Remote mental health promotion with Costa Rican adolescents during the COVID-19 pandemic

Abstract

This article seeks to systematize the experience of two professionalizing modules of the Psychology degree at the Guanacaste Campus: Psychology of the Community Organization and Challenges in the Adolescence Clinic. During 2021, the practice of these courses was linked to a Teaching Extension project that addresses suicide prevention and the promotion of mental health in adolescents and young people from four cantons in the province of Guanacaste: Liberia, Tilarán, La Cruz and Santa Cruz. The activities carried out consisted of a diagnosis of interests, self-esteem workshops, identification and management of emotions, and individual psychological care for a maximum of 10 sessions; all carried out in virtual mode due to the mobility restrictions imposed by the COVID-19 pandemic. Among the main results it is found that adolescents require guidance on topics such as: use of technology and social networks (advantages and risks), guidance on identification and management of emotions, interpersonal relationships, and specifically, couple relationships, access to education and job opportunities, and finally, institutional routes to access social services. Furthermore, in many cases the family environment does not represent a protective factor, but is the place where many of the discomforts that affect the mental health of this population originate.