However, we know there are risk and protective factors that can influence whether a young person experiences poor mental health and how quickly they will recover if they do. The social model of health tells us that an individual’s health is enabled or inhibited by their social context. Health is impacted by cultural norms and outlooks as well as political outcomes (such as healthcare systems)(25). The Health Foundation says that ‘When a society is flourishing, health tends to flourish. When a society has inequalities, there are large inequalities in health. The health of the population is not just a matter of how well the health service is funded and functions, important as that is: health is closely linked to the conditions in which people are born, grow, live, work and age and inequities in power, money, and resources – the social determinants of health (26).’ Risk factors Poor mental health is both a cause and a consequence of inequality. As a result, some groups of young people are at greater risk of poorer mental health than others. This often reflects social disadvantage – and those with greater risk factors may have reduced access to relevant mental health services and effective treatments. They may also find that their experiences of mental health services are substandard. Stigma and discrimination within services undermines diagnosis, treatment, and successful health outcomes, which could cause further harm to a young person’s mental health. Many young people have multiple risk factors that impact one another. Intersectionality is the concept that each person is made up of multiple identities and is never just the one thing. It is a framework to help us understand how people’s various identities overlap and intersect to create different levels of discrimination and/or privilege (27). The risk factors discussed in this section should not be considered in isolation.
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