A mixed-methods investigation into the perspectives on mental health and professional treatment among former system youth with mood disorders

Bibliographic Data

ID9053254
AuthorsMichelle R Munson (0000-0002-3415-8610, New York University), Sarah C Narendorf (0000-0002-6128-441X, University of Houston), Shelly Ben-David (0000-0002-7582-2565, New York University), Andrea Cole, Andrea R Cole (0000-0003-4804-9471, New York University)
Year2019
Volume89
Issue1
Pages52-64
Publication date2019-01-01
Peer ReviewedYes
Open AccessNo
TypeARTICLE
VenueAmerican Journal of Orthopsychiatry (JOURNAL)
Journal identifiersISSN: 0002-9432 • E-ISSN: 1939-0025
PublisherAmerican Psychological Association (APA) (PUBLISHER)
DOI10.1037/ort0000326
PMID29792476
OpenAlexW2804039950
LanguageEN
Citations received6
References cited23

Research has shown that how people think about their health (or illnesses) shapes their help-seeking behavior. In this mixed-methods study, we employed a simultaneous concurrent design to explore the perceptions of mental illness among an understudied population: marginalized young adults. Participants were 60 young adults (ages 18-25) who had experienced mood disorders and used multiple public systems of care during their childhoods. Semistructured interviews were conducted to understand participants' illness and treatment experiences during the transition to adulthood. A team of analysts used constant comparison to develop a codebook of the qualitative themes, and quantitative data were examined using SAS 9.3. Findings suggest that some theoretical categories identified in past illness-perceptions frameworks are salient to marginalized young adults (e.g., identity, management-or control-of symptoms), but both the developmental transition to adulthood and experiences with public systems of care add nuanced variations to illness and treatment perceptions. Our study demonstrates that young adults possess a set of beliefs and emotions about their mental health and help-seeking options that need to be better understood to improve engagement and quality of mental health care for this population. Implications for practice, research, and policy are discussed. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2019 APA, all rights reserved)

Health care · MEDLINE · Mental health · Mental illness · Mood · Population · Psychiatry · PsycINFO · Public health · Qualitative research · Thematic analysis · Adolescent and Pediatric Healthcare · Child and Adolescent Psychosocial and Emotional Development · Child Welfare and Adoption · Clinical Psychology · Medicine · Nursing · Psychology

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