Support For Youth Research Articles

Supporting Youth Mental Health through Co-designing a Virtual Reality Experience: A Recipe-Based Co-design Model

Supporting Youth Mental Health through Co-designing a Virtual Reality Experience: A Recipe-Based Co-design Model

Cultural, philosophical and legal aspects of volunteering in Kyrgyzstan: Current challenges

The relevance of the study of volunteer activity in Kyrgyz society is due to the epistemological need for a comprehensive understanding of this sphere of human activity at the current stage of development of Kyrgyzstan. This is due to the insufficient conceptualisation of this issue in the country's scientific space. This study uses two main theoretical and methodological approaches: axiological and praxeological. The survey method was chosen for the empirical part of the study. The total number of participants in the study was 284. The purpose of the study is to analyse the motivation and features of volunteering in Kyrgyzstan, taking into account historical contexts, current conditions, legal framework, and potential areas of development. Volunteers in Kyrgyzstan actively support educational and cultural projects, focusing on the development of society in these areas. Social projects are less of a priority. The main motivations for volunteers are social responsibility and personal interests, while traditional and religious factors are less important. The professionalisation and standardisation of volunteering is becoming increasingly prominent, given the rational motivations. The main challenges for volunteers and volunteer organisations in the country are lack of funding and resources, difficulties in organising projects, and limited access to professional training for volunteers. Social and legal aid, education, youth support, healthcare and medical care remain priority areas for volunteering in the current environment. Most respondents expressed optimism about the future of volunteering in Kyrgyzstan. They are confident that it will continue to develop and play a more important role in society. Improved funding, stronger cooperation with government agencies by introducing a legal framework for volunteer activities, development of the infrastructure and global cooperation are seen as key factors for effective organisation of volunteer activities and addressing social and legal challenges in the future. The study contains valuable information for government institutions related to volunteering and will be useful for the development of high-quality state policy in this area

The Asymmetric Effects of the Transitions Into and out of Bullying Victimization on Depressive Symptoms: The Protective Role of Parental Education

PurposeThis study aims to examine the association between bullying victimization and depressive symptoms among youth from multicultural families in Korea, while distinguishing between the effects of entering and exiting bullying victimization. This study also investigates whether parental education moderates this association. MethodsUsing data from the Multicultural Adolescent Panel Survey, a nationally representative sample of children from multicultural families in Korea, this study employed novel asymmetric fixed-effects models that separately assess the effects of entering and exiting bullying victimization. Interaction models were conducted to consider the moderating roles of maternal and paternal college attainment. ResultsConventional fixed-effects models showed that bullying victimization is significantly associated with an increase in depressive symptoms (b = 0.261). Asymmetric fixed-effects models suggest that the magnitude of the entry effect (b = 0.299) was significantly larger than that of the exit effect (b = −0.237). Furthermore, maternal college education amplified the mental health benefits of exiting from bullying victimization but did not buffer the harmful effects of entering bullying victimization. Gender-stratified analyses indicate that this protective effect of maternal college education was only significant for girls. Paternal college education, on the other hand, did not moderate either the entry or exit effects of bullying victimization. DiscussionThe study’s findings on the asymmetric effects of bullying victimization on depressive symptoms emphasize the importance of providing follow-up care and mental health support for multicultural family youth who have experienced bullying, with particular attention to those with a history of victimization.

A Codeveloped Web-Based Disability Disclosure Toolkit for Youth With Disabilities: Mixed Methods Pilot Evaluation.

Youth and young adults with disabilities experience many barriers in securing employment such as discrimination, inaccessible environments, and lack of support. Youth often need to decide whether and how they should disclose their need for accommodations to employers, which can help them to do their best at work. However, few evidence-based toolkits focusing on disability disclosure exist for youth with various types of disabilities. Supporting youth to develop self-advocacy skills is salient because they are an underrepresented and marginalized group in the labor market. The objective of this study was to conduct a pilot evaluation of a web-based toolkit to enhance disability disclosure for youth and young adults helping to advocate for their needs and request workplace accommodations. We conducted 2 in-person focus groups to codevelop a web-based disability disclosure toolkit, which was followed by a pilot evaluation with a pre-post survey. Primary outcomes focused on the relevance of the toolkit content, preliminary perceived impact on knowledge and confidence, and open-ended feedback on the usefulness of the toolkit. Secondary outcomes focused on effectiveness (ie, measures of self-determination). A total of 14 youths with various types of disabilities took part in the study (aged 20-25 years; n=11, 78% female) including 3 who participated in the codevelopment focus group sessions and 11 youths who participated in the surveys. Our findings involved three main themes in the codevelopment sessions that included (1) disability disclosure and workplace accommodation experiences (ie, knowing when, whether, and how to disclose their disability and request workplace accommodations), (2) usefulness of the tool (ie, relatable content, format and design, and suggestions for further development), and (3) perceived impact of the toolkit (ie, navigating disclosure decisions and how to approach employers and develop other relevant employment skills). The survey findings showed that the majority of participants (10/11, 91%) reported that the toolkit increased or changed their knowledge or understanding of disability disclosure. Most participants (8/11, 73%) reported that the toolkit helped to increase their perceived confidence in their daily activities. The majority of participants (8/11, 73%) agreed or strongly agreed that the toolkit was easy to understand and comprehensive. Regarding the preliminary impact of the toolkit, participants did not demonstrate any significant improvements in self-determination (all P>.05). Our findings emphasize the importance of codeveloping a disability disclosure toolkit with youth to enhance its relevance for their needs. Our toolkit indicates preliminary potential as an educational resource for youth and young adults with disabilities as they search for and secure employment. Further research is needed to assess the impact of the tool with larger samples to understand the impact of workplace disability disclosure decisions for youth with disabilities.

Development of Quality of Life in Adolescents and Young Adults With Cancer Using a Patient Support Smartphone App: Prepost Interventional Study.

Adolescents and young adults often experience existential concerns in addition to side effects during a cancer trajectory, which they often carry alone. Thus, cohesion with other adolescents and young adults with cancer is essential but difficult due to the relatively small, widely dispersed nationwide population. In cocreation, a smartphone app has been developed and includes an information bank, a symptom tracker, and a social community platform, aiming to improve the quality of life (QoL) in this patient group. This nationwide, multicenter study aimed to investigate the QoL in adolescents and young adults undergoing a cancer trajectory as they used the app for 6 weeks. Via youth support initiatives, participants were recruited from hospitals in all regions of Denmark. Inclusion criteria were patients with cancer aged 15-29 years who either initiated any cancer treatment or started follow-up after cancer treatment within 30 days. Participants used the adolescents and young adults cancer app for 6 weeks. Before and after the 6 weeks of app use, they completed the European Organization for Research and Treatment of Cancer Quality of Life Questionnaire Core 30 (EORTC QLQ-C30). The participants were divided into a treatment and a follow-up group for analysis. A high score for a functional scale or the global health or overall QoL represents a high or healthy level of functioning or high QoL, respectively; however, a high score for a symptom scale or item represents a high level of symptomatology. Overall, 81 participants were recruited. However, 4 participants did not answer the questionnaire and 6 participants did not use the app. In the treatment group (n=36), significant improvement was found in 2 domains: "Role functioning" (baseline median 33.33, IQR 16.67-83.33 vs 6 weeks median 66.67, IQR 33.33-83.33;P=.04) and "Pain" (baseline median 33.33, IQR 16.67-50.00 vs 6 weeks median 16.67, IQR 0.00-33.33;P=.04). The "Global health/Overall QoL" scale remained stable (baseline median 58.33, IQR 45.83-77.08 vs 6 weeks median 62.50, IQR 41.67-75.00;P=.25). In the follow-up group (n=35), significant improvement was found in 3 domains: "Physical functioning" (baseline median 79.23, IQR 73.33-93.33 vs 6 weeks median 82.86, IQR 73.33-100.00;P=.03), "Cognitive functioning" (baseline median 62.38, IQR 50.00-83.33 vs 6 weeks median 69.52, IQR 50.00-100.00;P=.02), and "Social functioning" (baseline median 76.19, IQR 50.00-100.00 vs 6 weeks median 85.71, IQR 83.33-100.00;P=.05), as well as in the "Global health/Overall QoL" scale (baseline median 57.14, IQR 83.33-100.00 vs 6 weeks median 75.0, IQR 62.91-85.73;P<.001). In this study, we found an improvement in specific QoL scales for both participants in treatment and follow-up when using the app for 6 weeks. The global health or overall QoL score improved significantly in the follow-up group. In the treatment group, it remained stable. RR2-10.2196/10098.

The promise of digital Out-of-School programs for supporting youth in Under-resourced communities: Participatory principles for human rights-based virtual youth groups

ABSTRACT The Promise of Digital Out-of-School Programs for Supporting Youth in Under-Resourced Communities: Participatory Principles for Human Rights-based Virtual Youth Group Programming This study reports insights from a six-year phase (“Law Under Curious Minds”) of a 17-year project (Empowering Counseling Program Participatory Science Initiative) with youth experiencing low income residing in disinvested communities segregated by race in a metropolitan US city. The project offered over Zoom employed a semi-structured emergent curriculum to afford youth maximal self-determination in the intervention experiences. A human rights framework informed by critical pedagogy supported youths’ efforts to separate their identities and experiences in social systems from deficit-based social narratives. This paper provides guidelines for groupwork interventions including individually focused care, developing group identity to create a positive social space, and encouraging participation while respecting youths’ capacities for online self-revelation. The challenges and opportunities of digital out-of-school programs are described, with a focus on the potential for supporting youth excluded from mainstream opportunities by geographic distance, disability, or income.

Supporting Youth Participation in Health and Climate Justice Through Advocacy Training Comment on "Between Rhetoric and Reality: Learnings From Youth Participation in the Adolescent and Youth Health Policy in South Africa".

This paper responds to lessons from the Adolescent and Youth Health Policy (AYHP) process in South Africa by drawing comparisons with youth participation within the climate justice movement. Relationship building is essential to successful youth participation in health policy and climate change as it creates intergenerational learning and cross-cultural engagement. At the same time, both sets of youth also deal with compounding challenges due to contemporary and historical legacies of colonialism and inequality. Yet, tokenism challenges the participatory process as adults profess to value youth perspectives, yet recommendations by youth often do not get incorporated into policies or plans. For organizations and agencies trying to build youth's capacity, organizations and agencies should look to programs that train youth in advocacy. These programs help build youth's confidence, increase their optimism for change, and give youth a sense of ownership.

Companion animals and the relationship between peer victimization and emotion regulation in youth.

Peer victimization can negatively impact emotion regulation in youth and is associated with harmful mental health outcomes. One protective factor against the impacts of peer victimization is a strong attachment to family and positive peer relationships. Given that pets are commonly seen as family members and that youth report turning to their pet for emotional comfort, companion animals could provide an avenue of support for youth experiencing victimization. A geographically diverse sample of 5725 adolescents in the United States from the Adolescent Brain Cognitive Development (ABCD) Study® was used to explore whether the relationship between peer victimization and emotion regulation was moderated by whether a pet lives in the home. Having a pet in the home did not moderate the relationship between peer victimization and emotion regulation; however, mean-level differences were present across types of household pet (i.e., youth with no pets, youth with at least one dog, and youth with non-dog pets). Participants who did not live with a companion animal showed higher levels of both maladaptive emotion regulation (expressive suppression) and adaptive emotion regulation (cognitive reappraisal), suggesting that having a pet might lower overall emotion regulation pathways regardless of adaptive directionality. Relational victimization was a significant predictor of expressive suppression regardless of whether there was a pet in the home, although overt victimization was not a predictor of either kind of emotion regulation. This research demonstrates the complex nature of human-animal relationships and suggests more research is needed to understand the nuanced relationship between pets, peer victimization, and emotion regulation.

Examining the Feasibility of Implementing Digital Mental Health Innovations Into Hospitals to Support Youth in Suicide Crisis: Interview Study With Young People and Health Professionals.

Hospitals are insufficiently resourced to appropriately support young people who present with suicidal crises. Digital mental health innovations have the potential to provide cost-effective models of care to address this service gap and improve care experiences for young people. However, little is currently known about whether digital innovations are feasible to integrate into complex hospital settings or how they should be introduced for sustainability. This qualitative study explored the potential benefits, barriers, and collective action required for integrating digital therapeutics for the management of suicidal distress in youth into routine hospital practice. Addressing these knowledge gaps is a critical first step in designing digital innovations and implementation strategies that enable uptake and integration. We conducted a series of semistructured interviews with young people who had presented to an Australian hospital for a suicide crisis in the previous 12 months and hospital staff who interacted with these young people. Participants were recruited from the community nationally via social media advertisements on the web. Interviews were conducted individually, and participants were reimbursed for their time. Using the Normalization Process Theory framework, we developed an interview guide to clarify the processes and conditions that influence whether and how an innovation becomes part of routine practice in complex health systems. Analysis of 29 interviews (n=17, 59% young people and n=12, 41% hospital staff) yielded 4 themes that were mapped onto 3 Normalization Process Theory constructs related to coherence building, cognitive participation, and collective action. Overall, digital innovations were seen as a beneficial complement to but not a substitute for in-person clinical services. The timing of delivery was important, with the agreement that digital therapeutics could be provided to patients while they were waiting to be assessed or shortly before discharge. Staff training to increase digital literacy was considered key to implementation, but there were mixed views on the level of staff assistance needed to support young people in engaging with digital innovations. Improving access to technological devices and internet connectivity, increasing staff motivation to facilitate the use of the digital therapeutic, and allowing patients autonomy over the use of the digital therapeutic were identified as other factors critical to integration. Integrating digital innovations into current models of patient care for young people presenting to hospital in acute suicide crises is challenging because of several existing resource, logistical, and technical barriers. Scoping the appropriateness of new innovations with relevant key stakeholders as early as possible in the development process should be prioritized as the best opportunity to preemptively identify and address barriers to implementation.

Tailor-Made Development Pathways: A Framework to Enhance Active Participation of Youth in Agriculture

The development of youth to actively engage in agriculture could address the persistent youth unemployment problem. For youth to actively engage in agriculture, adequate access to key productive resources is necessary. The main aim of this article is to develop and validate tailor-made development pathways based on the characteristics of four youth typologies, addressing the constrained access to key livelihood capitals, and to enhance the participation of youth in agriculture. The pathways are developed based on the Modified Sustainable Livelihood Framework (MSLF), which includes six livelihood capitals, namely, physical, natural, social, financial, human and psychological capitals. Four pathways were developed and named Business-oriented, Gender-oriented, Occupation-oriented and Livestock-oriented. Through focus group discussions, the pathways were validated to determine whether they can be used successfully to facilitate the participation of youths in agriculture. The results confirm that tailor-made development pathways can be used to develop youth characterised by the typology that informed that pathway, to actively engage in agriculture. The implementation of support strategies to support youth in agriculture, should therefore, be guided by the specific needs of different typologies. This allows for the coordination and coherence of youth support initiatives to enhance access to resources, which can yield improvements to desired development outcomes compared to initiatives implemented as piecemeals.

Supplemental Material for Repairing Alliance Ruptures in Psychodynamic Psychotherapy With Young People: The Development of a Rational–Empirical Model to Support Youth Therapists

Supplemental Material for Repairing Alliance Ruptures in Psychodynamic Psychotherapy With Young People: The Development of a Rational–Empirical Model to Support Youth Therapists

Mitigating mental health and wellbeing challenges among young populations: A scan of youth-led initiatives across Canada to inform psychosocial program development

Youth across Canada are developing creative initiatives that address blind spots and inadequacies in youth mental health services and support, yet few have been formally documented. This study fills this gap, compiling and distilling learnings from youth-led initiatives about the approaches and spaces they have created to support the mental health and wellbeing needs of their peers. Using a decolonizing framework, a systematic scan of the grey literature was conducted to identify youth-led initiatives across Canada. A total of 107 youth-led initiatives were included and information regarding their governance structure, mission, delivery of their programs, and definition of mental health and wellbeing was collected and thematically analyzed using an intersectionality lens. Three important themes were identified that ground the work of youth-led initiatives: 1) Facilitating education, capacity building and access to resources, 2) Ensuring inclusive spaces for healing and social support, and 3) Fostering diversity and pride. The unique narratives, values and approaches projected in youth-led initiatives offer important insights regarding what youth want, and emphasize the importance of engaging youth in the design and development of mental health and wellbeing policies, services, and strategies to improve their responsiveness and cultural safety.

Conceptualizations of Permanency in an Online Foster Care Community

Permanency generally refers to long-lasting family connections and support for youth. Historically, the U.S. child welfare system has focused primarily on legal permanency. Relational and cultural permanency has recently gained some attention while being largely left out of federal policy. This study provides a statistical analysis of permanency-related terms in posts from an online community of people with lived experience in foster care. The results indicate that people with lived experience discussed topics of legal, relational, and cultural permanency more frequently than people who have not spent time in foster care, with a focus on aging out, religion, holidays, friends, loneliness, and community. People with lived experience also discussed permanency-related topics in help-seeking ways. Implications include the need to broaden the understanding of permanency through recommendations for policy and practice.

“That he won't experience life like he should”: Exploring worries of family caregivers of transition-age autistic youth

BackgroundCaregiver (CG) worry, a dimension of CG burden, has rarely been explored in CGs of transition-aged autistic youth. The present study investigated CG, youth, and service characteristics as potential predictors of CG worry and explored expressed concerns from CGs about their autistic youth and their care. MethodData were drawn from a study of 174 family CGs of transition-age autistic youth (age 16–30 years), living in a midwestern metropolitan area. Using a CG worries scale, CGs rated eight worries (e.g., worry about youth’s safety, etc.) experienced in the past six months. An OLS regression model of CG worry focused on predictors of CG characteristics (age, health, financial burden, involvement in youth’s care), youth characteristics (age, social engagement, adaptive functioning, problematic behavior) and service characteristics (access barriers and engagement in transition planning). CG responses to an open-ended question about their greatest worry regarding the youth and their care were analyzed thematically. ResultsCGs were mostly middle-aged mothers, caring for predominantly male (71.8%) ASD youth whose average age was 21. Regression models indicated that CG worry was predicted by problematic behaviors and barriers to accessing services. The expressed CG worries were grouped into four themes, including youth reliance on family CGs, possibilities for the youth’s future, youth relationships, and support for youth. ConclusionsThese findings support the need for improved access to services for transition-aged youth and raise awareness of the need for potential services and interventions to help families manage various worries during this time.

Profiles of psychosocial stressors and buffers among Latinx immigrant youth: Associations with suicidal ideation

This study aimed to examine the associations of latent profile group membership based on post-migration psychosocial stressors (proximal immigrant minority stress) and buffers (family, peer, and school support, and ethnic identity importance), and distal stressors (pre- to post-migration victimization and forced immigration-related family separation) with suicidal ideation among immigrant youth from the Northern Triangle (NT). Surveys were administered in a public high school-based Latinx immigrant youth support program between Spring 2019 and Spring 2022 (N = 172). A three latent profile model was previously identified, characterized by moderate stress/low buffer (weak resources), moderate stress/moderate buffer (average resources), and low stress/high buffer (strong resources) levels of psychosocial stressors and buffers. Associations of profile membership and the previously mentioned distal stressors with suicidal ideation were examined using multivariable logistic regression. Findings revealed that youth in the strong resources group experienced significant protection from suicidal ideation compared to youth in both the average and weak resources groups. Distal stressors were not significantly associated with suicidal ideation in multivariable analysis. Immigrant youth from the NT may require substantial buffering resources (i.e., ethnic identity importance, and school, family, and peer support) and minimization of proximal immigrant minority stress during post-migration to experience protection from suicidal ideation.

Measuring Preservice Teacher Knowledge and Attitudes to Support Youth Experiencing Homelessness

While many teachers are unaware that students in their classes are experiencing homelessness, others may not know how to support students who are identified as lacking consistent housing (Wright et al., 2019). Thus, there is a critical need to better assess, understand, and enhance teachers’ knowledge and attitudes toward homelessness. Therefore, the purpose of the present study is threefold—researchers sought to 1) design and test a survey to measure the knowledge and attitudes of preservice teachers working with youth experiencing homelessness; 2) measure the knowledge and attitudes of preservice teachers related to homelessness; and 3) measure the effectiveness of a virtual training program designed to enhance preservice teachers’ knowledge and attitudes toward homelessness using the finalized survey. Results of the data analysis were promising—indicating that the Knowledge and Attitudes on Homelessness Survey for Educators (KAHS) instrument is a reliable tool in measuring knowledge and attitudes related to homelessness and the online training program has a positive impact on teachers’ knowledge and attitudes.

Ecotourism and Art Mangunan Kaki Langit Tourism Village

Mangunan Kaki Langit Tourism Village is an ecotourism that focuses on community empowerment. The village was formed on March 9, 2014, by the Mangunan Dukuhan KKLPMD Organization. The name "Skyline" has a deep meaning as a symbol of the goal of community empowerment in the Skyline. The concept refers to the idea that the Skyline Tourism Village must be able to move the community to achieve goals without space and time limits by creating new opportunities as a source of income and people's economic empowerment. This study aims to explore the potential of community empowerment of Kaki Langit Tourism Village and evaluate eight main activities that become a forum for community empowerment under their respective fields, such as traditional homestays, traditional culinary, cultural arts, unique tourist accommodation, youth support, local artisans, rural nature education, and agriculture. This research method uses a qualitative approach with data collection techniques through participatory observation, interviews with related parties, and document analysis related to the Skyline Tourism Village. The collected data is analyzed descriptively to get a comprehensive picture of the potential for community empowerment in the village.

45.3 The Stanford Child and Adolescent Mental Health ECHO for Native American Youth: Expanding Capacity in Support of Native Youth and Families

45.3 The Stanford Child and Adolescent Mental Health ECHO for Native American Youth: Expanding Capacity in Support of Native Youth and Families

Better Together: acceptability, feasibility and preliminary impact of chronic illness peer support groups for South African adolescents and young adults.

Peer support can help navigate the isolation and psychological strain frequently experienced by youth living with chronic illness. Yet, data are lacking on the impact of providing support for youth living with mixed chronic conditions. We assessed the acceptability, feasibility and preliminary mental health impacts of a clinic-based peer support group for South African youth living with chronic illnesses, including HIV. This mixed-methods pilot study (September 2021-June 2022) enrolled 58 young patients, ages 13-24, at an urban hospital in Cape Town, South Africa. In-depth interviews elicited the perspectives of 20 young people in relation to their participation in the Better Together programme, a recurring clinic-based peer support group for patients with mixed chronic illnesses. Self-reported resilience, attitudes towards illness, stigma and mental health were captured via established measures. T-tests and multivariate analysis of variance compared psychosocial outcomes for 20 group participants and 38 control patients, controlling for socio-demographic characteristics at enrolment. Logistic regression analyses estimated the predicted probability of a positive depression or anxiety screening given peer group participation. All interviewees valued being able to compare treatment regimens and disease management habits with peers living with different conditions. Adolescents living with HIV stated that understanding the hardships faced by those with other conditions helped them accept their own illness and lessened feelings of isolation. Compared to patients who did not participate in Better Together, those who attended ≥5 groups had statistically significantly higher individual-level resilience, a more positive attitude towards their illness(es), lower internalised stigma and a more positive self-concept. The probability of being screened positive for depression was 23.4 percentage points lower (95% CI: 1.5, 45.3) for Better Together participants compared to controls; the probability of a positive anxiety screening was 45.8 percentage points lower (95% CI: 18.1, 73.6). Recurring, clinic-based peer support groups that integrate youth living with HIV and other chronic diseases are novel. Group sustainability will depend on the commitment of experienced peer leaders and providers, routine scheduling and transportation support. A fully powered randomised trial is needed to test the optimal implementation and causal mental health effects of the Better Together model.

Qualitative study exploring the perspectives of emerging adults with type 1 diabetes after transfer to adult care from a paediatric diabetes centre in Montreal, Canada

IntroductionAmong youth living with type 1 diabetes (T1D), the increasing demands to diabetes self-care and medical follow-up during the transition from paediatric to adult care has been associated with greater...