About MHA Screening

Mental Health America

Mental Health America (MHA)—founded in 1909—is the nation’s leading community-based nonprofit dedicated to addressing the needs of those living with mental illness and to promoting the overall mental health of all. Our work is driven by our commitment to promote mental health as a critical part of overall wellness, including:

  • prevention services for all;
  • early identification and intervention for those at risk;
  • integrated care, services, and supports for those who need it;
  • with recovery as the goal.

Screening Tools

In 2014, Mental Health America (MHA) launched our online mental health screening: a collection of online, free, confidential, anonymous, and scientifically validated screening tools to help individuals understand and learn more about their mental health.

Since then, over 21 million screens have been taken—over 6 million in 2021 alone. Over 15,000 are taken per day. This is the largest mental health dataset ever collected from a help-seeking population.

The data from these completed screens show us that:

  • Most screeners are teens or young adults.
  • Most people screen “positive”—their results show moderate to severe symptoms.
  • Most “positive” screeners have never been diagnosed with a mental health condition.

Screeners report that what they want most is:

  • Additional information about mental health
  • Worksheets, tools, or apps they can use to monitor their own health
  • Engagement with peers and others who understand what they are experiencing
  • Referrals to care, services, and supports

Mental Health Information & Resources

Since 2017, we have used the information gathered from our screening program to build out content designed to help connect our screeners with the information and resources they need.

Most online mental health information is targeted toward people who already know what they are looking for. They use language understood only by mental health professionals and their long-standing clients. They also assume that most people are ready, willing, and able to seek professional treatment.

On MHA Screening, we take a different approach. With this platform, we:

  • Meet people where they are. Not everyone who experiences mental illness is ready, willing, or able to access professional treatment. We help our readers understand their options, and we trust them to make their own mental health decisions. We write about mental health the way we talk about mental health—using clear, conversational language that you don’t need a degree in psychology to understand.
  • Focus on mental health, not mental illness. Not everyone experiences mental illness—but everyone has mental health. Instead of focusing only on people who have already reached a point of crisis, we try to help people understand their mental health needs as early as possible.
  • Provide a starting point for your mental health journey. We know that no single resource can solve everyone’s mental health problems. We provide the information and resources you need to start taking charge of your own mental health.

Interested in helping us achieve our mission? To partner with us, fill out our partnership request form. Or, consider donating to Mental Health America.