Working to Promote Resilience with Latino Youth in Schools: Perspectives from the United States and Mexico

Abstract

Throughout the Americas large numbers of children and adolescents would benefit from some type of mental health intervention. For many, however, traditional mental health approaches are culturally dystonic and fail to incorporate the child's cultural worldview, the result being that Latino young people use mental health facilities less than they might. Intervention with Latino young people requires consideration of contextual factors and accounts for the significant stigma associated with seeking mental health treatment. School-based mental health services attempt to decrease the gap between need and underutilization by providing support for Latino young people in a key area of access – the schools. This paper focuses on the provision of mental health services to Latino youth in the United States (US) and Mexico. Factors associated with risk and resilience are discussed as are ways to provide culturally syntonic school-based mental health to US Latino and Mexican youth.