Mental Health Self-Determination Theory

Mental health involves a complete state of social, psychological, and emotional wellbeing. Mental health is vital for interpersonal relationships and leading a productive life (Healthy People 2020, 2016). Mental health promotes physical health and when out of balance it contributes to mental disorder, cancer among other chronic conditions. Mental illnesses are the commonly reported illnesses and leading causes of disability in America. Statistics have revealed that one in every four American adults have a mental illness (Healthy People 2020, 2016). Mental illness when untreated will lead to self-destructive behaviors, for instance, alcohol and substance abuse. It is the second leading cause of death among the American youths of age between
Intrinsic motivation is not founded on reinforcement as shown in self-management strategies but rather originate within the individual. The premise that performing a particular behavior brings a sense of enjoyment and fulfillment makes the theory of self-determination. The person performing the behaviors must find performing a given behavior important to meeting his goals as a key motivation to initiate the desired change. The nurse should be available to explain the importance of behavior change and elaborate the benefits of performing the behavior and persisting until the behavior become permanent.
Health promotion recognizes that all people have unique experiences and traits that shape their subsequent actions (Sepinwall, 2002). The variable on the knowledge for specific behavior acts as a motivation for performing certain behaviors. Nursing theories that are related to the concept of health promotion focus on modifying the variables to control the actions. Social cognitive theory is one such theory and has six concepts that assist in modifying the various towards the desired