, with implications for both treatment and prevention. (Edited publisher abstract)
Measuring national well-being: health, 2013
- Authors:
- BEAUMONT Jen, LOFTS Helen
- Publisher:
- Office for National Statistics
- Publication year:
- 2013
- Pagination:
- 14
- Place of publication:
- Cardiff
This report analyses by age and other variables two of the current measures of national wellbeing: ‘satisfaction with health’ and ‘evidence of mental ill-health (GHQ)’ and their relationship to well-being. Respondents were asked how dissatisfied or satisfied they were with their health, if their health limited moderate activity and to answer questions which gave some indication of their mental health (GHQ). The data used are from Understanding Society, the UK Household Longitudinal Study (UKHLS) 2010–11. (Edited publisher abstract)