Peer-reviewed article
Patterns of and Factors Associated With Mental Health Service Utilization Among School-Going Adolescent Girls in Southwestern Uganda: A Latent Class Analysis
William Byansi, Fred M. Ssewamala, Torsten B. Neilands, Abel Mwebembezi, Gertrude F. Nakigozi ·
Summary
Written by AI, not yet AICS's view · claude-haiku-4-5-20251001This study examined how 317 adolescent girls aged 14-17 in southwestern Uganda engaged with a 16-week family group mental health intervention across 12 secondary schools. Researchers used statistical modeling to identify two attendance patterns: low and high engagement. They found that families with more adults and more children were more likely to use mental health services, suggesting that stronger family support systems may help adolescent girls access mental health care.
Key points
- On average, participants attended 10 out of 16 intervention sessions (SD = 5.90)
- 34.38% (109 girls) completed all 16 sessions, while 13.56% (43 girls) did not attend any
- Latent class analysis identified two distinct attendance groups: low and high attendants
- Family-level factors associated with increased mental health service utilization were the number of adults in the family and the number of children in the family
- Study participants were from a larger cluster randomized controlled trial involving 1,260 adolescent girls across 47 schools
Limitations
The study describes patterns of intervention engagement and their association with family factors, but cannot establish causality or determine whether attendance actually improved mental health outcomes. The analysis focuses only on engagement patterns rather than the clinical effectiveness of the intervention itself.
Abstract
PURPOSE: The study aimed to improve understanding of patterns of multiple family group intervention engagement and associated factors among adolescent girls in a low-resource country, Uganda. METHODS: The data used in this analysis were part of a larger cluster randomized controlled trial consisting of 1260 adolescent girls across 47 public secondary schools. The sample in the current study consisted of 317 adolescent girls (ages 14-17 at enrollment) recruited from senior one and senior two classes across 12 secondary schools in the southwestern region of Uganda. Participants in this study participated in the multiple family group intervention-a 16-week manualized intervention. Attendance data from 16 sessions were used to identify the heterogeneity of intervention engagement using latent class analysis modeling. Logistic regression analysis was conducted to assess the association between predisposing, enabling, need factors, and mental health utilization patterns. RESULTS: On average, participants attended 10 sessions (standard deviation = 5.90), 34.38% (N = 109) completed all 16 sessions, and 13.56% (N = 43) did not attend any of the sessions. Two attendance groups were identified: low and high attendants using latent class analysis. In addition, two family-level factors, the number of adults and the number of children in the family, were associated with an increase in the utilization of mental health services. DISCUSSION: Findings suggest that enhancing family support systems may be useful in promoting mental health utilization among adolescent girls with the potential to improve self-esteem, reduce feelings of inadequacy, and ultimately achieve better mental health outcomes.
Findings the Hub has extracted
Each claim below is labelled by its type of design and links back to this report.
- Intervention
- 16-week manualized multiple family group intervention
- Population
- 317 school-going adolescent girls aged 14-17 in southwestern Uganda, recruited from senior one and senior two classes across 12 secondary schools
Key finding
Average attendance was 10 out of 16 sessions (SD = 5.90)
Byansi et al. · Prof. Fred M. Ssewamala (OpenAlex works) · 14 Apr 2023