What Adolescent Girls Know about Mental Health: Findings from a Mental Health Literacy Survey from an Urban Slum Setting in India

Background: Youth in vulnerable situations are known to have high rates of mental disorders but low help-seeking. Help-seeking is known to be influenced by mental health literacy (MHL), a key concept that is important for the recognition of mental disorders and planning intervention. Aims: To explore MHL and help-seeking patterns in a group of young women in an urban slum setting in India. Materials and Methods: A total of 337 young women between 16 and 19 years of age belonging to urban slum settings formed the study sample. Two vignettes on depression and self-harm were used to assess: (a) recognition of the disorder, (b) help-seeking, and (c) knowledge of treatments available. Results: Only 8% of women were able to label the condition as depression in the first vignette. Though suicidality was identified correctly by the majority of participants 73 (63%), they did not think it needed urgent intervention. Only a few considered mental health professionals as possible sources of help (19.3% for depression and 2.4% for self-harm). Majority of the young women felt friends and parents were sources of help, and that stigma and lack of awareness were the reasons for not considering professional help. Conclusion: MHL regarding depression and suicidality is low among young women from low-income areas. It is a critical and urgent need to encourage early and appropriate help-seeking for mental health problems in this vulnerable population.