An Expert's Take On The Crisis Narrative Within College Mental Health
Photo of Ben Locke, used with permission
Ben Locke
As described in a 2025 report on Forbes.com, the president of the Association for University and College Counseling Center Directors argued that schools need to be proactive while addressing mental health concerns but also avoid an outdated crisis narrative. I'm on the executive board for the AUCCCD and know that many have described college mental health as being in a crisis. In 2023, the National Education Association even released a report entitled, 'The Mental Health Crisis on College Campuses.' However, a 2024 report by The Chronicle of Higher Education highlighted how the crisis narrative is mainly a fear-based approach that could discourage help-seeking. According to this report, statistics regarding mental health concerns are alarming, but caution should be given before using the term crisis.
Dr. Ben Locke is a well-known psychologist with over 20 years of experience in college mental health. His research includes exploring the clinical operations of campus counseling centers, and he currently serves as the Chief Clinical Officer for Togetherall, a global service that provides online peer support. According to Locke, the crisis narrative in college mental health adds pressure to the entire campus. He stated, 'Faculty and staff feel like they're not qualified to help due to the narrative that you need to be a mental health professional to provide support to a student, parents are more worried, and counselors are under increasing pressure to do more and more.'
Locke described the crisis narrative as a dominate cultural ideology that evolved over the last 20 years. According to the psychologist, this narrative argues that mental health across the globe is in a crisis. Thus, the crisis narrative extends beyond higher education. Locke argued that the dominate narrative of a worldwide mental health crisis creates a self-reinforcing feedback loop. He said, 'The more people hear about the crisis, the more they feel like they're in a crisis.'
Locke didn't deny the rise in mental health concerns. He stated, 'The narrative doesn't question whether or not people are struggling… it reflected an initial desire to provide enough resources to meet the increasing demand.' According to Locke, schools vary in the range of available mental health resources, but the crisis narrative tends to result in schools displaying increased reactivity to negative events that are part of the normative human experiences. This increased reactivity is often expanding clinical services but without questioning if this truly meets the needs of students and without implementing a strategic mental health plan.
According to Locke, 'The crisis narrative is made up a collection of ingredients, but these ingredients are not examined but just widely accepted.' Examples of these ingredients include well-intended advocates for mental health. According to the psychologist, it's tempting for advocates to use the crisis narrative to argue for more resources. Another ingredient is the rise of industries related to mental health research and surveys. Locke pointed out that many of these industries are motivated to show that there are escalating needs in order to avoid their product becoming obsolete.
Locke also cited the evolution of media as an ingredient. He argued that the pay per click nature of many outlets often results in surveys with a low response rate being applied to the whole population with attention-grabbing headlines. Locke further argued that many in the mental health field have pathologized normative human experience. According to the psychologist, many popular screening and assessment tools include normal human distress, which often results in the misperception that every person in distress needs a mental health professional.
According to Locke, the first step in addressing the crisis narrative is determining if a school has enough clinical resources on campus. Locke authored a 2021 report for the Center of Collegiate Mental Health, which discussed an Alignment Model and using a Clinical Load Index to guide counseling center staffing. The psychologist also argued that schools need to provide education on combating the crisis narrative. He stated, 'Schools must accept the premise that human experience involves ups and downs, gains and losses, change and stressors, and that most students will have these experiences.' The psychologists advocated that schools take a population approach to mental health and offer a diverse range of mental health resources, including peer support.
Locke said the focus of providing peer support on a global scale is what drew him to work with Togetherall. According to the psychologist, Togetherall combines the therapeutic element of peer support, the ethical principles of clinical work, and the shared lived experience of like-minded peers. Students who utilize Togetherall can join a global community but also have the option of joining a subcommunity of college and university students. All content is monitored by a clinical team. According to Locke, 92% of college students who utilize Togetherall report that they're not using any other support services on campus. Locke argued that this highlights how clinical interventions will never reach most of the campus population in distress. However, as Locke stated, 'Counseling centers would never claim that they can meet with every student in distress.' This sentiment captures the key of combating the crisis narrative, which is viewing mental health as a community issue and not just a concern for clinicians.
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Forbes
05-05-2025
- Forbes
An Expert's Take On The Crisis Narrative Within College Mental Health
Photo of Ben Locke, used with permission Ben Locke As described in a 2025 report on the president of the Association for University and College Counseling Center Directors argued that schools need to be proactive while addressing mental health concerns but also avoid an outdated crisis narrative. I'm on the executive board for the AUCCCD and know that many have described college mental health as being in a crisis. In 2023, the National Education Association even released a report entitled, 'The Mental Health Crisis on College Campuses.' However, a 2024 report by The Chronicle of Higher Education highlighted how the crisis narrative is mainly a fear-based approach that could discourage help-seeking. According to this report, statistics regarding mental health concerns are alarming, but caution should be given before using the term crisis. Dr. Ben Locke is a well-known psychologist with over 20 years of experience in college mental health. His research includes exploring the clinical operations of campus counseling centers, and he currently serves as the Chief Clinical Officer for Togetherall, a global service that provides online peer support. According to Locke, the crisis narrative in college mental health adds pressure to the entire campus. He stated, 'Faculty and staff feel like they're not qualified to help due to the narrative that you need to be a mental health professional to provide support to a student, parents are more worried, and counselors are under increasing pressure to do more and more.' Locke described the crisis narrative as a dominate cultural ideology that evolved over the last 20 years. According to the psychologist, this narrative argues that mental health across the globe is in a crisis. Thus, the crisis narrative extends beyond higher education. Locke argued that the dominate narrative of a worldwide mental health crisis creates a self-reinforcing feedback loop. He said, 'The more people hear about the crisis, the more they feel like they're in a crisis.' Locke didn't deny the rise in mental health concerns. He stated, 'The narrative doesn't question whether or not people are struggling… it reflected an initial desire to provide enough resources to meet the increasing demand.' According to Locke, schools vary in the range of available mental health resources, but the crisis narrative tends to result in schools displaying increased reactivity to negative events that are part of the normative human experiences. This increased reactivity is often expanding clinical services but without questioning if this truly meets the needs of students and without implementing a strategic mental health plan. According to Locke, 'The crisis narrative is made up a collection of ingredients, but these ingredients are not examined but just widely accepted.' Examples of these ingredients include well-intended advocates for mental health. According to the psychologist, it's tempting for advocates to use the crisis narrative to argue for more resources. Another ingredient is the rise of industries related to mental health research and surveys. Locke pointed out that many of these industries are motivated to show that there are escalating needs in order to avoid their product becoming obsolete. Locke also cited the evolution of media as an ingredient. He argued that the pay per click nature of many outlets often results in surveys with a low response rate being applied to the whole population with attention-grabbing headlines. Locke further argued that many in the mental health field have pathologized normative human experience. According to the psychologist, many popular screening and assessment tools include normal human distress, which often results in the misperception that every person in distress needs a mental health professional. According to Locke, the first step in addressing the crisis narrative is determining if a school has enough clinical resources on campus. Locke authored a 2021 report for the Center of Collegiate Mental Health, which discussed an Alignment Model and using a Clinical Load Index to guide counseling center staffing. The psychologist also argued that schools need to provide education on combating the crisis narrative. He stated, 'Schools must accept the premise that human experience involves ups and downs, gains and losses, change and stressors, and that most students will have these experiences.' The psychologists advocated that schools take a population approach to mental health and offer a diverse range of mental health resources, including peer support. Locke said the focus of providing peer support on a global scale is what drew him to work with Togetherall. According to the psychologist, Togetherall combines the therapeutic element of peer support, the ethical principles of clinical work, and the shared lived experience of like-minded peers. Students who utilize Togetherall can join a global community but also have the option of joining a subcommunity of college and university students. All content is monitored by a clinical team. According to Locke, 92% of college students who utilize Togetherall report that they're not using any other support services on campus. Locke argued that this highlights how clinical interventions will never reach most of the campus population in distress. However, as Locke stated, 'Counseling centers would never claim that they can meet with every student in distress.' This sentiment captures the key of combating the crisis narrative, which is viewing mental health as a community issue and not just a concern for clinicians.
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A conceptual road sign on challenges A 2024 report on described four challenges that the field of college mental health will likely face in 2025. Some of these challenges have already emerged. For example, last year's annual survey report by the Association for University and College Counseling Center Directors, which I served as a board member, highlighted the challenge regarding staff recruitment and retention. The report found that 12.5% of all non-trainee clinical positions turned over in 2023-2024, and that 42.4% of the staff who left campus counseling centers did so to enter private practice. The top two reasons why therapists left higher education were low salary and negative work conditions. This attrition affected directors of counseling centers as 53.8% of directors reported having less than six years of experience at being a director. There are no indications that these numbers will reverse for the 2024-2025 academic year. In addition to the challenges listed in the report on other challenges have emerged during the first quarter of 2025. Last month, the American Psychological Association released a statement of concern regarding a proposed 50% cut in federal funding to the Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration. According to this statement, the proposed cut will limit the effectiveness of the national 988 Suicide and Crisis Lifeline, which 16.5 million people have utilized since it launched in 2022. Many colleges and universities promote this crisis lifeline to students. For example, a 2024 report on highlighted that New York state passed a law requiring that all college student ID cards contain information about the 988 Lifeline. The cut in funding could be a significant challenge to the field of college mental health. According to a 2023 report on suicide is one of the leading causes of death among young adults and college students. Another emerging challenge is the confusion regarding executive orders. The previous report on listed divisive political conflict as one of the four challenges potentially facing the field of college mental health. However, since the start of 2025, there has been confusion among many in college mental health about how to comply with the intentions of the federal government. For example, a 2025 report on described how DEI bans typically prohibit counseling centers from offering targeted clinical services to specific ethnic groups, which resulted in many counseling centers not offering services specifically for Jewish students after the attacks on Oct. 7, 2023. However, USA Today reported earlier this month that the federal government froze billions of dollars to Havard University, partly due to concerns about antisemitic harassment. Thus, it's not clear if the federal government wants colleges and universities to better protect the well-being of Jewish students, while, at the same time, preventing colleges and universities from offering support services specifically for Jewish students. As the report on about DEI bans illustrated, this confusion is why campus health professionals have argued that DEI bans should include language stating that these bans do not impact clinical services provided by licensed health care providers on campus. However, there are no indications that granting medical exemptions in DEI bans is a current consideration by the federal government. Perhaps the most significant emerging challenge facing college mental health is the rise of mental health concerns among college students. A 2025 report by Insider Higher Ed described the high rates of mental health concerns among the incoming class of 2029 and stated that about half of these students cited a chance that they will utilize mental health services once they arrive on campus. The impact of mental health concerns on campus can affect issues ranging from academic performance and university retention to harming self or others. Schools can better protect against these issues by investing in mental health services and programs. However, the above-mentioned challenges are connected. If schools continue to struggle in recruiting and retaining mental health professionals, face budget cuts that impact mental health services, and are prohibited from offering certain clinical services to students, then the list of emerging challenges facing the field of college mental health should continue to grow.
