Assessment of Depressive Symptoms Severity among Secondary School Adolescents in Kiambu County, Kenya
DOI:
https://doi.org/10.70619/vol3iss3pp13-21Keywords:
Depressive symptoms, severity, adolescentsAbstract
Depressive symptoms have different levels of severity such as mild, chronic as well as acute. The symptoms may lead to feelings of hopelessness, emptiness, sadness, and helplessness. The purpose of this study was to evaluate the severity of depressive symptoms that are manifested by secondary school students in Kiambu County. The targeted population was secondary school adolescents in Kiambu County. Data was collected using standardized instruments. The adolescent depressive symptoms severity was assessed using the Patient Health Questionnaire-9: Modified for Teens (PHQ-9: teens). The findings on the severity of depressive symptoms manifested by the adolescents revealed that 38.6% of students had mild depression, 24.2% had minimal depression, 20% had moderate depression, 13.3% had moderately severe depression and 3.9% had severe depression. The study recommends the need for the Ministry of Education to hire counselors and psychologists to provide mental health services in secondary schools. This will assist students in managing depressive symptoms. The study further recommends that school management introduce programs aimed at bringing parents and students together to discuss family issues affecting student’s mental health.
References
Brock, R. L., & Kochanska, G. (2016). HHS Public Access. 28(1), 45–54. https://doi.org/10.1017/S0954579415000279.
Cummings, E. M., & Davies, P. T. (2012). Marital Conflict and Children : An Emotional Security Perspective. 86–87.
Cummings, Patrick T. Davies, E. M. (1994). Marital conflict and child adjustment : An emotional security hypothesis.
Davies, P. T., Martin, M. J., & Sturge-apple, M. L. (2016). Emotional Security Theory and Developmental Psychopathology (Issue February). https://doi.org/10.1002/9781119125556.devpsy106
Ganie A. Hussain, G. M. Y. (2021). Emotional Maturity and Academic Achievement among Adolescents of Kashmir. 9(2).
Girma, S., Tsehay, M., Mamaru, A., & Abera, M. (2021). Depression and its determinants among adolescents in Jimma town, Southwest. 1–13. https://doi.org/10.1371/journal.pone.0250927
Lancet, T. (2017). Health is an afterthought in a single-issue election. The Lancet, 389(10080), 1670. https://doi.org/10.1016/S0140-6736(17)31140-6
Lu, W. (2019). Adolescent Depression: National Trends, Risk Factors, and Healthcare Disparities. February. https://doi.org/10.5993/AJHB.43.1.15
Osborn, T. L., Venturo-conerly, K. E., Wasil, A. R., Schleider, J. L., Weisz, J. R., & Osborn, T. L. (2019). Depression and Anxiety Symptoms, Social Support, and Demographic Factors Among Kenyan High School Students and address in countries with scarce mental health. Journal of Child and Family Studies. https://doi.org/10.1007/s10826-019-01646-8
Rani Mohanraj, K. (2019). Prevalence of Depressive Symptoms Among Urban Adolescents in South India.
Rognli, E. W., Waraan, L., Czajkowski, N. O., Solbakken, O. A., & Aalberg, M. (2020). Conflict with parents in adolescent depression: associations with parental interpersonal problems and depressive symptoms. Child Psychiatry & Human Development, 51, 442-452.
Sserunjogi, J. N., Rukundo, G. Z., Ovuga, E., Kiwuwa, S. M., & Musisi, S. (2016). Prevalence and factors associated with depression symptoms among school going adolescents in Central Uganda. Child and Adolescent Psychiatry and Mental Health, 4–11. https://doi.org/10.1186/s13034-016-0133-4
W.H.O. (2017). Depression and Other Common Mental Disorders Global Health Estimates.
Downloads
Published
How to Cite
Issue
Section
License
Copyright (c) 2023 Theresia Wangari Ngata , Eunice Njeri Mvungu
This work is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial-NoDerivatives 4.0 International License.
