Abstract

Mental illness affects roughly 20% of the world in some capacity and can be debilitating. Though a large emphasis has historically been placed on individual-level interventions (e.g., therapy or medication), mental health policies present an opportunity to intervene on a large scale, with the potential to enhance impact and equity. This dissertation contributes to the mental health policy research literature in three main ways—(1) exploring factors affecting policymakers’ overall support of mental health policies; (2) assessing the use and quality of quantitative and qualitative methods within this field; and (3) exploring implementation determinants and outcomes, as well as strategies used to bolster implementation. The findings provide insight into individual-, organizational-, and broader policy-level constructs affecting policy development and implementation. The findings also identify measurement gaps within mental health policy implementation research and areas for increased methodological rigor. This dissertation contributes to a more evidence-informed approach to implementing mental health policy, with long-term implications for improving mental health and health equity on a population level.

Committee Chair

Ross C. Brownson

Committee Members

Amy A. Eyler

Degree

Doctor of Philosophy (PhD)

Author's Department

Public Health

Author's School

Graduate School of Arts and Sciences

Document Type

Dissertation

Date of Award

Winter 12-15-2021

Language

English (en)

Author's ORCID

http://orcid.org/0000-0003-2671-3327

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