In the eyes of the other: Parental perspectives on youth mental illness
Date of Award
2024
Document Type
Thesis
Publisher
Edith Cowan University
Degree Name
Doctor of Philosophy
School
School of Education
First Supervisor
Mandie Shean
Second Supervisor
Cath Ferguson
Abstract
Despite efforts made in treatment and prevention strategies, prevalence of mental illness in adolescence remains high, with detrimental impacts to social, emotional and physical wellbeing and academic achievement. In most mental health disorders, onset occurs during adolescence which is often a difficult time of development. This developmental stage is made further difficult by the challenges associated with mental illness. Given these critical issues, the purpose of this study was to gain a deeper understanding of adolescent mental health problems and engagement with service providers. With parents being central to the care of their child and often being regarded as the gatekeepers to adolescents accessing service providers, this study sought to gain this understanding through an examination of parental perspectives in relation to three key areas a) youth mental health support services b) the impacts of youth mental illness on education and c) how adolescents express, respond to and manage mental illness.
The philosophical paradigms of interpretative phenomenological analysis and social justice theory guided this study. Interpretative phenomenological analysis research methods informed the approach to data collection and analysis in this qualitative research. Participants of this study were six parents from different families whose adolescent child, aged between 12 and 18, had mental health problems.
Findings indicated that social reactions to adolescent mental illness were invalidating and often stigma laden. Stigmatised responses occurred within the contextual domains of healthcare, education and friendships, and these were perceived to influence young people’s experiences of mental health illness. Parental perceptions of adolescent mental health illness were based on relational experiences that were often shrouded in shame and resulted in dimensions of alienation, making shame and alienation the overarching themes in this study. The core subthemes identified were invalidation in support services, negative attitudes, relationships, academic performance, triggers, characterisation of mental illness, coping, alienation and parental agency.
This study highlighted the need to incorporate explanatory models of illness, including those of patient and parent; mental health training for parents and educational staff; the need for mental health literacy for adolescents that includes the implementation of emotion regulation strategies; and the need to create a sense of belonging for youth, and are deemed essential factors for effective intervention strategies. This study also highlighted that when addressing youth mental illness, societal perspectives must be incorporated to allow the broader influential factors that create stressful environments for youth to be considered.
DOI
10.25958/9ndf-t497
Access Note
Access to this thesis has been embargoed until 8th May 2026.
Recommended Citation
Brown, N. K. (2024). In the eyes of the other: Parental perspectives on youth mental illness. Edith Cowan University. https://doi.org/10.25958/9ndf-t497