Research and development of a mental healthcare platform for high school students in the Bangkok metropolis, Thailand

Abstract

This research and development project aimed to develop a mental healthcare platform for upper secondary school students in Bangkok through a mental health promotion learning module on the Moodle Learning Management System (LMS). The platform was designed to promote mental well-being, screen for early signs of psychological problems, and support self-managed stress reduction. The study consisted of three phases: Phase 1, an assessment of students’ mental health status using an adapted stress assessment tool based on the SPST-20; Phase 2, the design and development of the platform; and Phase 3, the evaluation of the platform’s effectiveness.

The results revealed that, in Phase 1, the screening of mental health status in 897 students, 52.50% had normal stress levels, and 47.50% experienced moderate to high stress levels, indicating a clear need to strengthen students’ mental health competencies. In Phase 2, the platform was designed and developed based on information obtained from a focus group discussion with five experts. The resulting Moodle-based learning module consisted of a stress assessment and four thematic lessons on hope, optimism, self-efficacy, and resilience after critical events. The platform also provided guidelines for mental self-care and career-inspiration content from exemplary role models. In Phase 3, the platform was tested with 30 students, with the findings indicating that post-intervention stress levels significantly decreased. The findings demonstrate that the developed digital platform is effective in promoting mental health and reducing stress among upper secondary school students. Furthermore, the developed program supports the advancement of sustainable, accessible mental healthcare systems in educational settings and enhances the effectiveness of mental health screening among adolescents.