The Mental Health Needs Assessment (MHNA) was conceived to increase understanding of students’ experience of mental health and to identify priorities for improving student mental health at UBC. It consisted of five discrete projects conducted over a three-year period from 2012 until 2015. Qualitative studies examined:
- Student experiences of stress (2012–13)
- Student experiences of stigma associated with mental health issues (2013–14)
- International students’ mental health needs and concerns (2014–15)
- Faculty and staff perspectives on student mental health (2014–15)
The fifth and final MHNA project (2014–2015) was a campus-wide survey asking students to identify priorities for improving the university environment to support student mental health and well-being.
Participatory Action Research (PAR) approach adopted by this project:
- Lee, M., Wada, M. Carter, K., Goldman-Hasbun, J., Nga Le, T., Pang, M., … Jung, D. (2018). Conducting a University Student Mental Health Needs Assessment Using a Participatory Action Research Approach. SAGE Research Methods Cases. doi: http://dx.doi.org/10.4135/9781526446664