Purpose: Neurodevelopmental difficulties are correlated with lower mental well-being and more mental health problems. Issues in social relations such as bullying are a prominent risk factor in a social setting of high school, have also been associated with the status of disability. This thesis investigated the relation between mental health problems, mental well-being, and bullying in adolescents with self-reported neurodevelopmental difficulties and compared these with adolescents with Other disabilities. Materials and methods: Data from a Swedish longitudinal survey study (LoRDIA) was used. Mental health problems were measured through emotional and conduct problems scales of SDQ, mental well-being was measured with MHC-SF, and a bullying questionnaire was used. Results: Adolescents with NDD experience more bullying victimization and perpetration than adolescents with Other disabilities such as physical disability and autoimmune diseases. Significant association to bullying perpetration was found in NDD adolescents. Adolescents with Other disabilities indicated high mental well-being compared to NDD. While gender predicts high mental well-being, disability and emotional problems have a negative relation with it. Conclusion: Adolescents with NDD report more bullying victimization and perpetration experiences in comparison to adolescents with Other disabilities. Emotional problems have an inverse relation for predicting high mental well-being for adolescents with NDD and Other disabilities.

Psykisk ohälsa är ett ökande problem samtidigt som symptomen ofta behandlas med medicinering istället för psykologiska behandlingsmetoder där individen får möjlighet att läka i lugn och ro. Hästunderstödda insatser är en behandlingsmetod som innefattar glädje och struktur för att lyfta individens självkänsla och egenskaper. Syftet med studien är att undersöka behandlarens syn på hästens roll i arbetet med psykisk ohälsa. Studien fokuserar på att utreda om hästen påverkar relationen mellan klient och behandlare samt huruvida häst och behandlare inverkar på klientens återhämtning. Det är en kvalitativ studie med semistrukturerade intervjuer och tematisk analys. Resultatet visar att hästunderstödda insatser kan vara en metod där det finns möjlighet att med hjälp av djur och natur, återhämta sig från psykisk ohälsa i lugn och ro. Hästen kan motivera samtidigt som relationen mellan behandlare och klient förbättras. Metoden kräver dock mer forskning för starkare evidens för att utvidga användningen i samhället. / Mental ill-health is a growing problem, where symptoms are often treated with medication instead of psychological treatment that allows the individual to recover in peace and quiet. Equine-assisted intervention is a treatment method that improves an individual's self-esteem and attitude by providing joy and structure. This study investigates the therapist's view of a horse's role in the treatment of mental ill-health. It examines whether a horse can influence the relationship between the client and the therapist, and whether the horse, together with the therapist, can influence the client's recovery. It is a qualitative study, with semistructured interviews and thematic analysis. The result shows that equine-assisted interventions can, with the help of animals and nature, provide the opportunity to recover from mental ill-health with tranquility and improve the client’s relationship with the therapist. However, more research is needed to strengthen the evidence and encourage the adoption of the method in society.

Bakgrund: Postpartum är en utmanande tidsperiod med ökad risk för psykisk ohälsa hos föräldrar. De flesta studier som har genomförts har undersökt inrikesfödda mödrar. Det saknas studier som undersöker postpartum-relaterad psykisk ohälsa hos utrikesfödda föräldrar i Sverige. Syftet med den aktuella studien var därför att undersöka välmående hos utrikes-och inrikesfödda mödrar och fäder i Sverige. Studien syftade också till att undersöka potentiella riskfaktorer för utveckling av psykisk ohälsa och om riskfaktorerna skiljde sig mellan utrikes och inrikesfödda föräldrar. Metod: 1847 mödrar och fäder inklusive 483 (26.2%) utrikesfödda och 1364 (73.8 %) inrikesfödda föräldrar besvarade skattningsskalorna the Swedish Parenthood Stress Questionnaire och Välmåendeskalan. Data analyserades med Student’s t-test, envägs-ANOVA, Pearson’s korrelationsanalys och Multipel regressionsanalys. Resultat: Utrikesfödda föräldrar rapporterade statistiskt signifikant lägre välmående jämfört med inrikesfödda föräldrar. Bland utrikesfödda föräldrar var social isolering, hälsoproblem, känsla av inkompetens och låg utbildningsnivå riskfaktorer för psykisk ohälsa. Bland inrikesfödda föräldrar var känsla av inkompetens, hälsoproblem, social isolering, relationsproblem och rollrestriktion samt låg utbildningsnivå, riskfaktorer för psykisk ohälsa. Slutsats: Resultatet i denna deskriptiva och explorativa studie indikerar att utrikesfödda föräldrar upplever sämre välmående och löper större risk för utveckling av psykisk ohälsa under postpartum-perioden. Studien visar också att riskfaktorerna skiljer sig åt beroende på födelse inom eller utanför riket. / Background: The postpartum is a challenging period with an increased risk for parental mental illness. Most studies conducted have been performed on Swedish-born mothers. At present, there are no studies examining postpartum related mental illness in foreign-born parents in Sweden. The purpose of this study was therefore to examine the mental wellbeing of foreign-born mothers and fathers in Sweden and whether it differs from Swedish-born parents. The aim of the study was also to investigate potential risk factors for the development of mental illness, and whether the risk factors differ between foreign- and Swedish-born parents. Method: 1847 mothers and fathers, including 483 (26.2%) foreign-born and 1364 (73.8%) Swedish-born parents, answered the Swedish Parenthood Stress Questionnaire and the Well–being scale. Data was analyzed using the Pearson’s correlation analysis, One-way-ANOVA and Standard Multiple Regression analysis. Results: Foreign-born parents reported statistically significant lower mental well-being compared to Swedish-born parents. The study shows that among foreign-born parents, social isolation was a significant risk factor for mental illness during the postpartum period followed by health problems, feeling incompetent as a parent, and a low level of education. Among Swedish-born parents, health problems, social isolation, low levels of education, feeling incompetent as a parent, role restriction and relationship problems were risk factors for mental illness. Conclusion: The results of this descriptive and exploratory study indicates that foreign-born parents experience poorer mental well-being and are at greater risk of developing mental illness during the postpartum period. The study also shows that the risk factors differ depending on birth within or outside the country.

Bakgrund: Den psykiska ohälsan ökar i Sverige, forskning visar att över hälften av ungdomar i Sverige påvisat någon form av psykisk ohälsa före 14 årsåldern.  Studier visar att unga idag är mer benägna att prata om vad som främjar psykiskt välbefinnande. Socialt stöd påvisas som en tydlig faktor för psykiskt välbefinnande. Socialt stöd för psykiskt välbefinnande beskrivs utifrån flera perspektiv. Syfte: Syftet är att undersöka socialt stöd för psykiskt välbefinnande hos ungdomar (16–19 år). Metod: En kvantitativ undersökning, med tvärsnittsdesign. Ett bekvämlighetsurval gjordes där enkätundersökningar skickades ut till gymnasieskolor i Västmanland. Totalt 165 enkätsvar till dataunderlaget. Dataunderlaget har analyserats via generering av frekvenstabeller, korstabeller och Chi2-test har utförts mellan självskattat psykiskt välbefinnande, kön och olika variabler för socialt stöd. Resultat: Resultatet visar både att ungdomar önskar mer socialt stöd från formella aktörer och att de allra flesta (61%) av ungdomar önskar att få socialt stöd i form av fysiska samtal. Ungdomarna och i synnerhet flickor önskar att bli erbjuden socialt stöd. Generellt sätt visar både forskningsstudier och examensarbetet hur flickor nyttjar det sociala stödet i högre grad än pojkar, samt att flickor hellre ser ökad tillgänglighet av socialt stöd från formella aktörer.  Slutsatser: Ungdomar rapporterar hög tillgänglighet av socialt stöd, men önskar mer. Ungdomar önskar att bli erbjudna socialt stöd och föredrar fysiskt samtal som form av socialt stöd. Ungdomar som mår sämre, samt flickor generellt var oftare missnöjda kring sociala stödet, samt hade mer behov. / Background: Mental illness is increasing in Sweden, research tells that over 50% of youth in Sweden have shown signs of mental illness before their 14th birthday. Studys show that the youth today are more outspoken about mental well-being and the factors that promotes it. Social support have shown to be an indisputable factor for mental well-being. Social support for mental well-being is despicted from multiple perspectives. Aim: The purpose is to examine social support for mental well-being in youth (16-19 years). Method: A cross-sectional study, with quantitative approach. The survey was sent to high schools in Västmanland. Convenience sample, in total 165 surveys in the dataset. The dataset has been analyzed with frequency tables, crosstables and Chi-squared test have been executed between self-assessed mental well-being, gender and different variables for social support. Results: The results show both that youth want more social support from formal actors and most of youth (61%) wish for social support in the form of peer-on-peer conversations. The youth and foremost girls wish to be provided social support. Both research studies and this examination paper show how girls use social support more than boys and that girls prefer more availability of social support from formal actors. Conclusions: Youth report high availability of social support but wish for more. Youth want to be offered social support and prefer psychical conversations as form of social support. Those youth who reported worse mental well-being and girls in general were more often unhappy with social support and had bigger needs.

The purpose of this study was to determine the impact of unemployment on the mental well-being of the South African working age population. The implication of exploring this relationship is to indicate the importance of good mental health among persons who are not employed. The present study also aimed atinvestigating the role that government can play in mitigating the impact of unemployment on mental health. This part of the research assessed the effectiveness of government’s social security system. The current study employs a mixed research design whereby both quantitative and qualitative methods of data analysis are used. The relationship between unemployment, mental well-being and government intervention is investigated using a cohort group in which the mental health of persons not employed, aged between 15 and 64 years, are followed over the period, 2004 to 2008. The results are presented using two types of data. First, secondary data from Statistics South Africa’s General Household Survey (GHS) were used to measure the impact of unemployment on mental health and to ascertain the impact of government social assistance on affected individuals’ mental well-being. Secondly, in order to explore individual perceptions around government intervention, the research employed a qualitative phenomenological design. This involved conducting semi-structured personal interviews with four unemployed women residing in Gauteng. The results showed that incidences of self-reported mental health illnesses were most likely to be found among individuals who were not employed as compared to those that were employed. This finding proved to be consistent using both descriptive and multivariate statistics which included predictive models. In terms of government intervention, positive mental well-being was shown to be positively related to access of social welfare services (in the form of social grants). This finding was true for all the years of reporting (i.e., 2004 to 2008). In conclusion, although unemployment was found to have a negative impact of mental well-being, government intervention was shown to positively mitigate this impact, thereby giving hope to an otherwise hopeless situation. Unemployment and its impact on mental well-beingalso proved to be a complex subject, requiring multidisciplinary intervening strategies to solving it. / Psychology / D. Litt. et Phil. (Psychology)

The purpose of this study was to determine the impact of unemployment on the mental well-being of the South African working age population. The implication of exploring this relationship is to indicate the importance of good mental health among persons who are not employed. The present study also aimed atinvestigating the role that government can play in mitigating the impact of unemployment on mental health. This part of the research assessed the effectiveness of government’s social security system. The current study employs a mixed research design whereby both quantitative and qualitative methods of data analysis are used. The relationship between unemployment, mental well-being and government intervention is investigated using a cohort group in which the mental health of persons not employed, aged between 15 and 64 years, are followed over the period, 2004 to 2008. The results are presented using two types of data. First, secondary data from Statistics South Africa’s General Household Survey (GHS) were used to measure the impact of unemployment on mental health and to ascertain the impact of government social assistance on affected individuals’ mental well-being. Secondly, in order to explore individual perceptions around government intervention, the research employed a qualitative phenomenological design. This involved conducting semi-structured personal interviews with four unemployed women residing in Gauteng. The results showed that incidences of self-reported mental health illnesses were most likely to be found among individuals who were not employed as compared to those that were employed. This finding proved to be consistent using both descriptive and multivariate statistics which included predictive models. In terms of government intervention, positive mental well-being was shown to be positively related to access of social welfare services (in the form of social grants). This finding was true for all the years of reporting (i.e., 2004 to 2008). In conclusion, although unemployment was found to have a negative impact of mental well-being, government intervention was shown to positively mitigate this impact, thereby giving hope to an otherwise hopeless situation. Unemployment and its impact on mental well-beingalso proved to be a complex subject, requiring multidisciplinary intervening strategies to solving it. / Psychology / D. Litt. et Phil. (Psychology)