Documentary has made young people consider their mental health
New research has shown that young people who watched a frank documentary about mental health said they were more likely to seek help for their own issues.
The survey of more than 2,000 young people, conducted after the screening of the acclaimed ’’My Other Life’’ documentary on RTÉ, also showed that for both the group that watched the programme and the group that did not tune in, body image was one of the main causes of stress, alongside family and ahead of issues such as relationships, school and money.
The survey was conducted by academics from the National Suicide Research Foundation and the School of Public Health at University College Cork, led by Niall McTernan.
A newly-published paper outlines how in the weeks following the broadcast of the documentary, both the general public and college students aged 18 years were asked to complete an anonymous 14-item mixed-methods online survey.
In total, 2,311 people completed the survey, of which the majority were females (84%). Over half of respondents (55%) were aged 18–25 and most (61%) reported living in an urban area.
RTÉ said 55 000 people viewed ‘My Other Life: Ireland’s Young and Their Mental Health’ when it was broadcast, and according to the research: "There was a significant association between watching the documentary and positive emotional well-being and general mood. In addition, viewers had a 5% higher level of intention to seek help than non-viewers of the documentary."
It said participants were more likely to seek help from all of the listed sources after watching the documentary, mainly from parents, other relatives and family members and helpline.
It said the top five causes of stress reported by those who did watch the documentary were body image (47.9% of sample), family (44.7%), relationships (43.6%), school (40.8%) and money (36.6%).
Those who did not watch the documentary reported that family (55.3% of sample), body image (54.8%), relationships (51.5%), money (48.5%) school (45.4%), friends (43.1%) and loss (41.6%) were the principal causes of stress.
The research found that 94% believed that the documentary will have a positive impact on young people’s mental health and well-being, 91% perceived the documentary as encouraging for young people to open up and talk to someone. Nearly all respondents would recommend watching the documentary to friends or family.
The research, entitled ’’Using a television programme as a tool to increase perceived awareness of mental health and well-being – findings from ‘Our Mental Health’ survey’’ was published in the Irish Journal of Psychological Medicine.
