WeRise—a component of the Los Angeles County Department of Mental Health's broader campaign, WhyWeRise—is an annual set of events targeting prevention and early intervention for mental health challenges. This evaluation indicates that WeRise events successfully reached Los Angeles County residents, particularly youth, and may have mobilized them around mental health and boosted awareness of mental health resources.

Cover: Evaluation of Los Angeles County's 2022 WeRise Mental Health Events
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Evaluation of Los Angeles County's 2022 WeRise Mental Health Events

by Rebecca L. Collins, Nicole K. Eberhart, Ingrid Estrada-Darley, Elizabeth Roth

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Research Questions

  1. Was the WeRise campaign effective in reaching county residents?
  2. How did the campaign affect knowledge, attitudes, beliefs, and behaviors?

WeRise—a component of the Los Angeles County Department of Mental Health's (LACDMH's) broader campaign, WhyWeRise—is an annual set of events targeting prevention and early intervention for mental health challenges. This evaluation indicates that WeRise events successfully reached groups of Los Angeles County residents particularly in need of mental health support, such as youth; mobilized them around mental health issues; and may have boosted awareness of mental health resources in the county.

Perceptions of the events were very positive, with the vast majority saying that the event they attended connected them with resources and community, showed some of the strengths of their community, and empowered them to take care of their well-being.

Key Findings

  • One in three county youths ages 14 to 25 and one in six adults ages 26 and older were exposed to some aspect of WeRise. This indicates reach to more than half a million youth and more than one million adults.
  • WeRise reached most major racial or ethnic groups in the county, particularly Hispanic- or Latino-identifying residents.
  • Only a small portion of those reached attended the events, indicating the importance of embedding events in the context of a larger campaign to have a broad impact.
  • Perceptions of the events were very positive, with the vast majority saying that the event they attended connected them with resources and community, showed some of the strengths of their community, empowered them to take care of their well-being, helped them heal, and showed the healing power of creative expression.
  • Residents exposed to the campaign were more likely to feel mobilized around mental health issues. More youth and adults who were exposed to WeRise say they can help change how their family, friends, and community talk about and deal with mental health issues—and plan to take action to prevent discrimination against people with mental illness—compared with those not exposed.
  • Youth who were exposed to the campaign were more than twice as likely to agree that they were aware of information and resources offered by LACDMH, and adults' awareness of county mental health resources was about 50 percent greater for those exposed to the campaign compared with those who were not.

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This research was funded by CalMHSA and carried out within the Access and Delivery Program in RAND Health Care.

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