Relevance of Community-based Education in Mental Health Literacy: A Systematic Review
Celsus Ufawu Akomaye *
Epidemiology Department, University of Port Harcourt, Port Harcourt, Nigeria.
Charles Tobin-West
College of Health Science, University of Port Harcourt, Port Harcourt, Nigeria.
Princewill Stanley
Mental Health Department, University of Port Harcourt, Port Harcourt, Nigeria.
*Author to whom correspondence should be addressed.
Abstract
Background: Community-delivered education may improve public recognition of mental-health problems and reduce stigmatising beliefs, but changes in knowledge do not necessarily translate into sustained help-seeking or better outcomes.
Objective: To evaluate changes in mental health literacy, stigma, support behaviour and related outcomes after community-based educational interventions.
Methods: An open access and openly accessible, bounded verification search identified 39 individually visible records from four logged PMC-indexed web queries and four additional targeted primary-report records, within the publication window 1 January 2000 to 13 August 2026. Deduplication and a single reviewer assessment were recorded in an item-level ledger. Primary comparative and non-comparative evaluations were summarised without statistical pooling; source coverage and bias were examined critically.
Results: Seven of 43 records were duplicates; 36 distinct records were screened, 20 reports were assessed, and 18 reports describing 17 studies were included. Six studies used randomised designs. Community Mental Health First Aid, adapted public education and community health-worker training frequently improved recognition, knowledge or selected attitude measures. However, long-term recipient outcomes were uncertain: a parent-training trial detected literacy gains without improved adolescent outcomes, and a large rural Indian multicomponent trial did not improve its behavioural co-primary outcome. Many smaller studies lacked controls.
Conclusions: Community-based education is relevant for mental-health literacy and local workforce capacity, but current accessible evidence gives weaker support for sustained behaviour change and improvements in recipients’ mental health. The source-limited search precludes claims of exhaustive coverage.
Keywords: Community mental health, mental health literacy, health education, mental health first aid, community health workers, stigma, help-seeking, evidence synthesis