Learn to Recognise Mental Health Issues in Your Employees
Depression and anxiety are very common and prevalent mental health issues, in the general population as well as in employees. Managers have the responsibility to take care of the health of their employees, including their mental health. A good manager will regularly meet with the team members individually and ask them how they are. Recognise mental health issues in your employees by checking for typical signs such as withdrawal, mimic expressions of fear, fatigue, or sadness. If changes in behaviour such as reduced interest or withdrawal from social activities are present over a longer time span, consider speaking with the team member about your observations in a neutral but supportive way. Lead through encouragement rather than through creating anxiety and pressure.
The GetBrainHealthy tool provides Quizzes that serve as opportunities for introspection, inviting you to reflect on your daily life,
how you interact with the world, and identify steps you can take to boost your brain health.
The quizzes serve as a guide to foster greater awareness of brain health,
but they are not designed to replace the expertise of medical professionals or mental health professionals.
If you need further support or specialised advice, we strongly encourage you to seek assistance
from local healthcare providers.
All quizzes have been designed based on scientific evidence from two streams of research.
The first stream of research has identified optimal conditions for high cognitive performance, such as the absence of stress or individual preferences on how to learn new material. The second stream of research has identified protective and risk factors for maintaining cognitive functioning up to advanced ages.
By reflecting on the factors presented in the quizzes, we invite you to gain a deeper understanding of
the drivers of our everyday and long-term cognitive performance. We then suggest actions to address any
barriers or challenges you may identify during the reflection.
GetBrainHealthy forms the practical application of the CRISP project’s findings
Funded by the European Research Council (ERC), the CRISP project (grant agreement no. 803239), led by Prof. Dr. Anja Leist, focuses on social and behavioural determinants of cognitive ageing and dementia, investigating the interplay of inequalities, education, and sex/gender with risk factors for dementia with sophisticated statistical models.
CRISP and parallel efforts of other research groups have, over the last years, consolidated evidence on how to improve brain health and reduce the risk of dementia, for example, the large contribution of modifiable risk factors for cognitive impairment and dementia in men and women, which are suggested to contribute 40% of all dementia cases.
Investigating how changes in neighbourhood socioeconomic disadvantage affect cognitive decline, we found that changes in depressive symptoms, social networks (size of close social networks), and levels of physical activity substantially mediated these associations.
A healthy lifestyle may even partly offset the genetic risk of developing dementia, which is characterised by being physically active, eating a balanced diet, and drinking only moderate amounts of alcohol.
Workplace factors directly influence individuals’ stress, cognitive, and social stimulation levels over extended periods of time as well as associated (income) benefits, and these factors are highly relevant to contributing to the risk of dementia. In our study investigating psychosocial work characteristics, high perceived control at work was associated with more favourable cognitive trajectories. We must now ensure that this consolidated scientific knowledge is translated and communicated.
