Social and Behavioral Sciences Commons^™

A Multidisciplinary Learning Experience Contributing To Mental Health Rehabilitation, Lorna Moxham, Christopher F. Patterson, Ellie K. Taylor, Dana J. Perlman, Susan Sumskis, Renee M. Brighton

Faculty of Science, Medicine and Health - Papers: part A

Purpose People who access health services often have a range of needs that require the involvement of members from a multidisciplinary team. Teaching future health professionals about the importance of a multidisciplinary approach can be challenging. The aim of this paper is to describe a project called Recovery Camp that enhanced multidisciplinary health education through experiential and immersive engagement with people experiencing mental illness.

Method Future health professionals and people with a lived experience of mental illness took part in Recovery Camp - an innovative five-day therapeutic recreation initiative in the Australian bush. Results are presented in a case study …

Personality Disorder: A Mental Health Priority Area, Brin F. S Grenyer, Fiona Y. Ng, Michelle L. Townsend, Sathya Rao

Faculty of Social Sciences - Papers (Archive)

Personality disorders have received limited recognition as a public health priority, despite the publication of treatment guidelines and reviews showing effective treatments are available. Inclusive approaches to understanding and servicing personality disorder are required that integrate different service providers. This viewpoint paper identifies pertinent issues surrounding early intervention, treatment needs, consumer and carer experiences, and the need for accurate and representative data collection in personality disorder as starting points in mental health care reform.

Relationships Between Mental Toughness, Barriers To Exercise, And Exercise Behaviour In Undergraduate Students, Elizabeth Stamp, Lee Crust, Christian F. Swann, John Perry

Faculty of Social Sciences - Papers (Archive)

The present study explored relationships between mental toughness (MT), barriers to exercise, and self-reported exercise behaviour in university students. Perceived barriers to exercise are important since previous work has identified barriers as strong predictors of exercise behaviour. MT was hypothesised to predict exercise barriers and self-reported exercise behaviour. Participants were 173 undergraduate students (45 men, 128 women) from 10 United Kingdom universities. Questionnaires were used to assess MT, exercise levels, and exercise barriers. Path analysis identified that MT predicted barriers to exercise, with higher MT associated with weaker perceived barriers. Regular exercisers were found to have significantly higher MT than …

Impact Of A Type 2 Diabetes Diagnosis On Mental Health, Quality Of Life, And Social Contacts: A Longitudinal Study, Xiaoqi Feng, Thomas E. Astell-Burt

Faculty of Social Sciences - Papers (Archive)

Aims The aim was to examine whether a type 2 diabetes mellitus (T2DM) diagnosis increases the odds of psychological distress, a worsening in overall quality of life, and a potential reduction in social contacts.

Method Longitudinal data were obtained from the 45 and Up Study (baseline 2006–2008; 3.4±0.95 years follow-up time). Fixed effects logistic and negative binomial regression models were fitted on a complete case on outcome sample that did not report T2DM at baseline (N=26 344), adjusted for time-varying confounders. The key exposure was doctor-diagnosed T2DM at follow-up. Outcome variables examined included the Kessler Psychological Distress Scale, self-rated quality …

Mental Health Workers' Values And Thier Congruency With Recovery Principles, Bianca Glajz, Frank P. Deane, Virginia Williams

Faculty of Social Sciences - Papers (Archive)

Recovery in mental health emphasises the empowerment of clients to discover and develop hope and a more satisfying life often in presence of ongoing symptoms of mental health.

The Relationship Between Neighbourhood Green Space And Child Mental Wellbeing Depends Upon Whom You Ask: Multilevel Evidence From 3083 Children Aged 12-13 Years, Xiaoqi Feng, Thomas E. Astell-Burt

Faculty of Social Sciences - Papers (Archive)

Recent reviews of the rapidly growing scientific literature on neighbourhood green space and health show strong evidence for protective and restorative effects on mental wellbeing. However, multiple informants are common when reporting mental wellbeing in studies of children. Do different informants lead to different results? This study utilised nationally representative data on Goodman’s 25-item Strengths and Difficulties Questionnaire reported by 3083 children (aged 12–13 years old), and their parents and teachers. Multilevel models were used to investigate whether similar associations between child mental wellbeing (as measured using the total difficulties score and the internalising and externalising subscales) and neighbourhood green …

The Role Of Community Sports Clubs In Adolescent Mental Health: The Perspectives Of Adolescent Males' Parents, Diarmuid Hurley, Christian F. Swann, Mark S. Allen, Anthony D. Okely, Stewart A. Vella

Faculty of Social Sciences - Papers (Archive)

Adolescent males are at relatively high risk of developing mental health disorders and show low rates of help seeking when mental health disorders arise. Parents are the primary source of support for adolescents and therefore have an important role in mental health promotion and prevention of mental health disorders. The aim of this study was to examine the perceptions of adolescent males' parents on the potential role of community sport clubs in adolescent mental health promotion. Forty-six parents of adolescent males took part in 10 focus groups to investigate parents' mental health knowledge, beliefs and attitudes, perceptions of the role …

The Delaying Effect Of Stigma On Mental Health Help-Seeking In Sri Lanka, Sunera M. Fernando, Frank P. Deane, Hamish J. Mcleod

Faculty of Social Sciences - Papers (Archive)

Background: Mental health stigma has been associated with delays in seeking treatment. Aims: To describe perceived stigma experienced by patients and carers in Sri Lanka and to determine the effects of stigma on help-seeking delay. Methods: Survey of outpatients and family carers (n = 118 dyads) attending two psychiatric hospitals in Sri Lanka, using the Disclosure and Discrimination subscales of the Stigma Scale. Results: Stigma was positively related to help-seeking delay for carers but not patients. Public stigma experienced by carers accounted for 23% of the variance in help-seeking delay. Conclusion: Reducing stigma may reduce help-seeking delays during the course …

Goal Setting Among People Living With Mental Illness: A Qualitative Analysis Of Recovery Camp, Lorna Moxham, Ellie K. Taylor, Christopher F. Patterson, Dana J. Perlman, Renee M. Brighton, Tim Heffernan, Susan Sumskis

Faculty of Science, Medicine and Health - Papers: part A

People living with mental illness (consumers) often experience difficulty in achieving life goals, particularly those important for their recovery. An innovative approach to address consumers' goals for recovery can be found in the form of therapeutic recreation (TR) initiatives. Recovery Camp is a five-day TR program, bringing together people with a serious mental illness, undergraduate health students, and staff members. This paper aims to examine the types of goals set by consumers in the context of Recovery Camp, and to what extent the self-identified goals were attained. The consumers (n = 27) were invited to set goals that they wished …

Further Examining The Relationship Between Mental Toughness And Dispositional Flow In Sport: A Mediation Analysis, Patricia C. Jackman, Lee Crust, Christian F. Swann

Faculty of Social Sciences - Papers (Archive)

The purpose of the study was to further examine the relationship between mental toughness (MT) and dispositional flow in sport. A sample of 256 athletes (M age = 23.65 years, SD = 5.43), competing at international (n = 59), national (n = 77), and club/university (n = 120) levels completed questionnaires assessing MT and dispositional flow. A significant and positive correlation was found between MT and dispositional flow (r = 0.50, p < 0.001). Mediation analysis revealed that MT had a significant direct effect on the flow dimensions of challenge-skills balance, clear goals, unambiguous feedback, sense of control and concentration on the task at hand, and significant indirect effects on concentration on the task at hand, sense of control, loss of self-consciousness, action-awareness merging and autotelic experience. Findings suggest that MT has direct and indirect effects on the characteristics of flow, offering new insights regarding optimal human functioning