Task Brief:
Assessment 1 – Research Proposal tips
- Have a table of content (its own page)
- Introduction
- Introduce Research Topic
- Introduce Research Question
- Add objectives (simplify question in forms of objectives)
- Rationale for doing this research.
- Literature Review (Use themes)
- Methodology
- Qualitative or quantitative (why?)
- Which data (Primary or secondary and why?)
- Ethics
- Access to data
- Analysis (thematic or discourse or content?)
- Strength of your research
- Limitations of your research
- Conclusion
- Reference list
- Follow APA 7th style (make sure you did the same for in-text references).
Solution:
Project Proposal
What are the perceptions of young people aged 15-25 towards mental health in Sydney from 2020-2024?
1. Introduction
In Sydney, where youth cultures flourish, a silent battle with their mental health extends the perception of young adults. In Sydney specifically where youth culture adorns actively with beaches, cafes, and energy, there is a silent battle. A large portion of young adults (15-25 years) experience issues related to mental health, and because of the nature of mental health they might not seek any help. The research analyses how the youths in Sydney perceive mental health from 2020 to 2024.
1.1. Research Questions
- What is mental illness a sign of weakness or something that one can get over?
- What gets in the way of knowledge or its availability?
- What services must be provided to the people of genre and the question that arises is how this could be done?
1.2. Research Aim
The aim is to evaluate the perceptions of mental health among young people aged 15-25 residing in Sydney, Australia, with a specific focus on the period between 2020 and 2024. This research will assess, how their views on mental health have been shaped by recent social, cultural, and environmental factors.
1.3. Research Objective
- To access the knowledge of youth in Sydney regarding mental health including stress, depression, and anxiety.
- To evaluate how social media has impacted youth’s experiences of mental health in Sydney during 2020-2024.
- To compare perceptions of mental health between different subgroups within the targeted population of Sydney.
1.4. The rationale of the research
Analysing the peer-reviewed articles the research aims to identify specific mental health issues of young adults living in Sydney, Australia while information exists on mental health issues among young people little is known about their perceptions. This research is needed to close these gaps and improve support for Sydney’s youth in a conversation that is ever more frequently occurring.
2. Literature review:
Theme 1: Impact of Social Media and Technology on Young People’s Mental Health
Thus, social media and technology have infiltrated the lives of those individuals belonging to the young adult population of 15-25 years old, especially in an active city like Sydney. At the same time, these sites provide people with chances to interact, have fun, and receive information, studies show that they influence mental health.
The first problem distinguished is the correlation between the use of social networks and depression. In research carried out in Nature, it was discovered that there is a positive correlation between involvement in social media platforms and depressive symptoms among the youth (18-30 years). The association could be due to several factors proper to the Sydney setting. The ideal bodies and lifestyles that young adults are exposed to and follow on social media create feelings of insecurity and unease about one’s existence. Such a tendency combined with the pressure of keeping oneself to an optimized and perfect appearance online, particularly in a city like Sydney which often places a particular accent on looks and a luxurious life, could enhance those feelings (Chang et al., 2020).
Secondly, what is known as cyberbullying or the rate of a friend is also very prevalent. This revelation was made by the Australian Institute of Family Studies and as per the findings, one in every four youths in Australia within the age group of 14-17 years had been a victim of cyberbullying in the past year. The fact that people can remain anonymous and are often ‘always connected’ through social media, cyberbullying is more common than traditional bullying and has more severe effects including anxiety, depression, and feelings of isolation.
But this technology can be used for positive work as well. Sydney young adults can use technology to get mental health care information. Research such as one from Springer Link reveals how digital MHI is beneficial to the youth and young adult populations (Wright et al., 2023). Smartphones, applications, and websites offer ‘in-place’ and anonymous help which are globally beneficial for every people that have some spiritual nervousness about seeking help.
Theme 2: Loneliness and Social Isolation among the Young Adults of Sydney
It examines the issue of mental health problems among young people and their services access in Sydney, Australia. It talks about the limitations of traditional services and the possibilities of the use of technology-based interventions. Promoting targeted and easily available youth-oriented activities is a potential way to help those clients. Thus, even though the data is not specific to Sydney, it can serve as a great starting point for further research and investigation.
However, when it comes to the problem of loneliness and social isolation, youths of age between 15-25 years living in Sydney are not exempted from the struggle. The following literature review examines factors that may help explain this problem since research on Sydney stray cat populations is somewhat scarce.
The COVID-19 pandemic certainly increased loneliness levels worldwide. The article has indicated how social distancing measures diminish social contacts which affected routines that positively are associated with well-being thus young adults in Sydney during the pandemic years 2020-2024 (Buecker & Horstmann, 2021).
Besides COVID-19, social media remains a boon with a bane for young adults depending on the situation. Whereas connectivity achieves a sense of unity between separation; a study arrived at by (Bailey et al., 2022) exposes that loneliness is related to social media addiction, particularly among university students. The selected environment sets the pressure and emotional strain on the youth due to the covert manipulations, which consequently cause social isolation in young adults while trying to cope with the intricacies of social life in a city such as Sydney (Bailey et al., 2022).
In addition, youth becomes a stage of vulnerability, specifically, it may become a time of loneliness to become an adult. Those factors that interfere with leaving familiar social groups such as high school friends, attending new academic or working environments, and the perceived lack of a place in the new environment may lead to isolation. This is especially so for Sydney where change is not only more apparent, but the competition rose by due to media growth also aggravates these problems.
The present study aimed to internationally compare young adults’ well-being and explore the impact of social isolation on this group’s mental health. Understanding the specific challenges faced by young adults in Sydney: As such, further studies exploring the general and contextual social contexts in which young adults find themselves in Sydney are necessary. Promoting healthy social media use: It is equally critical for young adults to be informed about social networking services dangers such as the deterioration of their self-sufficiency, and loneliness feelings, and implementing positive social relations to overcome such scenarios (Bailey et al., 2022).
Regarding mental health, young adults (15-25) in Sydney are faced with numerous hurdles as this section is going to unveil. Besides the professional help, literature shows that there is a lack of awareness and utilization of such programs and resources among young adults in the city in question. However, traditional services may be hindered by many shortcomings such as; long time of waiting, few appointments, and costs which make youths refrain from seeking professional help. Moreover, it can be more challenging because of the existing prejudices concerning mental health.
Based on the present study, technology-based intervention produces an encouraging prospect. Research has proved that apps, online therapy, and mental health websites can be used as convenient support solutions in helping people. Nevertheless, the synchronizing of technology with well-established community services is mandatory. Stakeholder research underlines the need to devote effective interventions in outreach to young adults’ target audience in an authorized and accessible mode. It can promote help-seeking behavior and also make the material attractive.
It is also necessary to identify the peculiarities of these young adults and examine the concrete types of barriers that they encounter in Sydney. The usage of such understanding could be applied to outreach programs, solving the problems with the wait time in conventional services, and discussing the various funding mechanisms. In conclusion, it is possible to build a web of mentally healthy organizations and services where young adults will be able to get timely help, cope with their mental issues, and live a productive life in this great city (Seidler et al., 2020).
Policy Section
Young adults specifically those within the ages of 15 to 25 years are also faced with mental health issues in Sydney. Conducted based on a literature review and evaluating a recent article published by the Australian government, this analysis outlines important policy fields to enhance working people’s access to support and well-being. It could also help educate young adults since these campaigns can depict the struggle with mental health disorders and promote seeking help. Nevertheless, a report from the Department of Health titled ‘National Mental Health Strategy 2020-2030’ indicates the requirement for more elaborate outreach services exclusive for youths between the ages of 18 to 25 years (WHO, 2021). These programs could employ such features of the social media platforms and relevant community popular figures in eliminating stigma and encouraging appropriate help-seeking behaviours among this age persons.
The National Mental Health and Suicide Prevention Agreement identify the possibilities of using digital mental health interventions. Exploring Telehealth Options: On this basis, the “National Mental Health Strategy 2020-2030” further underlines the need to strengthen the use of telemedicine, especially in the context of different geographical areas. The implications of such a policy could be felt predominantly in young adults of Sydney who may experience some difficulties in getting traditional face-to-face services because of a lack of time, transport, or social phobia. Programs such as the eSafety Commissioner launched by the Australian government can assist young adults in Sydney to have the necessary knowledge and skills to conduct themselves properly while using social media. It is also possible to leverage policy frameworks to ensure that the SM platforms promote mental health causes. Such measures could be features intended to prevent cases of cyberbullying among the youth while at the same time ensuring healthy interactions based on the use of social media among young adults (safety Commissioner, 2024).
3. Methodology
Research method
In this case, only qualitative research can provide a satisfactory image of young adults’ mental health situation in Sydney. This method studies their article views, as it describes how they respond to the issue of mental health in their social and cultural context. Reading journals that compare qualitative papers is therefore helpful in understanding these distinct kinds of views. Mental health is mixed, and thus, the use of qualitative research along with the consideration of secondary research methodology enables one to study factors such as the use of social media, mental health stigma, and usage of services. In this manner, exploring the secondary research journals helps to develop a deeper understanding of these factors and their impact on the selected young adults’ mental health.
Ethical Considerations
Ethical considerations are crucial, especially for participants being oriented to the research, the consent issues, and data accessibility. The consent form will be floated among participants so that they can answer the question without any hesitation. Also, they can give their full support to us by trusting us.
Access to data
The use of journals shows how researchers engaged with the participants and how they reduced or dealt with power relations. With one of the most powerful and used analysis secondary methods, thematic analysis is singled out as being underpinned by the identification of recurring patterns.
Analysis
To analyse the gathered data, a thematic analysis will be done. Through this analysis themes based on objectives will be formed and the data gathered will be separated under the themes as per information. These themes then be evaluated and compared to objectives and will be justified.
Limitations
It is felt that journal reviews should scale the level of this analysis. Despite the explanation in detail, the results which are generated through qualitative research cannot be generalized across a wider population and there is also a risk of researcher bias.
Strengths
Reading the articles in qualitative research journals helps in evaluating the research’s quality. Through this method, journals can be inspected that, qualitative research proves to be a strong contributor to the analysis of young adults’ mental health in Sydney and the formation of better policies and systems (Krstanoska-Blazeska et al., 2023).
4. Conclusion
This research aims to investigate young adults’ mental health status in Sydney using a qualitative approach. Other prominent categories are social networking sites, feelings of isolation, and the possibility of getting the necessary assistance. They indicate that there is a need to adopt new policies concerning reach, telemedicine, and safety policies concerning social media.
References
Australian Institute of Health and Welfare. (2024). Social isolation and loneliness – Mental health. Australian Institute of Health and Welfare. https://www.aihw.gov.au/mental-health/topic-areas/social-isolation-and-loneliness
Bailey, E., Boland, A., Bell, I., Nicholas, J., La Sala, L., & Robinson, J. (2022). The Mental Health and Social Media Use of Young Australians during the COVID-19 Pandemic. International Journal of Environmental Research and Public Health, 19(3), 1077. https://doi.org/10.3390/ijerph19031077
Buecker, S., & Horstmann, K. T. (2021). Loneliness and Social Isolation During the COVID-19 Pandemic. European Psychologist, 26(4), 272–284. https://doi.org/10.1027/1016-9040/a000453
Chang, C., Cheng, G. J. Y., Nghiem, T. P. L., Song, X. P., Oh, R. R. Y., Richards, D. R., & Carrasco, L. R. (2020). Social media, nature, and Life satisfaction: Global Evidence of the Biophilia Hypothesis. Scientific Reports, 10(1). https://doi.org/10.1038/s41598-020-60902-w
eSafety Commissioner. (2024, June 30). Young People. ESafety Commissioner. https://www.esafety.gov.au/young-people
Krstanoska-Blazeska, K., Renzaho, A., Blignault, I., Li, B., Reavley, N., &Slewa-Younan, S. (2023). A Qualitative Exploration of Sources of Help for Mental Illness in Arabic-, Mandarin-, and Swahili-Speaking Communities in Sydney, Australia. International Journal of Environmental Research and Public Health, 20(10), 5862. https://doi.org/10.3390/ijerph20105862
Ramshaw, A. (2024, January). Social Media Statistics for Australia. Genroe. https://www.genroe.com/blog/social-media-statistics-australia/13492
Seidler, Z. E., Rice, S. M., Dhillon, H. M., Cotton, S. M., Telford, N. R., McEachran, J., &Rickwood, D. J. (2020). Patterns of Youth Mental Health Service Use and Discontinuation: Population Data From Australia’s Headspace Model of Care. Psychiatric Services, 71(11), appi.ps.2019004. https://doi.org/10.1176/appi.ps.201900491
WHO. (2021, September 21). Comprehensive Mental Health Action Plan 2013 – 2030. Www.who.int. https://www.who.int/publications/i/item/9789240031029
Wright, M., Reitegger, F., Cela, H., Papst, A., & Gasteiger-Klicpera, B. (2023). Interventions with Digital Tools for Mental Health Promotion among 11–18 Year Olds: A Systematic Review and Meta-Analysis. Journal of Youth and Adolescence, 52(4), 754–779. https://doi.org/10.1007/s10964-023-01735-4