Disingenuous ‘box-ticking’: Undergraduate students’ attitudes towards university mental health awareness efforts

Mental health problems are common amongst UK undergraduate students. In response, many universities have put considerable effort into raising awareness about student mental health problems and avenues of support, for example via workshops, posters, email newsletters and social media posts. Nonetheless, reported rates of mental health problems in students have continued to rise. Despite the ubiquity of awareness efforts, there has been limited research assessing students’ attitudes towards and experience of these initiatives. To address this, in this study, N=15 undergraduate students (aged 18 to 24) from thirteen UK universities were interviewed in depth to explore their attitudes towards the mental health awareness efforts of their respective universities. Using reflexive thematic analysis, three themes were generated: (1) University life directly contradicts university mental health awareness efforts; (2) University mental health awareness efforts are perceived as disingenuous and inadequate; and (3) Students don't want awareness – they want accessible help and supportive communities. These themes highlight the frustration students feel towards what they see as misguided efforts from their universities, and the structural problems at university that make living a mentally healthy life difficult. Simultaneously, the findings highlight the elements of mental health support that students value. The findings of this study have important implications for the designing and implementing of universities’ efforts to improve and support student mental health, while also adding constructively to the wider societal conversation critiquing the impact of mental health awareness efforts.