ABSTRACT

Agricultural producers have worse mental health than the general population, and often have limited access to mental health providers. Educational programs can strengthen knowledge of mental health including warning signs of stress and suicide, as well as assist individuals in developing communication skills and help-seeking behaviors. Cooperative Extension, the nation’s academic outreach unit provided by land-grant universities, has a long history of providing agricultural education programs in the United States; this article describes the expansion of such programs to include mental health education for farmers and agricultural stakeholders in Michigan. Evaluation results of two programs developed by Michigan State University Extension demonstrate the programs are effective in improving understanding of agricultural economic trends, impacts of stress on the body, and warning signs of suicide among agricultural producers and stakeholders. Community-based education increases the capacity for mental health literacy programs to reach distressed farmers.

摘要

农业生产者的心理健康状况比一般人群差，而且往往难以获得心理健康服务提供者的帮助。教育计划可以加强对心理健康的了解，包括压力和自杀的警告信号，并帮助个人发展沟通技巧和寻求帮助的行为。Cooperative Extension 是由赠地大学提供的全国学术推广单位，在美国提供农业教育项目的历史悠久；本文描述了此类计划的扩展，以包括密歇根州农民和农业利益相关者的心理健康教育。密歇根州立大学推广部开发的两个项目的评估结果表明，这些项目在提高对农业经济趋势的理解方面是有效的，压力对身体的影响，以及农业生产者和利益相关者自杀的警告信号。以社区为基础的教育提高了心理健康素养项目的能力，以帮助陷入困境的农民。