Browsing by Research Output - Subject "Adolescents"

Recent studies have shown adolescents in Hong Kong have experienced symptoms of various mental disorders. These may have lasting impacts into adulthood, leading to a significant disease burden. A strength-focused, youth-driven, and co-creative mental health prevention programme was conducted among adolescents in Hong Kong. This newlydesigned programme aimed to train adolescents in an 8-week programme to increase their awareness of mental health issues and to implement their own community mental health educational activities to reduce stigma and promote mental health and mental wellbeing among the youths in the community. In this pilot study, 46 youth trainees were recruited through community centres and schools. After completing the 8-week training, 22 educational activities were designed and implemented between November 2022 to March 2023. The results showed that the stigma held by the trainees significantly reduced whereas the qualitative data showed that they held a more positive attitude towards mental illnesses, more self-understanding and found ways to manage their emotions. The trainees also reported that the sharing from peers in recovery and the hands-on experience in organising the activities supported these positive changes. The implications of this pilot study were discussed.