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Medicina
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Youth Mental Health after COVID-19 Pandemic: Prevention, Innovation and Treatment...
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Youth Mental Health after COVID-19 Pandemic: Prevention, Innovation and Treatment Projects in Mental Health Services

A special issue of Medicina (ISSN 1648-9144). This special issue belongs to the section "Psychiatry".

Deadline for manuscript submissions: closed (31 December 2023) | Viewed by 2876

Special Issue Editors

Prof. Dr. Stefano Marini

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Guest Editor
Department of Mental Health, National Health Service, Termoli, Italy
Interests: autism spectrum disorder; psychopharmacology; adolescence; mental health
Dr. Tiziano Acciavatti

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Guest Editor
Department of Mental Health, ASL Pescara, Pescara, Italy
Interests: schizophrenia; psychopharmacology; mental health
Dr. Alessandro Gentile

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Guest Editor
ASReM, Termoli, Vasto, Italy
Interests: schizophrenia; bipolar disorder; mental health

Special Issue Information

Dear Colleagues,

Although physical health is understandably the priority during a pandemic, the impact of the COVID-19 pandemic and subsequent measures to protect mental health should be a major concern, particularly for adolescents, as compared to adults, the mental health of young people is often disproportionately affected by disasters.

Furthermore, the developmental characteristics of adolescence along with the psychological vulnerabilities of this stage make adolescence particularly important to study in light of the psychological impact of the COVID-19 pandemic.

From a worldwide estimate, in the year 2020, between 10 and 20% of adolescents suffered from mental health problems, but in our opinion, few studies have taken into consideration changes in psychopathological aspects, quality of life, hospitalizations due to psychiatric emergencies or suicide attempts in adolescents already suffering from psychiatric disorders, focusing mainly on the use of substances, on anorexia nervosa and obsessive–compulsive disorder. Furthermore, there are no studies on how psychotherapy already underway could have attenuated or stabilized psychopathological conditions or quality of life. New research is needed to fill the gaps in the current research.

Due to dramatic and sudden changes in their lives during the pandemic, thousands of teenagers around the world could still be at risk for psychopathological disorders, creating a mental health “pandemic” scenario. We believe they deserve an inclusive response in terms of global health measures to avert potentially serious and long-lasting effects in terms of marginalization, stigma and psychopathological developments.

The aim of this Special Issue is to receive new proposals, ideas and practices used or to be implemented for the future in order to improve the mental health of current adolescents and young adults.

Prof. Dr. Stefano Marini
Dr. Tiziano Acciavatti
Dr. Alessandro Gentile
Guest Editors

Manuscript Submission Information

Manuscripts should be submitted online at www.mdpi.com by registering and logging in to this website. Once you are registered, click here to go to the submission form. Manuscripts can be submitted until the deadline. All submissions that pass pre-check are peer-reviewed. Accepted papers will be published continuously in the journal (as soon as accepted) and will be listed together on the special issue website. Research articles, review articles as well as short communications are invited. For planned papers, a title and short abstract (about 100 words) can be sent to the Editorial Office for announcement on this website.

Submitted manuscripts should not have been published previously, nor be under consideration for publication elsewhere (except conference proceedings papers). All manuscripts are thoroughly refereed through a single-blind peer-review process. A guide for authors and other relevant information for submission of manuscripts is available on the Instructions for Authors page. Medicina is an international peer-reviewed open access monthly journal published by MDPI.

Please visit the Instructions for Authors page before submitting a manuscript. The Article Processing Charge (APC) for publication in this open access journal is 1800 CHF (Swiss Francs). Submitted papers should be well formatted and use good English. Authors may use MDPI's English editing service prior to publication or during author revisions.

Keywords

  • youth mental health
  • multidisciplinary interventions
  • prevention
  • innovations
  • treatment projects
  • multidisciplinary interventions

Published Papers (2 papers)

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Research

13 pages, 884 KiB  
Article
Why Do We Not Wear Masks Anymore during the COVID-19 Wave? Vaccination Precludes the Adoption of Personal Non-Pharmaceutical Interventions: A Quantitative Study of Taiwanese Residents
by Lee-Xieng Yang, Chia-Yuan Lin, Wan-Zhen Zhan, Bo-An Chiang and En-Chi Chang
Medicina 2024, 60(2), 301; https://doi.org/10.3390/medicina60020301 - 9 Feb 2024
Viewed by 1078
Abstract
Background and Objectives: This study examined whether the decline in people’s adoption of personal NPIs (e.g., mask wearing) results from the preclusion by vaccination. This study also incorporates the concepts of risk perception and the risk-as-feelings model to elucidate the possible mechanisms [...] Read more.
Background and Objectives: This study examined whether the decline in people’s adoption of personal NPIs (e.g., mask wearing) results from the preclusion by vaccination. This study also incorporates the concepts of risk perception and the risk-as-feelings model to elucidate the possible mechanisms behind this preclusion. Materials and Methods: Two cross-sectional surveys (N = 462 in Survey 1 and N = 505 in Survey 2) were administered before and during the first outbreak of COVID-19 in Taiwan. The survey items were designed to measure participants’ perceived severity of COVID-19, worry about COVID-19, intention to adopt personal NPIs, and attitudes toward COVID-19 vaccines. Utilizing the risk perception framework, we conducted multigroup SEM (Structural Equation Modeling) to construct the optimal structural model for both samples. Results and Conclusions: The multigroup SEM results showed that worry (i.e., the emotional component of risk perception) fully mediates the influence of the perceived severity of COVID-19 (i.e., the cognitive component of risk perception) on the intention to adopt NPIs in both surveys [z = 4.03, p < 0.001 for Survey 1 and z = 2.49, p < 0.050 for Survey 2]. Before the outbreak (i.e., Survey 1), people’s attitudes toward COVID-19 vaccines showed no significant association with their worry about COVID-19 [z = 0.66, p = 0.508]. However, in Survey 2, following the real outbreak of COVID-19, people’s attitudes toward COVID-19 vaccines negatively predicts their worry about COVID-19 [z = −4.31, p < 0.001], indirectly resulting in a negative effect on their intention to adopt personal NPIs. This suggests the occurrence of the Peltzman effect. That is, vaccination fosters a sense of safety, subsequently diminishing alertness to COVID-19, and thus reducing the intention to adopt personal NPIs. Full article
(This article belongs to the Special Issue Youth Mental Health after COVID-19 Pandemic: Prevention, Innovation and Treatment Projects in Mental Health Services)
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12 pages, 957 KiB  
Article
Mental Health and Contraceptive Knowledge in High Schoolers: Comparing Remote and In-Person Learning during COVID-19
by Denisa Hinoveanu, Doru Mihai Anastasiu, Cosmin Citu, Doru Ciprian Crisan, Zoran Laurentiu Popa, Nicoleta Nicolae, Catalin Dumitru, Oana Neda-Stepan, Roxana Manuela Fericean and Lavinia Stelea
Medicina 2023, 59(10), 1876; https://doi.org/10.3390/medicina59101876 - 22 Oct 2023
Cited by 2 | Viewed by 1444
Abstract
Background and Objectives: In response to the COVID-19 pandemic’s effects on education, this study delves into the behavioral, mental health, and sexual education characteristics of high school students during 2020–2021 and 2022–2023. Materials and Methods: We evaluated a variety of factors, [...] Read more.
Background and Objectives: In response to the COVID-19 pandemic’s effects on education, this study delves into the behavioral, mental health, and sexual education characteristics of high school students during 2020–2021 and 2022–2023. Materials and Methods: We evaluated a variety of factors, including substance use, academic performance, sexual activities, mental health support, pandemic-related anxiety levels, and quality of life indicators using standardized instruments such as the SF-36, GAD-7, and WHOQOL-BREF. Furthermore, we addressed specific questions concerning contraception and sexual education during this period. Results: The questionnaires were filled in by 44 students in 2020–2021 and 41 students in 2022–2023. Significant findings included a noteworthy increase in COVID-19 vaccination rates, from 18.2% in 2020–2021 to 39.0% in 2022–2023 (p = 0.033), enhanced perceptions of mental health support during remote learning, from 7.1% to 20.0% (p = 0.044), and a rise in students partaking in reproductive health discussions from 10.7% to 25.0% (p = 0.046). Additionally, there was a marked decline in anxiety regarding the transition back to in-person learning (p = 0.048). Health surveys, such as the SF-36, signaled improvements in both physical and mental health over the years (p = 0.046 and p = 0.019, respectively), while the GAD-7 scores depicted a considerable reduction in anxiety symptoms (p = 0.038). The WHOQOL-BREF results also highlighted a significant uptick in students’ mental well-being in 2022–2023 (p = 0.039). Conclusions: As the COVID-19 pandemic ended, high school students exhibited shifts in behavior, health, and education over four academic years, particularly in areas of contraceptive knowledge and mental health outcomes. The pronounced enhancements in vaccination rates, perceptions of mental health support, participation in health conversations, and overall mental wellness emphasize the adaptability and resilience of students in these tumultuous periods, and a general increase in contraceptive knowledge and quality of life during the end of the pandemic. Full article
(This article belongs to the Special Issue Youth Mental Health after COVID-19 Pandemic: Prevention, Innovation and Treatment Projects in Mental Health Services)
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