BACKGROUND
Mental ill-health is one of the most significant health and social issues affecting young people globally. To address the mental health crisis a number of cross-sectoral research and action priorities have been identified. These include the adoption of meaningful knowledge transfer activities and the use of digital technologies. There are, however, few examples of knowledge transfer activities involving collaborations between researchers, the Arts and online platforms in the field of youth mental health.
OBJECTIVE
The primary aim of this project was to translate qualitative research findings from into a series of online public mental health animations targeting young people between the ages of 16 and 25 years. A further aim was to track online social media engagement and viewing data for the animations for a period of 12 months.
METHODS
Qualitative data were collected from a sample of 17 Irish youth aged 18-21 years as part of the longitudinal population-based Adolescent Brain Development study. Interviews explored the life histories and the emotional and mental health of participants. Narrative analysis revealed five thematic findings relating to young people’s emotional and mental health. Through a collaboration between research, the Arts and the online sector, these empirical thematic findings were translated into five public health animations. The animations were hosted and promoted on three social media platforms of the Irish youth health website, SpunOut.ie. Engagement and viewing data were collected over a 12-month period.
RESULTS
Thematic analysis revealed that anxiety, depression, feeling different, loneliness and being bullied were common experiences for young people. These thematic findings formed the basis of the animations. During the 12 months following the launch of the animations, they achieved over 550,000 impressions on the SpunOut.ie Facebook, Twitter and YouTube platforms. The animations were viewed almost 16,000 times. A majority of engagement and views occurred during the period of the social media ad campaign at a cost of 3.5 cent per view. There was a low rate of link clicks from social media platforms to the host website during the promotion period. Animations on feeling different and being bullied accounted for the majority of impressions and views.
CONCLUSIONS
This project demonstrates that online animations provide an accessible means of translating and sharing empirical research findings and are a cost-effective way to provide information about mental health, coping and help-seeking. Cross-sectoral collaboration is required to leverage the knowledge and expertise required to maximise the quality and potential reach of any knowledge transfer activities. Additionally, paid promotion is essential to reach non-help-seeking young people on their native social media platforms and is important in maximising the reach and impact of online public health promotion.
Translation of qualitative research findings into online mental health animations for young people: project description and reach (Preprint)