A Conceptual Framework to Promote the Transition to Positive Mental Health among Young Construction Workers

Abstract

There is a need to promote the mental health and well-being of young people who work in the construction industry worldwide. Although research exists on young construction workers’ mental health, it conceptualises mental health as a disease and focuses predominantly on issues connected with negative aspects of mental health. In contrast, research that can inform the promotion and protection of positive mental health, which is crucial to young construction workers’ achievement of good mental health and well-being, is scarce. To improve this situation, it is necessary to develop frameworks that reconceptualise mental health as a positive phenomenon and provide a comprehensive picture of how positive mental health is achieved by young construction workers. In this study, therefore, we propose a conceptual framework and five testable propositions based on Meleis’ middle-range theory of transitions and Keyes’ Dual-Continuum Model, both of which focus on the attainment of well-being. The proposed framework wholistically captures the structure of the distal, intermediary, and proximal determinants of young construction workers’ positive mental health and the relationships among them. The framework and its accompanying propositions provide a basis for undertaking multi-level and context-specific research that can adequately inform the development of interventions and policies for promoting and protecting young construction workers’ positive mental health.

Keywords

• youth
• young construction workers
• well-being
• mental health promotion
• positive mental health
• construction industry