Programmes that encourage help may get more people to see professionals

The review

1. 01

   Who took part

   69,208 people took part in 98 studies, with average ages from 2 to 82. Almost all studies were in richer countries, and 22 were about children or teenagers.

2. 02

   What they did

   The most common programmes taught about mental health problems and where to get help. Many also tried to reduce negative views of mental illness, and some helped people weigh up the reasons to change. Most compared people with those who got nothing or usual care.

3. 03

   What happened

   People were more likely to see professionals at the end and six months or more later. Attitudes to seeking help also improved, but informal help showed no clear change, and the paper's numbers for it don't match. Gains were found in adults, not in children or teenagers, and the general public showed no clear gain.

What the review found

1. HelpedGoals

   Across 25 studies, programmes for asking for help got more people to see professionals at the end.

   • Action: Learn how the problem workstested
   • Action: Challenge unhelpful thoughtstested

   Pooled analysis of 25 studies with 22,396 people · vs people who got nothing or usual care · they rated themselves · ⚠ the studies disagreed a lot; whole programmes were tested, so no single part can be credited; mixes trials with other kinds of study

2. HelpedGoals

   Across 24 studies, help programmes still got more people to see professionals six months later or more.

   Pooled analysis of 24 studies with 8,109 people · vs people who got nothing or usual care · they rated themselves · ⚠ whole programmes were tested, so no single part can be credited; mixes trials with other kinds of study

3. No differenceGoals

   Across 5 studies, help programmes made no clear difference to getting help from friends or family.

   Pooled analysis of 5 studies with 16,044 people · vs people who got nothing or usual care · they rated themselves · ⚠ whole programmes were tested, so no single part can be credited; mixes trials with other kinds of study

4. HelpedMotivation

   Across 23 studies, help programmes made people more open to professional help at the end.

   • Action: Learn how the problem workstested
   • Action: Challenge unhelpful thoughtstested

   Pooled analysis of 23 studies with 6,485 people · vs people who got nothing or usual care · they rated themselves · ⚠ whole programmes were tested, so no single part can be credited; mixes trials with other kinds of study

Source