Adelaide researchers will lead a major new national push to improve the mental health of Australian boys and men, after Flinders University secured $3 million to establish a new Centre of Research Excellence.
The WellMen Centre of Research Excellence for the Mental Health and Wellbeing of Boys and Men will bring together researchers, health professionals, policymakers, community organisations and people with lived experience from across Australia.
The five-year initiative comes amid concerning figures around men’s mental health, with one in five Australian men experiencing mental illness each year and suicide remaining the leading cause of death for men aged between 15 and 44.
Seven Australian men die by suicide each day.
The new centre will be led by Flinders University’s Professor James Smith, who says improving outcomes requires a better understanding of the experiences of boys and men at different stages of their lives.
“Far too many Australian boys and men are struggling in silence, and the impacts can be felt across families, communities and workplaces,” Professor Smith said.
“We must improve outcomes for boys and men while ensuring their voices and lived experiences are at the heart of the research.”
The centre will examine periods when men may face an increased risk to their wellbeing, including adolescence, becoming a father, relationship changes and retirement.
It will also investigate how better mental health support can be delivered in the places men spend their everyday lives, including workplaces, schools and communities.
Importantly, researchers want the findings to translate into practical changes to mental health services, policies and prevention programs rather than remaining within academia.
Fifteen-year-old Victorian Daya Manivannan, who sits on Professor Smith’s Young Men’s Advisory Committee, said young men’s experiences needed to be part of the conversation.
“This investment is important because it proves our wellbeing is a priority, and it paves the way for a mental health system where no young guy gets left behind,” he said.
The Flinders University-hosted centre will work with a consortium of organisations including Movember, ALIVE, Deadly Male, Ten to Men, Healthy Male and the UK Academic Men’s Health Network, alongside other research, industry and community partners.
The Man Cave CEO Ben Vasiliou said sustained and coordinated action was needed to improve the way Australia’s mental health system responds to boys and men.
“Boys and men in Australia deserve a mental health system that works for them,” he said.
The centre’s research will focus on three major areas: supporting boys and men through important life stages and transitions, improving wellbeing in the settings where they spend their daily lives, and strengthening Australia’s broader men’s mental health system.
Funding has been provided through the National Health and Medical Research Council’s Centres of Research Excellence scheme, which provides $3 million over five years to support research collaboration, translation and workforce development.
