On the World Mental Health Day (Oct 10) we published our first TOPOWA project paper. This was a qualitative analyses to better understand how young women in Kampala view mental health and also how they perceive the link between place and mental health. We think of "place" as the physical and social environment where the young women live, work, and live their lives. We asked them, what is mental health and wellbeing?
It has long been recognized that place is linked to health. But, the research on how place impacts mental health remains scarce and the mechanisms linking place to mental health specifically remain poorly understood. Also, research rarely study the most vulnerable populations in urban slums, despite their rapid growth. In our TOPOWA study, we're seeking to address these gaps by focusing specifically on mental health among young women ages 18-24 years of age.
Read more in our published paper how young women from three different communities view mental health and the aspects of the urban slum environment that they feel impact their mental health and wellbeing. We asked them to tell us what may reflect happiness, sadness and stress.
Read this open access article here.
Word Art of young Women Participant Responses to What is Mental Health and Wellbeing.
Comments