Effects of the Counseling Program on Strengthening Mental-Crisis Management to Strengthen Adolescent Life Crisis Awareness

Abstract

Background: A mental crisis is a dangerous state with many subsequent harmful effects on the adolescent. It is a state in which the adolescent needs help and must get that help immediately. If they do not receive the assistance they require, they may end up isolating themselves from social interaction and become completely preoccupied with themselves. The counseling program is therefore being put into effect to strengthen the mental crisis management capacity of adolescents and to offer counseling and assistance to students who find themselves beset with a mental crisis so that they will be fully able to manage their mental crises, restore a sense of balance to their psyches, and carry on with their lives effectively. Objective: The aim of the study was to compare the life crisis awareness scores of adolescent students enrolled in a program of study at Thammasat University. Methods: This research was quasi-experimental and consisted of a two-group pretest-post test design. They were subdivided into two groups of 30 students each by simple random sampling, of which one group was the experimental group and the other was control group. The experimental group underwent a counseling program of bolstering mental crisis management capacity once a week for a period of six weeks. Results were assessed using a crisis awareness evaluation form. Results were assessed twice, before testing and after testing. The data were analyzed by the statistics of percentage, mean, dependent t-test, and independent t-test. Results: 1. The average life crisis awareness scores of the adolescents in the experimental group following acceptance into the counseling program by fortifying their mental crisis management capacity (M=132.77, SD=11.03) were higher than they were prior to program entry (M=113.73, SD=14.40), with a statistical significance (t=6.81, p<0.001). 2. The average life crisis awareness scores of the experimental group that had been accepted into the above-mentioned counseling program were higher after undergoing testing (M=132.77, SD=11.03) than the scores for the control group (M=118.83, SD=10.73), with a statistical significance (t=4.95, p<0.001). Conclusion: This program thus helps the adolescent restore a sense of mental balance and live a normal happy life.