Perceptions and attitudes of Spanish adolescents towards mental health after COVID-19: a nursing approach

Abstract

Introduction: the coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) pandemic had a profound impact on the mental health of adolescents, who are at a critical stage of emotional development. Material and methods: this descriptive study with a quantitative approach and qualitative analysis examined the perceptions of 250 adolescents (aged 14-17) from state secondary schools in autonomous communities of southern Spain. A questionnaire was used with three key open-ended questions: “What does mental health mean to you?”, “Do you know any friend who has a mental illness?” and “Who would you turn to if you thought you had a mental illness?”. The verbatim responses were analysed by means of content analysis, identifying recurrent categories and subthemes. Results: the results showed that 57.2% of participants acknowledged having friends with mental illnesses, but only 43.3% were able to identify the type, chiefly attention-deficit/hyperactivity disorder, anxiety and depression. Regarding help-seeking, 84.8% stated that they would turn to friends, compared with 8.8% who would turn to their parents, and only 2.8% to health professionals. Discussion: these data reflect a strong dependence on the adolescent social environment and weak links with family figures and professionals in dealing with mental health problems. Conclusions: although a growing openness to talking about mental health among adolescents is observed, significant shortcomings persist in education, knowledge and access to specialized resources. The results show the need to implement mental health education programmes, to train teachers and families, and to strengthen support networks within the school setting. The findings provide useful evidence for the design of educational and preventive interventions led by nursing professionals in school settings, especially relevant in global crisis scenarios such as the pandemic.