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This study explores the determinants of police officer support for pre-arrest/booking deflection programs that divert people presenting with substance use and/or mental health disorder symptoms out of the criminal justice system and connect them to supportive services.

This study analyzes responses from 254 surveys fielded to police officers in Delaware. Questionnaires asked about views on leadership, approaches toward crime, training, occupational experience and officer’s personal characteristics. The study applies a new machine learning method called kernel-based regularized least squares (KRLS) for non-linearities and interactions among independent variables. Estimates from a KRLS model are compared with those from an ordinary least square regression (OLS) model.

Support for diversion is positively associated with leadership endorsing diversion and thinking of new ways to solve problems. Tough-on-crime attitudes diminish programmatic support. Tenure becomes less predictive of police attitudes in the KRLS model, suggesting interactions with other factors. The KRLS model explains a larger proportion of the variance in officer attitudes than the traditional OLS model.

The study demonstrates the usefulness of the KRLS method for practitioners and scholars seeking to illuminate patterns in police attitudes. It further underscores the importance of agency leadership in legitimizing deflection as a pathway to addressing behavioral health challenges in communities.

The purpose of this paper is to explore the perception of the mental health problems of the homeless population in a high-income country (Luxembourg) by social service providers and to develop proposals for better inclusion of homeless people into the mental health services and homeless people with mental health issues into society.

The study was of qualitative design and conducted using a semi-structured interview method (in person). The semi-structured interviews (seven participants) were conducted to analyse the challenges, practice approaches and prospects of stakeholders or decision-makers working in housing exclusion and homelessness. A secondary thematic analysis of this content regarding mental health issues was performed.

Three main themes in the social providers’ perception were identified related to mental health and homelessness: the general view on the mental health problems of homeless people (accent on substance use disorders [SUDs], overshadowing of other mental health conditions by the SUDs); the positive impact of housing and social services on the mental health of the homeless per se (role of social rhythms, social connectedness and multidisciplinary approach are emphasised); and the need for improvement of mental health services in the country (need for the long-term timely continuing mental health support and recognition of the importance of complex intersectional and multidisciplinary solutions).

Mental health themes were not the primary focus while research was planned and conducted. They were revealed as results of secondary qualitative data analysis. Therefore, additional mental health-focused mixed methods research is needed to verify the conclusions. The paper is written on the results of the research project “Social Housing and Homelessness” (SOHOME), implemented at the University of Luxembourg with the financial support of the Fonds National de la Recherche of Luxembourg (FNR12626464). The sponsor had no involvement in the study design, the collection, analysis and interpretation of data or the preparation of the paper.

The study brings together different perspectives from social workers, stakeholders and decision-makers. The results show that there are cross-field connections between homelessness and mental health that require specialised and coordinated services. The first existing approaches seem to be promising in their continuation but need to be promoted by social policy.

To promote social cohesion in the Luxembourgish society and also to include one of the most vulnerable people, the study points to the importance of the link between homelessness and compromised mental health. Appropriate support and service provision as well as social and affordable housing play a central role.

To the best of the authors’ knowledge, this study is the first of its kind, revealing several social work stakeholders’ perspective on the mental health of homeless people in Luxembourg.

This study aims to assess extant research streams to delineate new research directions for tourism stakeholders’ mental health and well-being.

A comprehensive review of the literature on various topics related to mental health, well-being, memorable experiences, emotions, community well-being, wellness tourism and sustainable development was conducted.

Several research directions for different research subjects were identified: tourists employees, and the community. For tourists, the research topics included mental health, well-being, memorable experiences and wellness tourism. For research on employees, the focus included their mental health, psychological well-being and negative emotions. In studying the role of tourism in community mental health and well-being, research has explored community well-being and emotional solidarity and used a capital approach. This study discusses several new research directions based on past research trends, global trends and other relevant factors.

This conceptual study can help understand the new holistic research landscape of mental health and well-being.

本研究的目标是评估当前的研究现状, 为旅游相关的心理健康和幸福感确定新的研究方向。

对关于心理健康、幸福感、难忘体验、情绪、社区幸福感、健康旅游和可持续发展等多个主题的文献进行了全面审阅。

确定了针对不同研究对象的若干研究方向：游客、员工和社区。对于游客, 研究主题包括心理健康、幸福感、难忘体验和健康旅游。对于员工的研究, 重点包括他们的心理健康、心理幸福感和负面情绪。在研究旅游对社区心理健康和幸福感的影响时, 探讨了社区幸福感、情感团结以及资本方法的运用。本研究根据过去的研究趋势、全球动态和其他相关因素, 提出了若干新的研究方向。

这项概念性研究有助于全面理解心理健康和幸福感的新研究格局。

Este estudio tuvo como objetivo evaluar las corrientes de investigación existentes para delinear nuevas direcciones de investigación para la salud mental y el bienestar de los actores turísticos.

Se realizó una revisión exhaustiva de la literatura sobre diversos temas relacionados con la salud mental, el bienestar, las experiencias memorables, las emociones, el bienestar comunitario, el turismo de bienestar y el desarrollo sostenible.

Se identificaron varias direcciones de investigación para diferentes sujetos de investigación: turistas, empleados y la comunidad. Para los turistas, los temas de investigación incluyeron la salud mental, el bienestar, las experiencias memorables y el turismo de bienestar. Para la investigación sobre los empleados, el enfoque incluyó su salud mental, bienestar psicológico y emociones negativas. Al estudiar el papel del turismo en la salud mental y el bienestar comunitario, la investigación ha explorado el bienestar comunitario y la solidaridad emocional, y ha utilizado un enfoque de capital. Este estudio discute varias nuevas direcciones de investigación basadas en tendencias de investigación pasadas, tendencias globales y otros factores relevantes.

Este estudio conceptual puede ayudar a comprender el nuevo panorama holístico de investigación en salud mental y bienestar.

This study examined the participation in mental health takaful schemes among young intellectuals in two public universities in Malaysia.

Drawing from the Attitude-Social Influence-Self-Efficacy (ASE), this study evaluated the effects of attitude, social influence and self-efficacy on participation in mental health takaful schemes using an empirical investigation surveying 767 respondents who were identified as young intellectuals in Malaysia.

Evidently, the ASE factors shape the development of participation in mental health takaful schemes among young intellectuals.

This study is confined in terms of the context and variables used – which limits its generalisation. Future studies should address these issues accordingly.

The results obtained can become a yardstick to gauge the participation of young intellectuals in mental health takaful in Malaysia.

This study introduced mental health takaful to the ASE, where young intellectuals are brought into play.

Goal setting is a crucial aspect of client-centered practice in occupational therapy (OT) for mental health conditions. However, it remains to be seen how goal-setting has been delivered in mental health, particularly the OT process. The purpose of this scoping review was to explore the nature and extent of goal setting delivered in mental health and informed OT practice.

The authors followed the guidelines of Arksey and O’Malley (2005) and searched three databases using key search terms: “mental disorder,” “goal setting,” and “occupational therapy” and their synonyms.

After excluding duplicate records, the authors initially screened 883 records and resulted in 20 records in total after the screening process. Most of the identified articles used goal-setting delivered by both a health professional and a client (n = 14), and focused on people with schizophrenia or schizoaffective disorder (n = 13), but three interventions were delivered by occupational therapists. Further research needs on goal-setting in mental health OT, exploring the reliability and validity of different goal-setting strategies and investigating the effectiveness of goal-setting for promoting behavior change and client engagement across various mental health conditions and settings.

The scoping review has some limitations, such as not investigating the validity and reliability of goal-setting strategies identified, and excluding conference papers and non-English articles.

This scoping review presents a mapping of how goal-setting has been delivered in mental health and informed OT practice. The findings suggest limited research in OT and highlight the need for more studies to address the evidence gap in individualized client-centered OT.

The outbreak of COVID-19 not only had serious negative impacts on the world economy but also on the global mental health because of the psychological disorders associated with the spread of the pandemic, the increased degree of uncertainty and the unprecedented measures taken by different countries to face the pandemic’s spread. This paper analyses the mental health well-being of individuals in selected MENA countries (Jordan, Morocco, Tunisia and Egypt) during the pandemic.

The study employs a pooled OLS model using the Economic Research Forum (ERF) COVID-19 MENA Monitor Survey panel dataset collected during 2020 and 2021.

The findings show that there is no association between the mental health of individuals in the selected countries and their age, gender, family size, marital status, receipt of social support and participation in care work. Mental health improved at higher levels of education, being employed, being a rural area resident and living in Morocco or Tunisia compared to living in Jordan while it worsened as income declined, food insecurity and anxiety about being infected with Covid-19 increased, being a resident in camps, and during waves 4 and 5. Based on these results, it is recommended that suitable financial, physical and human resources should be directed towards the provision of mental health care services in the region. Also, mental health care services should be accessible to different population groups, with a special focus towards the most vulnerable since they are more prone to mental illnesses, especially during health crises and economic shocks. This should be accompanied by increasing awareness about the provided services and reducing stigma against mental illnesses. Furthermore, introduction of policies targeted towards reducing food insecurity and income instability can play a key role in enhancing mental well-being.

Although few papers have previously investigated the impact of COVID-19 on mental health in MENA countries, most of them have focused on a country-level analysis and adopted a gender perspective. Hence, this paper aims at exploring the association between mental health well-being and socio-economic factors in selected MENA countries during the pandemic.

This study investigates the relationship between mental well-being (MWB) and social support (SS) whilst addressing the paucity of research on students' support for emergency contact schemes (ECSs) and their views on how and when such schemes should be implemented.

In total, 113 students recruited via opportunistic sampling completed an online survey including the Interpersonal Support Evaluation List - shortened version (Cohen et al. 1985), Warwick–Edinburgh Mental Wellbeing Scale (Tennant et al. 2007) and questions about ECS. A correlational design used the Pearson product-moment correlation to explore the relationship between MWB and SS. A between-subjects design using independent measures t-test investigated differences in SS and MWB between those with and without a “trusted person” (TP).

The preferred name was “Named Trusted Person Scheme” (NTPS), the preferred TP was parent/guardian or partner, and the preferred means of contact was Personal Tutor to mobile phone. Most students (96%) supported the use of an NTPS when serious concerns were raised about mental or physical health, personal safety or student engagement. Those opposed were concerned about a loss of agency, identifying a TP or the TP worsening the situation. MWB was positively correlated with SS, and those with a TP had higher levels of MWB and SS than those without.

This study addresses the under-explored area of students' support for ECS, whilst enhancing our understanding of the relationship between MWB and SS especially amongst those without a person they can trust. This research provides valuable insights for universities looking to implement or refine such schemes, with the potential to improve students' MWB, academic achievement and retention by enhancing support.

People with pre-existing mental health conditions are more likely to be affected by global crises. The Covid-19 pandemic has presented them with unique challenges, including reduced contact with the psychiatric rehabilitation and support systems. Thus, understanding the emotional experience of this population may assist mental health organizations in future global crises.

In this paper, researchers analyzed the discourse of the mentally ill during the Covid-19 pandemic, as reflected in Israeli Facebook groups: three private groups and one public group. Researchers explored the language, reactions, emotions and sentiments used in these groups during the year before the pandemic, outbreak periods and remission periods, as well as the period before the vaccine’s introduction and after its appearance.

Analyzing groups’ discourse using the collective emotion theory suggests that the group that expressed the most significant difficulty was the Depression group, while individuals who suffer from social phobia/anxiety and PTSD were less affected during the lockdowns and restrictions forced by the outbreak.

Findings may serve as a tool for service providers during crises to monitor patients’ conditions, and assist individuals who need support and help.

Stigma is a major impediment to human rights in health care that causes discrimination, isolation and the exclusion of individuals from essential health-care services. It fosters fear, leading to negative stereotyping of individuals based on their social, cultural or health status and undermines their dignity and respect, consequently violating their right to health. Therefore, the purpose of this study is to evaluate the moderating role of psychological flexibility in the relationship between stigma (enacted, anticipated and internalized), mental health and the quality of life of substance users.

This study was based on a cross-sectional design and included 200 male patients with an age range of 18–65 years from 23 rehabilitation centers in four cities in Pakistan. The purposive sampling technique was used, and the sample size ranged from 4 to 23 participants for each site. Four scales were used to measure stigma, general mental health, quality of life and psychological flexibility in substance users.

The data were analyzed using SPSS and Smart PLS, which showed that stigma (enacted, anticipated and internalized) had a detrimental effect on substance users’ mental health and quality of life. Additionally, psychological flexibility acts as an efficient moderator between them.

This research unveils the moderating role of psychological flexibility in mitigating stigma’s adverse effects on individuals with substance use disorders. Future investigations should prioritize interventions aimed at enhancing psychological flexibility to ameliorate the repercussions of stigma, ultimately enhancing the well-being and quality of life of substance users.

Many refugees and asylum seekers in Germany experience a high disease burden and low health literacy. The current study aims to focus on assessing these issues among African refugees and asylum seekers in Bavaria, Germany. The authors evaluated their self-perceived health status and health literacy, and identified barriers and gaps in health care utilization, intending to improve health care services for this group.

The authors conducted a cross-sectional, questionnaire-based study involving 69 refugees and asylum seekers from Ethiopia, Eritrea and Nigeria. The authors performed descriptive and exploratory statistical analyses.

The authors found a substantial disease burden in the early stages of resettlement in Germany, particularly mental health symptoms (53.6%) and musculoskeletal problems (47.8%). Challenges in health literacy were observed, such as difficulties in understanding health information and managing emergency situations. Access to interpreters was limited, and understanding treatment certificates was more challenging than using electronic health cards, with 18.2% of participants reporting denial of medical treatment.

These findings highlight the need for early and tailored health support for refugees, with a particular focus on mental health. Efforts should be made to reduce language barriers and improve navigational skills within the health-care system, particularly in emergency situations. Addressing the restricted access to health care and bureaucratic obstacles is crucial for improved health outcomes among refugees.

To the best of the authors’ knowledge, this research is the first to specifically explore the self-reported health status and health literacy of African refugees and asylum seekers in Bavaria, Germany, providing valuable insights into the unique healthcare challenges of this often underrepresented and overlooked population.