The effect of providing factual knowledge about depression on adolescent's help-seeking intentions
Authors
O'Riordan, Deirdre
Issue Date
2007
Degree
BA in Psychology
Publisher
Dublin Business School
Rights holder
Rights
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Abstract
The current study examined the effect of an educational programme for depression on the help-seeking intentions of 55 secondary school students from a North Dublin school. This study was conducted in conjunction with Awares' 'Beat the Blues' programme for senior cycle students. Thirty three males and 22 females, aged 15-17 years completed self-report questionnaires measuring help-seeking intentions and levels of hopelessness. A quasi experimental mixed design was used and the data were analysed using a repeated measures ANCOVA with hopelessness as a covariate. Results found that compared to the control condition, there was a significant increase in participants' help-seeking intentions in the experimental condition following the intervention, F(1,50)=8.43, p<0.005. The findings of the current study demonstrated that a school based educational programme such as the 'Beat the Blues' programme can significantly increase the help-seeking intentions of adolescents.