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. 2024 Mar 5;12(5):592.
doi: 10.3390/healthcare12050592.

Youth Are the Experts! Youth Participatory Action Research to Address the Adolescent Mental Health Crisis

Kimberly E Smith  1 , Rosa Acevedo-Duran  2 , Jennifer L Lovell  2 , Aliyah V Castillo  3 , Valeria Cardenas Pacheco  3
Affiliations

Youth Are the Experts! Youth Participatory Action Research to Address the Adolescent Mental Health Crisis

Kimberly E Smith et al. Healthcare (Basel). .

Abstract

Adolescent mental health is an urgent global public health issue. Youth participatory action research is an effective strategy to amplify youth voices and can serve as a catalyst for evidence-based action addressing the mental health crisis. To illustrate the benefits of youth participatory action research for informing community health, we describe an ongoing collaboration with a youth council located in the central coast of California, USA. Research methods included an anonymous online self-report survey to gather information about the mental health of high school students in 2020 (n = 176) and 2022 (n = 234), 93% Latinx/Mexican American. Both surveys included a four-item patient health questionnaire to screen for depression and anxiety risk, in addition to scaled and open-ended survey questions selected by the youth leaders based on their research questions. Quantitative and qualitative results indicated a significant but small decrease in mental health risk, and a continued need for resources to access mental health support. Results led to community-based action aimed at improving local youth mental health. The interdisciplinary research team (psychology and public health) and youth leaders share reflections highlighting the innovative, empowering, and transformative impact of youth participatory action research as a tool for improving community health.

Keywords: COVID-19 pandemic; adolescent mental health; community-based participatory research; youth participatory action research.

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Conflict of interest statement

The authors declare no conflicts of interest.

Figures

Figure 1
Figure 1
Youth Responses: What holds you back from seeking mental health support? (n = 240).
See this image and copyright information in PMC

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