IDEAS home Printed from https://ideas.repec.org/a/sae/socpsy/v68y2022i7p1486-1493.html
   My bibliography  Save this article

Mental health literacy among Arab university students in Israel: A qualitative study

Author

Listed:
  • Anwar Khatib
  • Fareeda Abo-Rass

Abstract

Background: There has been a noticeable increase in the number of studies concerned with mental health literacy (MHL), specifically among students. Still, very few studies have examined MHL among students of non-Western minority groups. Aims: This study examined MHL among Arab students in Israel based on Jorm’s conceptual framework. Methods: Twenty-eight Arab students in Israel took part in semi-structured, in-depth interviews. Most were single and Muslim, in their second year of studies, and most reported low socioeconomic status. The data were analyzed thematically, guided by the Jorm’s six MHL dimensions. Results: Different levels of literacy were found in the various MHL dimensions. The participants identified severe mental disorders more easily than mood disorders; reported a variety of possible causes of mental disorders; were well aware of available professional help (apart for rehabilitative services); identified significant barriers to mental health help seeking, as Arabs; and reported the internet as a major source of information about mental health problems and their treatment Conclusions: The participants’ MHL appeared to be associated with their unique sociocultural characteristics. This study stresses the need to raise MHL among Arab students in Israel, and in particular to promote positive attitudes to seeking professional help. It also highlights the need to develop culturally adapted mental health interventions for the Arab population in Israel.

Suggested Citation

  • Anwar Khatib & Fareeda Abo-Rass, 2022. "Mental health literacy among Arab university students in Israel: A qualitative study," International Journal of Social Psychiatry, , vol. 68(7), pages 1486-1493, November.
    • Handle: RePEc:sae:socpsy:v:68:y:2022:i:7:p:1486-1493
    DOI: 10.1177/00207640211036167
    as

    Download full text from publisher

    File URL: https://journals.sagepub.com/doi/10.1177/00207640211036167
    Download Restriction: no
    File URL: https://libkey.io/10.1177/00207640211036167?utm_source=ideas
    LibKey link: if access is restricted and if your library uses this service, LibKey will redirect you to where you can use your library subscription to access this item
    ---><---

    References listed on IDEAS

    as
    1. Sarah Abu-Kaf & Enas Khalaf, 2020. "Acculturative Stress among Arab Students in Israel: The Roles of Sense of Coherence and Coping Strategies," IJERPH, MDPI, vol. 17(14), pages 1-19, July.
    Full references (including those not matched with items on IDEAS)

    Citations

    Citations are extracted by the CitEc Project, subscribe to its RSS feed for this item.
    as


    Cited by:

    1. Fareeda Abo-Rass & Sarah Abu-Kaf & Ora Nakash & Orna Braun-Lewensohn, 2024. "Mental health literacy as a barrier and facilitator for service use: Qualitative inquiry among Palestinian Bedouins in Israel," International Journal of Social Psychiatry, , vol. 70(4), pages 689-699, June.

    Most related items

    These are the items that most often cite the same works as this one and are cited by the same works as this one.
    1. Qian Wu & Yuko Yamaguchi & Chieko Greiner, 2022. "Factors Related to Mental Health of Foreign Care Workers in Long-Term Care Facilities in Japan during the COVID-19 Pandemic—A Comparative Study," IJERPH, MDPI, vol. 19(24), pages 1-14, December.
    2. Orna Braun-Lewensohn & Claude-Hélène Mayer, 2020. "Salutogenesis and Coping: Ways to Overcome Stress and Conflict," IJERPH, MDPI, vol. 17(18), pages 1-6, September.
    3. Wahiba Abu-Ras & Amir Birani & Zulema E. Suarez & Cynthia L. Arfken, 2022. "Palestinian Muslim College Students’ Attitudes to Mental Health Treatment: A Comparative Study," IJERPH, MDPI, vol. 19(23), pages 1-17, November.

    Corrections

    All material on this site has been provided by the respective publishers and authors. You can help correct errors and omissions. When requesting a correction, please mention this item's handle: RePEc:sae:socpsy:v:68:y:2022:i:7:p:1486-1493. See general information about how to correct material in RePEc.

    If you have authored this item and are not yet registered with RePEc, we encourage you to do it here. This allows to link your profile to this item. It also allows you to accept potential citations to this item that we are uncertain about.

    If CitEc recognized a bibliographic reference but did not link an item in RePEc to it, you can help with this form .

    If you know of missing items citing this one, you can help us creating those links by adding the relevant references in the same way as above, for each refering item. If you are a registered author of this item, you may also want to check the "citations" tab in your RePEc Author Service profile, as there may be some citations waiting for confirmation.

    For technical questions regarding this item, or to correct its authors, title, abstract, bibliographic or download information, contact: SAGE Publications (email available below). General contact details of provider: .

    Please note that corrections may take a couple of weeks to filter through the various RePEc services.

    IDEAS is a RePEc service. RePEc uses bibliographic data supplied by the respective publishers.