Effects of Youth Mental Health First Aid (YMHFA) on South Asian American Adults Working With South Asian American Youth

Youth Mental Health First Aid (YMHFA) USA is a public education program which introduces participants to the unique risk factors and warning signs of mental health problems in adolescents, builds understanding of the importance of early intervention, and teaches individuals how to help an adolescent in crisis or experiencing a mental health challenge. Mental Health First Aid uses role-playing and discussion to demonstrate how to assess a mental health crisis, select interventions and provide initial help, and connect young people to professional, peer, social, and self-help care. The goal of YMHFA is to ensure everyone in America has at least one First Aider in their close circle of friends, family and peers. Every 1 in 15 people should be certified to identify, understand and respond to signs and symptoms of mental health and substance use challenges. Though YMHFA has trained more than 4 million First Aiders and there is ample research done on how the training can improve knowledge, attitudes, and behaviors of those working with youth, little to no research has demonstrated the impacts of the training for South Asian American (SAA) adults working with SAA youth. This project is investigating the cultural adaptation of YMHFA for the SAA community, specifically looking to reflect the values and perspectives embedded within the culture/community, challenges SAA youth are experiencing, and the various cultural factors/considerations that may facilitate/hinder help-seeking when needed. This information will be gathered by conducting focus groups with SAA adults and SAA youth to understand their experiences, how one conceptualizes mental health, what challenges they have experienced or observed, and seek their feedback on some aspects of the training for adaptation consideration. Upon completion of the focus groups, the transcripts will be reviewed and thematized to inform the final adaptations implemented. Additionally, survey data will be collected from participants before and one month after completing the training to better understand how the adapted training may improve mental health knowledge, help-seeking attitudes and behaviors, and the utilization of the skills taught within the training for SAA adults working with SAA youth. The findings will provide implications for the role cultural adaptation may play for YMHFA and other mental health/well-being trainings. Moreover, the findings can help to shed light on ways in which we can better approach this community and SAA youth when it comes to mental health conversations, supporting their needs, and encouraging professional and/or informal support. Finally, we hope the adaptations identified can inform additional tools and resources the National Council for Mental Wellbeing may provide to YMHFA instructors who may also train other SAA individuals/communities/organizations.