Fostering Mental Health Awareness in Pakistani Adolescents: Results From a School‐Based Intervention Study

ABSTRACT With significant rates of mental health problems reported among adolescents in Pakistan, it is necessary to equip them with mental health knowledge for timely detection and intervention. This study investigated the effectiveness of the Urdu version of the Mental Health and High School Curriculum Guide in improving adolescents' mental health literacy. By utilizing quasi experimental research design, a total of 316 grade nine students from three government high schools in Lahore, Pakistan were screened on Urdu Version of Mental Health Literacy Scale. From these, 122 participants who scored low were divided into intervention group ( n = 61) and waitlist control group ( n = 61) while being matched on gender, age and school variables to limit confounding. A total of 78 students (intervention group; n = 42 and waitlist control group; n = 36) completed the intervention and post‐evaluation. Independent Samples t ‐test revealed that the intervention group exhibited improved mental health literacy post‐intervention than the waitlist control group ( t [76] = 7.70, p < 0.001, Hedges' g = 1.94). The paired samples t ‐test indicated significant post‐intervention improvements in the intervention group's mental health literacy ( t [41] = −14.48, p < 0.001, Cohen's d = 2.51), mental health knowledge ( t [41] = −10.11, p < 0.001, Cohen's d = 1.71), and attitudes ( t [41] = −4.34, p < 0.001, Cohen's d = 0.72). This study had an attrition rate of 35.2% and the differential attrition analysis revealed no significant differences between the participants who completed the study and those who dropped out. Overall, the present study highlights the effectiveness of the guide and underscores the need for policy makers to embed such programs in educational curriculum to prevent mental health disorders and enhance community outcomes.