Swords, LorraineLorraineSwordsHennessy, EilisEilisHennessyHeary, CarolineCarolineHeary2013-04-022013-04-022010 The F2011-06Journal of Adolescence0140-1971http://hdl.handle.net/10197/4219The peer group begins to become a source of support during late childhood and adolescence making it important to understand what type of help young people might suggest to a friend with an emotional or behavioral problem. Three groups of young people participated in the study with average ages of 12 (N=107), 14 (N=153) and 16 years (N=133). All participants were presented with vignettes describing fictional peers, two of whom had symptoms of clinical problems (ADHD and depression) and a third comparison peer without symptoms. Results indicate that all participants distinguished between clinical and comparison vignette characters and they believed that the characters with clinical symptoms needed help. The 16-year-olds were more likely to differentiate between the two clinical vignettes in terms of the type of help suggested. The results are discussed in light of previous research on adolescents' understanding of sources of help for mental health problems.enThis is the author’s version of a work that was accepted for publication in <Journal Title>. Changes resulting from the publishing process, such as peer review, editing, corrections, structural formatting, and other quality control mechanisms may not be reflected in this document. Changes may have been made to this work since it was submitted for publication. A definitive version was subsequently published in Journal of Adolescence Volume 34, Issue 3, June 2011, Pages 485–492 DOI:10.1016/j.adolescence.2010.06.002 Elsevier Ltd.Mental healthHelp seekingMental health literacyADHDDepressionJournal Article34348549210.1016/j.adolescence.2010.06.0022013-02-20https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-nc-nd/3.0/ie/