@article{a33e2147a0ea45b89df7fa727a737017,
title = "Key questions: Research priorities for student mental health",
abstract = "Background The high prevalence of mental distress among university students is gaining academic, policy and public attention. As the volume of research into student mental health increases, it is important to involve students to ensure that the evidence produced can translate into meaningful improvements. Aims For the first time, we consult UK students about their research priorities on student mental health. Method This priority setting exercise involved current UK university students who were asked to submit three research questions relating to student mental health. Responses were aggregated into themes through content analysis and considered in the context of existing research. Students were involved throughout the project, including inception, design, recruitment, analysis and dissemination. Results UK university students (N = 385) submitted 991 questions, categorised into seven themes: epidemiology, causes and risk factors, academic factors and work-life balance, sense of belonging, intervention and services, mental health literacy and consequences. Across themes, respondents highlighted the importance of understanding the experience of minority groups. Conclusions Students are interested in understanding the causes and consequences of poor mental health at university, across academic and social domains. They would like to improve staff and students' knowledge about mental health, and have access to evidence-based support. Future research should take a broad lens to evaluate interventions; considering how services are designed and delivered, and investigating institutional and behavioural barriers to accessibility, including how this varies across different groups within the student population. ",
keywords = "prevention, priority setting, qualitative research, Student mental health",
author = "Katie Sampson and Michael Priestley and Dodd, {Alyson L.} and Emma Broglia and Til Wykes and Dan Robotham and Katie Tyrrell and {Ortega Vega}, Marta and Byrom, {Nicola C.}",
note = "Funding Information: The research was supported by the project steering group and the SMaRteN student team, including Oskar Kaleta, Aleks Saunders, Connor Gayle, Kwan Lui Cheng, Joshua Melwani, Eadie Simons, Sania Deshpande, Lesley Turner, Elizabeth James, Isabel De Castro, Megan Lawrence, Kirellos Miseih, Paulina Pawlak, Samuel Chu, Andrea Prisecaru, Keerthi Ramesh, Wangjingyi Liao, Reihannah Mahmoud, Emily Wielezynski, Chloe Casey, Nuvera Mukaty, Anusha Ramji, Oliver Anderson, Anna Ambwene, Ka Wai Li, Elizabeta Farys and Kristyana Taneva. Funding Information: The project was initiated through the UK Research and Innovation funded Student Mental Health Research Network (SMaRteN), with a steering group developed from the SMaRteN leadership team. The group recruited diverse stakeholders, including students (both with and without lived experience of mental health difficulties at university), clinical psychologists, tutors and academic researchers. Co-creation was central to this project. This is distinguished from student consultation and participation, by the active involvement of students as equal stakeholders, reciprocally sharing knowledge and networks as part of a strengths and asset-based approach. Students were operating in a {\textquoteleft}peer researcher{\textquoteright} context, and worked with academic researchers to design the methodology, recruit a diverse student sample, analyse data and write up the findings. Several student peer researchers are authors on this paper. Publisher Copyright: Copyright {\textcopyright} The Author(s), 2022. Published by Cambridge University Press on behalf of the Royal College of Psychiatrists.",
year = "2022",
month = may,
day = "10",
doi = "10.1192/bjo.2022.61",
language = "English",
volume = "8",
journal = "BJPsych Open",
issn = "2056-4724",
publisher = "Cambridge University Press",
number = "3",
}