How Mental Health Knowledge Shapes Attitudes: A Study of APF Personnel’s Willingness to Seek Professional Help

Abstract

Armed Police Force Nepal (APF) is one of the national security agency whose main job is to maintain internal security, protect Nepal’s borders, assist in disaster response and relief efforts. Due to the nature of their job they face a lot of stress that might impact their mental health. Recently two APF personnel have committed suicide which reveals the mental health of the personnel, and also reflects that addressing mental health concerns is crucial for maintaining resilient and effective personnel in APF Nepal. Knowledge about mental health related problems help in acknowledging the symptoms at an early stage thus encourages the personnel to seek professional help. The aim of the study is to assess knowledge about the mental health and attitude towards seeking professional psychological help among the APF service personnel.145 participants took part in the study. The tools used were Mental Health Knowledge Questionnaire (MHKQ) and Attitude Towards Seeking Professional Psychological Help-Short Form (ATSPPH-SF). The result indicated that there is a positive correlation between the mental health knowledge and attitude towards seeking professional psychological help among the Armed Police Force service personnel.