Smith Kimberly E, Acevedo-Duran Rosa, Lovell Jennifer L, Castillo Aliyah V, Cardenas Pacheco Valeria
Department of Health, Human Services, and Public Policy, California State University Monterey Bay, Seaside, CA 93955, USA.
Department of Psychology, California State University Monterey Bay, Seaside, CA 93966, USA.
Healthcare (Basel). 2024 Mar 5;12(5):592. doi: 10.3390/healthcare12050592.
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 ( = 176) and 2022 ( = 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.
青少年心理健康是一个紧迫的全球公共卫生问题。青年参与式行动研究是放大青年声音的有效策略，可成为应对心理健康危机的循证行动的催化剂。为说明青年参与式行动研究对指导社区健康的益处，我们描述了与位于美国加利福尼亚州中部海岸的一个青年委员会正在进行的合作。研究方法包括一项匿名在线自我报告调查，以收集2020年（n = 176）和2022年（n = 234）高中生心理健康信息，其中93%为拉丁裔/墨西哥裔美国人。两项调查除了青年领袖根据其研究问题选择的量表式和开放式调查问题外，还包括一份四项患者健康问卷，以筛查抑郁和焦虑风险。定量和定性结果表明心理健康风险显著但小幅下降，且持续需要资源以获得心理健康支持。结果促成了旨在改善当地青年心理健康的社区行动。跨学科研究团队（心理学和公共卫生）和青年领袖分享了思考，强调青年参与式行动研究作为改善社区健康工具的创新、赋权和变革性影响。
