Research Topics on Mental Health
The researcher or students have to find a clear and effective research gap in the existing research in order to find the accurate topic for their research project or dissertation. In this article, there are a number of topics for research or dissertation that are helpful for students, and these research topics are related to mental health. There are various subjects related to mental health disorders, and all the topics related to these subjects, and these subjects include Mood Disorders, Anxiety Disorders, Psychotic Disorders, Personality Disorders, Obsessive-Compulsive Disorders, Post-Traumatic Stress Disorder (PTSD), Neurodevelopmental Disorders, Eating Disorders and Substance-Related Disorders. The topics of these subjects are described below.
Figure 1: Mental Health
Mood Disorder
Research in the department of mood disorders helps the researcher to know about the causes and improvement methods for the treatment of mood disorders. There are some topics related to mood disorder research that are explained as follows.
- The Influence of Genetic Factors on vulnerability to depression
- The worth of antidepressants vs. cognitive Behavioural therapy
- The Influence of the gut microbiota on the mood
- Cultural parameters affecting the bipolar disorder experience and its diagnosis
- Seasonal Affective Disorder: Environmental pressure and treatment
- The connection between depression and chronic illnesses
- Nonpharmacological intervention as an adjunct in mood disorders
- The fluctuations of hormones and the changes in mood that occur in women after birth
- Discrimination of mood disorders in organizations
- The presence of suicidal behaviours in patients with more severe mood disorders
Figure 2: Mood Disorder
Anxiety Disorders
The research topic in this category helps to reduce anxiety disorder among patients by finding the treatment and exploring the triggers. Some of these topics are described below.
- The current state of the effect of social media on anxiety.
- In cases of phobia, exposure therapy showed a high level of effectiveness.
- Generalized Anxiety Disorder in Children: Signs & Interventions
- Discuss the uses of mindfulness in the treatment of anxiety.
- Anxiety disorders and heredity
- Relationship between anxiety disorders and heart disease
- Rates of anxiety in the current LGBTQ+ populations
- Effects of Caffeine Intake and its Relation with anxiety.
- Hitting the heart of the pocket for untreated anxiety disorders
- Virtual Reality as a treatment in the context of anxiety disorders
Psychotic Disorders
There are topics discussed related to the treatment of psychotic disorder; the topics that help to discuss the topics of this research are as follows.
- Indications of adolescent psychotic disturbances and initial stages of its treatments
- Imaging studies in the diagnosis of psychotic disorders
- Effectiveness of antipsychotic medication and its impact on the lives of patients with mental disorders.
- Effect of family history in psychotic disorders.
- Failure in diagnosis and timely intervention of psychotic disorders
- Comorbidity of psychotic and mood disorders
- The connection between substance abuse and psychotic disorders
- Art therapy as one of the approaches to schizophrenia
- Community attitudes and prejudice of psychotic disorders
- Hospital and community-based care of psychotic disorders
Personality Disorders
Research topics for personality disorder are divided and explored in the identification, management and social implications for finding the effective solutions of the personality disorder. Some topics are described below.
- Chronic consequences of borderline personality disorder
- Relationship between antisocial personality disorder and criminal behaviour
- The evidence of the early life experiences in the manifestation of personality disorders
- The roles of corporate narcissists
- Personality differences between men and women
- Diagnosis difficulties for Cluster A personality disorders
- Emotional Intelligence and its importance in the management of Personal Disorders
- Therapies used in the treatment of personality disorder
- In the elderly population, personality disorders are another psychiatric disorder.
- Attitudes and knowledge about personality disorders
Obsessive-compulsive Disorders
This area of research contains topics about the causes, symptoms, or treatment of this disorder. The topics for OCD are described below.
- OCD and its comorbidity with anxiety disorders
- Possible psychological processes for hoarding behaviour
- Deep Brain Stimulation as a treatment modality in severe OCD
- The interferences that OCD causes to the academic achievement of students
- Family and social support in the management of OCD
- Interventions that may help with hoarding disorder
- Childhood-onset OCD: Diagnosis and treatment are two of the most significant aspects of OCD
- OCD and religious obsessions
- The interference of OCD on the family system
- Body Dysmorphic Disorder: Know the causes and proceed to treatment
Post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD)
The topics of research for this disease help to explore the triggers, its symptoms, and then treatment for this mental disease. There are some topics that are described here.
- PTSD in military experienced person: Coping mechanisms and treatment
- Childhood trauma and adult-onset PTSD
- Eye Movement Desensitization and Reprocessing (EMDR) efficacy
- Role of emotional support animals in treating PTSD
- Gender differences in PTSD occurrence and treatment
- Effectiveness of group therapy for PTSD patients
- PTSD and substance abuse: A dual diagnosis
- First responders and rates of PTSD
- Domestic violence as a cause of PTSD
- The neurobiology of PTSD
Neurodevelopmental Disorders
This mental health disorder helps to understand and find the treatment of mental disorders like Autism and ADHD and the impact of these disorders on the daily lives of patients and their families. Some of the topics discussed here are related to neurodevelopmental disorders.
- Early diagnosis and interventions for autism spectrum disorder
- ADHD medication and its impact on academic performance
- Parental coping strategies for children with neurodevelopmental disorders
- Autism and gender: Diagnosis disparities
- The role of diet in managing ADHD symptoms
- Neurodevelopmental disorders in the criminal justice system
- Genetic Factors Influencing Autism
- ADHD and its relationship with sleep disorders
- Educational adaptations for children with neurodevelopmental disorders
- Neurodevelopmental disorders and stigma in schools
Eating Disorders
This mental disorder deals with the exploration of psychological, biological and social aspects of eating disorders.
- The relationship between social media and the advertisement of eating disorders
- Family processes and their significance with regard to anorexia
- Neurobiological substrates of binge-eating disorder
- The outcomes of the treatment for bulimia nervosa
- Eating disorders in athletes
- Effects of the portrayal of body image in the media
- Eating disorders and gender: Asking if men are underdiagnosed.
- The cultural aspect of eating disorders
- The link between obesity and eating disorders.
- Eating disorders in the LGBTQ+ communities
Substance-Related Disorders
The research topics in this category can include the nature and functioning of addiction, treatment programs and societal effects of substance use disorders.
- The efficiency of the rehabilitation centres for alcohol addiction
- Identification of the extent to which genetic factors play a part in substance abuse
- Drug and alcohol use and the effect on the family structure
- Prescription about the drug abuse among senior citizens.
- Marijuana legalization and consequence on substance use.
- Consumption of alcohol and its association with liver diseases.
- Opioid crisis: Main reasons and ways of their elimination
- Substance abuse education in schools: As much as it is interesting, is it useful?
- Measures of control to the abuse of drugs
- Dual diagnosis in substance users
Choosing an Effective Research Topic
The research topic ideas that are discussed above are only a starting point and can be used to give you a direction to look in when conducting research in mental health. They are purposely very general and unclear in their structure. Depending on the area of interest, reading through the current literature will enable you to identify the research gap to focus on.
Therefore, when selecting a topic for a dissertation or a thesis, some important factors have to be put into consideration. Consider the significance of the topic to the field, its practicality and the resources at your disposal: time, data, and academic advisor. In addition, the researcher’s interest and background in the topic will help the researcher to persevere in the research process.
