Appraisal of the Influence of Broadcast Media on Knowledge of Mental Health among the Nigerian Audience

This study was carried out to evaluate the influence of broadcast media on the knowledge of mental health among Nigerian audience. The study adopted a descriptive survey research design with the questionnaire used as the research instrument for data collection. The study population comprised the broadcast media audience in Nigerian, drawn from Abuja, Lagos and Kano. Data collected was analysed through descriptive statistics, while findings had shown an inadequate exposure to mental health related issues in the broadcast media among Nigerians as only substance abuse received higher attention in the broadcast media compared to other mental health disorders like depression, anxiety, post-traumatic stress symptoms, stress, sleep problems, mood disorders, psychotic disorders and eating disorders among others. Finding also revealed a lack of in depth reportage of mental health in the broadcast media because straight news rather than other in depth programmes is more often used for mental health information for the people. This, as another finding indicated, has led to very low knowledge of the mental health related issues among the Nigerian audience. The contribution of broadcast media so far, as this study concluded, is insufficient to provide the desired knowledge and attract the kind of response that would greatly address current challenges associated with mental health in Nigeria.