Mental Health Awareness Among Parents in an Urban High School

Abstract

Mental health literacy has been positively correlated with levels of service utilization and negatively correlated with levels of stigmatizing attitudes. The research is sparse in measuring parents’ levels of mental health knowledge and even less research exists measuring parents’ ability to locate resources in their community. The current study focused on parents in an urban high school in Western, New York. In this study, six participants completed a survey assessing their ability to identify the symptoms of mental illness and locate resources in the community. The results showed that participants were able to correctly identify four common mental illnesses. The results also suggested that parents would encourage their children to seek professional help and that most knew of resources in the community that can provide that help. Participants felt less confident in their ability to access community agencies for information and support.