Using Arts-Based Methodologies to Understand Adolescent and Youth Manifestations, Representations, and Potential Causes of Depression and Anxiety in Low-Income Urban Settings in Peru

Abstract

Background: Arts-based methodologies can be beneficial to identify different representations of stigmatized topics such as mental health conditions. This study used a theater-based workshop to describe manifestations, representations, and potential causes of depression and anxiety as perceived by adolescents and young adults. Methods: The theater company Teatro La Plaza conducted three online sessions with a group of adolescents and another with a group of young adults from Lima, Peru. The artistic outputs, which included images, similes, monologues, and narrations, were used to describe the experiences of depression and anxiety symptoms following a content analysis using posteriori categories. Results: Seventeen participants joined the sessions. The artistic outputs showed: physical, behavioral, cognitive, and emotional manifestations of depression and anxiety; a perception that both disorders have a cyclical nature; and an awareness that it is often difficult to notice symptom triggers. The mandatory social isolation due to the COVID-19 pandemic was highlighted as an important symptom trigger, mostly linked to anxiety. Conclusions: The findings are consistent with the literature, especially with regard to the manifestations, representations, and potential causes that trigger depression and anxiety. Using arts-based methods allowed adolescents and young adults to expand the articulation of their representations of mental disorders.

Investigating Adolescent Vulnerability in Indonesia: A Socio-Remote Sensing Big Data Analytics Study Using Night Light Data

“…In addition, living in an urban slum also causes adolescents to experience depression and emotional suffering, even to the point of dying by suicide. [84], [85].…”

Exploring the Impact of Socioeconomic Status and Environmental Characteristics on Child and Adolescent Mental Health in Disadvantaged Urban Communities in West Java

“…Moreover, children and adolescents' mental health problems have been made worse by the COVID-19 epidemic, especially in low-income urban environments. According to a research done in Peru, the pandemic's forced social isolation was a major cause of anxiety and depressive symptoms [16].…”