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Exploring the feasibility and acceptability of a school-based self-referral intervention for emotional difficulties in older adolescents: qualitative perspectives from students and school staff

McKeague, L; Morant, N; Blackshaw, E; Brown, JSL; (2018) Exploring the feasibility and acceptability of a school-based self-referral intervention for emotional difficulties in older adolescents: qualitative perspectives from students and school staff. Child and Adolescent Mental Health , 23 (3) pp. 198-205. 10.1111/camh.12234. Green open access

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Abstract

BACKGROUND: Adolescents with emotional difficulties need accessible, acceptable and evidence-based mental health interventions. Self-referral workshops (DISCOVER workshops) were offered to stressed 16- to 19-year olds in 10 Inner London schools. METHOD: Semistructured interviews were conducted with three groups of participants: students who attended a 1-day workshop (n = 15); students who initially showed interest in the DISCOVER workshop programme, but decided not to take part (n = 9); and school staff who helped organise the programme in their schools (n = 10). Students were purposively sampled to ensure that those from Black and minority ethnic (BME) backgrounds were represented. Data were analysed using thematic analysis. RESULTS: The accounts generally indicate that the delivery and evaluation of this intervention is perceived as feasible and acceptable. Students, including those from BME backgrounds, described the setting as suitable and reported that the workshop helped them develop new understandings of stress and how to handle it. They expressed a preference for engaging and interactive activities, and valued a personalised approach to workshop provision. School staff felt that the workshop was in line with school values. They described some logistical barriers to providing the workshops in school settings, and expressed a desire for more information about the workshop in order to provide follow-up support. The main reason students gave for nonparticipation was limited time. CONCLUSIONS: Findings are discussed in relation to increasing the feasibility of implementing school-based psychological interventions and the value of providing access to mental health support in schools.

Type: Article
Title: Exploring the feasibility and acceptability of a school-based self-referral intervention for emotional difficulties in older adolescents: qualitative perspectives from students and school staff
Open access status: An open access version is available from UCL Discovery
DOI: 10.1111/camh.12234
Publisher version: http://doi.org/10.1111/camh.12234
Language: English
Additional information: © 2017 The Authors. Child and Adolescent Mental Health published by John Wiley & Sons Ltd on behalf of Association for Child and Adolescent Mental Health This is an open access article under the terms of the Creative Commons Attribution License, which permits use, distribution and reproduction in any medium, provided the original work is properly cited.
Keywords: Adolescence; depression; anxiety; school; qualitative methods
UCL classification: UCL
UCL > Provost and Vice Provost Offices > School of Life and Medical Sciences
UCL > Provost and Vice Provost Offices > School of Life and Medical Sciences > Faculty of Brain Sciences
UCL > Provost and Vice Provost Offices > School of Life and Medical Sciences > Faculty of Brain Sciences > Division of Psychiatry
URI: https://discovery.ucl.ac.uk/id/eprint/1572319
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