A Systematic Review of Parents' Mental Health Literacy Programs: Examining Program Effectiveness and Parent Satisfaction.

In 30 seconds

This systematic review examined global programs designed to improve parents’ mental health literacy about youth mental health problems, including program effectiveness and parent satisfaction. It identified and described nine programs by their structure, content, and delivery. Several programs improved at least one component of parents’ mental health literacy. Where satisfaction was assessed, it was generally positive, although parents identified areas for improvement, including more specific content and practical parenting skills. The review highlights potential for these programs while indicating that their content and evaluation warrant further development.

Key findings

• The review identified nine parent mental health literacy programs and described their structure, content, and delivery methods.
• Several programs improved at least one component of parents’ mental health literacy.
• Parent satisfaction was generally positive when assessed, with requests for more specific content and practical parenting skills.

Why it matters

Parents often initiate help-seeking and influence whether young people access psychological services. Programs that strengthen parents’ understanding of youth mental health may therefore address one factor relevant to service use. The review also indicates that positive satisfaction does not eliminate the need to make program content more specific and practically useful.

What to keep in mind

The abstract does not report quantitative effect estimates, and satisfaction was assessed only in some programs.