The Determinants of Mental Health Literacy among Young Adolescents in Malaysia

Sarbhan Singh, Rafdzah Ahmad Zaki, Nik Daliana Nik Farid and Kushilpal Kaur
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Sarbhan Singh: Institute for Medical Research (IMR), National Institutes of Health (NIH), Ministry of Health Malaysia, Shah Alam 40170, Malaysia
Rafdzah Ahmad Zaki: Department of Social and Preventive Medicine, Faculty of Medicine, University of Malaya, Kuala Lumpur 50603, Malaysia
Nik Daliana Nik Farid: Department of Social and Preventive Medicine, Faculty of Medicine, University of Malaya, Kuala Lumpur 50603, Malaysia
Kushilpal Kaur: Department of Psychiatry, Hospital Selayang, Ministry of Health Malaysia, Batu Caves 68100, Malaysia

IJERPH, 2022, vol. 19, issue 6, 1-13

Abstract: Mental health literacy (MHL) is an established multifaceted concept that comprises mental health knowledge, help-seeking, and stigma. Adequate MHL (i.e., the ability to correctly recognize mental health disorders alongside having the intention to seek help) is able improve mental health outcomes among individuals. This study aims to examine the determinants of MHL among young Malaysian adolescents. A cross-sectional study was conducted among 1400 adolescents between 13 and 14 years old from nine national secondary schools in Selangor state, Malaysia. Sociodemographic determinants assessed included gender, age, ethnicity, smoking status, alcohol consumption, history of being bullied, feeling lonely, parental marital status, and parental income which were assessed using the Global School Based Student Health Survey. MHL was assessed using the Mental Health Literacy and Stigma questionnaire. Several factors were significantly associated with adequate levels of MHL following multivariate analysis, such as being female (AOR = 1.68; 95% CI 1.12, 2.52), older adolescents (AOR = 1.56; 95% CI 1.07, 2.30), not smoking (AOR = 1.99; 95% CI 1.20, 4.26), not consuming alcohol (AOR = 1.23; 95% CI 1.18, 2.41), and not feeling lonely (AOR = 1.25; 95% CI 1.06, 1.85). Addressing these determinants could be key in assisting the development of policies and programs to prevent mental health disorders among adolescents, which are currently on the rise.

Keywords: mental health literacy; adolescents; mental health disorders (search for similar items in EconPapers)
JEL-codes: I I1 I3 Q Q5 (search for similar items in EconPapers)
Date: 2022
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Citations: View citations in EconPapers (1)

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