Support For Youth Research Articles

Youth engagement in mental health research: A systematic review.

Patient engagement in youth mental health research has the potential to inform research on the interventions, servicesand policies that will benefit youth. At present, there is little evidence to guide mental health researchers on youth engagement. This systematic review aims to describe the impacts of youth engagement on mental health research and to summarize youth engagement in mental health research. We searched the following databases: MEDLINE, EMBASEand PsycINFO, using a combination of subject headings, keywordsand synonyms for the concepts 'patient engagement', 'youth' and 'mental health'. Articles that described engaging youth in mental health research were included. Two reviewers performed the study selection. Study characteristics, research activities performed by youth, impacts of youth engagement, challenges,and facilitators to engagementand recommendations for youth engagement described by authors were extracted. Quality appraisal involved determining the level of engagement of youth and the stage(s) of research where youth were involved. The database search returned 2836 citations, 151 full-text articles were screened and 16 articles, representing 14 studies, were selected for inclusion. Youth were involved at nearly all stages of the research cycle, in either advisory or co-production roles. Youth engagement impacts included enhancing relevant research findings, data collection and analysisand dissemination to academic and stakeholder audiences. Both youth and academic researchers reported personal development across many domains. One negative impact reported was the increase in funding and resources needed for engagement. We produced a list of 35 recommendations under the headings of training, youth researcher composition, strategy, expectations, relationships, meeting approachesand engagement conditions. This study provides an understanding of the impacts and recommendations of youth engagement in mental health research. The findings from this study may encourage researchers to engage youth in their mental health research and support youth engagement in funding applications. We consulted three youths with experience being engaged in mental health research about the review findings and the discussion. One youth designed a visual representation of the results and provided feedback on the manuscript. All youth's input informed the way the findings were presented and the focus of the discussion.

Rediscovering life after being diagnosed with HIV: A qualitative analysis of lived experiences of youth living with HIV in rural Rwanda.

In sub-Saharan Africa, youth living with HIV, especially those who have lost one or both parents, face economic, socially and psychological challenges that hinder adherence to ART, ultimately leading to poor health outcomes. Partners In Health/Inshuti Mu Buzima implemented an Adolescent Support Group (ASG) to support HIV-positive youth aged 15-25 years. During the evaluation of the ASG program, we sought to better understand youths' lived experiences to improve our delivery of HIV care. We conducted qualitative in-depth, semi-structured individual interviews with youth enrolled in the ASG program. All interviews were conducted in-person or by telephone. Thematic analysis applying the framework approach with parallel inductive coding in Kinyarwanda and English was used. We interviewed 35 youth who ranged in age from 16 to 29 years. The main themes related to the lived experiences of youth were (a) Experiences living with HIV, including disclosure, stigma, interactions with the health care system, and medication adherence; (b) external challenges, defined as challenges that were not related to the implementation of the ASG program; and (c) personal vision. Almost all youth reported acquiring HIV from their mothers and disclosure of HIV status occurred around the age of 10. Disclosure was often unintentional and followed by internalized and enacted stigma. Many reported poor past medication adherence which improved following enhanced counselling. External challenges were overwhelmingly economic in nature, and orphanhood was a root cause of other challenges such as difficulty accessing education, lack of transport to health facility, and lack of insurance fees. Despite these challenges, youth have an optimistic view of the future with dreams of health, economic attainment, marriage, and children. Healthcare providers should empower caregivers to support HIV disclosure. Supporting youth as they face many economic challenges could help address socio-economic barriers to good health and promote holistic well-being.

SUBSTANTIATION OF MECHANISMS OF SIGNIFICANT POSITIVE INFLUENCE OF CHECKERS/DRAUGHTS TRAINING ACCORDING TO THE AUTHOR'S METHODOLOGY ON THE DEVELOPMENT OF ADOLESCENTS' IMAGINATION AND THINKING

The article is prepared against the background of actualizing the problem of modern scientific and methodological support of youth sports schools specializing in the training of sportsmen in intellectual games. This article is devoted to the issues of reviewing checkers/draughts as a possible means of developing cognitive psychic processes of adolescents, which can be of great importance in the context of planning and organizing the process of psychological training of young checkers/draughts players. The author analyzed in detail the mechanisms of checkers/draughts' influence on the development of cognitive processes of adolescents' imagination and thinking, given that imagination and thinking are among the basic cognitive psychic processes that have their own patterns of development in adolescence. The significant influence of checkers/draughts training on the development of cognitive process of imagination, its complexity and flexibility, on strengthening the creative component of adolescents' imagination, as well as on the development of their thinking, including the analytical nature of inductive thinking and increasing the speed of its process has been experimentally identified and confirmed. Regular checkers/draughts training has a significant positive influence on the development of adolescents' imagination and thinking, which is manifesting through the action of various psychic mechanisms. The statements, results of experimental research and conclusions presented in the article are an integral part of the development of a new curriculum for training of checkers/draughts players for youth sports schools. They can be used in the planning and organization of educational work, the development of new models and technologies of teaching and education in secondary and youth sports schools, in the practice of individual educational work of practical psychologists and teachers with adolescents.

School Absenteeism Among Middle School Students With High Exposure to Violence.

Chronic school absenteeism is linked to failure to graduate high school and poor health in adulthood. Contextual factors associated with absenteeism may be under-recognized in school and clinical settings. We examined the prevalence of self-reported absenteeism and violence exposure and their association among middle school students with identified risk of trauma. We analyzed baseline data from a dating violence prevention program. Participants completed surveys identifying lifetime exposure to 10 types of violence and past 30-day absence. Violence exposure and absenteeism were summarized and compared across demographic groups. Generalized linear models examined associations between 1) any history of violence exposure, 2) each type of violence exposure, and 3) summed exposures to different types of violence, and frequent absenteeism (≥2 absences in past 30 days). Of all participants (overall n=499), 45.5% reported frequent absenteeism and 71.5% reported violence exposure. Any self-reported violence exposure was associated with absenteeism (aRR=1.43, 95%CI: 1.06-1.92). However, no specific type of violence exposure predicted absenteeism. Comparing summed exposures to different types of violence to no violence exposure, exposure to 1 type of violence was associated with absenteeism (aRR=1.59, 95%CI: 1.15-2.20), with no evidence of stronger associations with greater exposure (2-3 types: aRR=1.37, 95%CI: 1.00-1.88; ≥4 types: aRR=1.31, 95%CI: 0.98-1.74). Youth in this sample reported both high rates of violence exposure and absenteeism. Prior violence exposure was associated with absenteeism. Resources and contextual support for youth exposed to family or community violence may play a role in school attendance, emphasizing need for trauma-sensitive approaches to absenteeism.

Concept of Regulating youth Migration Mobility of Ukraine in War Conditions

Problematic aspects of the synergy of youth and migration policy, which acquire additional relevance for Ukraine in the war conditions, in the article were considered. The aim of the article is the scientific substantiation of the conceptual provisions regarding the regulation of youth migration mobility with the detection of modern priorities for Ukraine. The analysis of the legislation of Ukraine in the social sphere made it possible to reveal the importance of the issue of state support for youth among the conceptual-strategic and program-target priorities. At a time when developed countries are actively promoting the idea of «Talent on the Move», youth migration in Ukraine is taking on threatening characteristics due to the lack of systematic regulation of it. The results of a sociological survey of young people with migration experience, based on the example of the Lviv region of Ukraine, proved that youth re-emigration intentions were extremely low even before the Russo-Ukrainian War 2022. The emigration of Ukrainian youth is intellectualizing, changing the previous migration labor wave. The current wave of forced emigration also has the face of children and youth, who are highly likely to successfully integrate into host societies. Taking into account the risks of irreversible demographic losses and the social functionality of the state, it is necessary to implement a new concept of regulating the youth migration mobility, which includes measures to influence migration movements and migration potential, as well as support for the main areas of youth life. The new concept should be developed in accordance with the regulated priorities of national security, human and sustainable development, the expediency of youth policy regionalization in the conditions of a successful decentralization reform. The basis of the migration potential regulation is the organization of migration mobility monitoring in the context of the development and capitalization of human potential, that is, the clarification of the consequences of migration for the person and the region (state) of origin. It is mandatory to support of social ties with diaspora institutions. The new concept of regulating the youth migration mobility should aim to stimulate their re-emigration with a promising transition to ensuring circular migration during the post-war recovery period of Ukraine. The obtained results are the basis for further research in the part of determining the mechanisms of stimulating the re-emigration of young people to Ukraine and attracting their potential during further stay abroad.

Social studies education and guidance counselling as panacea to multifarious problems of the Nigerian youths

This paper focuses on Social Studies Education (SSE) and Guidance and counseling (G&C) as mitigating the multifarious problems of the Nigerian youths. It sees guidance counseling and Social Studies as having a meeting point in the areas of behavior modification for productivity and citizenship development. In view of this expositions, the paper discusses headings such as concept of Social Studies Education and Guidance and Counselling viz: their meeting points, Nigeria’s multifarious problems, the psycho-social needs of the Nigerian youths, Towards Meeting the Psycho-social needs and support for the Nigerian youths, G & C and SSE: Mitigating the multifarious problems of the Nigerian youths and factors militating against effective SSE and G&C in Nigerian schools. Among the suggestions are made that government at all levels of governance should provide adequate funding to deal with the inadequate infrastructure in the education sector so that education can be used as instrument of positive change among the Nigerian youths, Population explosion that rocks the Nigerian institutions should be adequately addressed by both the federal and state government through provision of infrastructural development to cater for the ever increasing enrolment so that the behaviour modification mission of Social Studies and Counselling can be achieved.

Perceived Help and Support for Sex as Self-Injury: A Qualitative Study of a Swedish Sample

Earlier research has found that sexual acts could be used as a means of self-injury, with comparable functions to nonsuicidal self-injury (NSSI) such as cutting or burning the skin. However, no previous study has investigated the experience of help and support in relation to sex as a means of self-injury (SASI), which this study aims to investigate. The study was based on an anonymous open-ended questionnaire published from December 2016 to April 2017 on the websites of NGOs working with help and support for women and youths in Sweden. In total, 197 participants (mostly women, mean age 27.9 years, range 15–64 years) with self-reported experiences of SASI were included in the study. Three main themes were found concerning experiences of help and support for SASI. The need for: (1) Framing the behavior of SASI, to find a word for SASI—to know it exists, to get questions and information about SASI and its function; (2) Flexible, respectful, and professional help and support from an early age, to be listened to and confirmed in one’s experience of SASI; and (3) Help with underlying reasons to exit SASI such as finding one’s own value and boundaries through conventional therapy, through life itself, or through therapy for underlying issues such as earlier traumatic events, PTSD, dissociation, or anxiety. In conclusion, similar interventions could be helpful for SASI as for NSSI, irrespective of the topographical differences between the behaviors, but the risk of victimization and traumatization must also be addressed in SASI.

Basic theory and policy validation of youth mentoring program

Many mentorship programmes pair more experienced elders with trainees, enabling experienced practitioners to pass knowledge down to younger generations. Professor Kayoko Watanabe, Aichi-Shukutoku University, Japan, believes in the importance of mentoring programmes and has been investigating mentoring programmes. The idea of mentoring programmes has yet to gain traction in Japan and Watanabe helped implement and continues to play a role in improving the Hiroshima City Youth Support Mentor System, which was launched in 2004 by the Board of Education in Hiroshima City and connects school-aged children with volunteers who act as mentors. Watanabe believes the theory and practice of mentoring programmes are interconnected, working together in a feedback loop to improve mentoring programmes. She has been studying the current status and core issues surrounding the mentoring movement in the US, UK, Germany, Canada, Australia and New Zealand and uses a number of theories in her work, including lifelong development, social capital and social investment. Watanabe has evaluated the mentoring programmes, considering the viewpoints of mentors, mentees and parents of mentees and found a clear recognition of the benefits of the programme for all stakeholders.

Meaning-making and interpretation through personal mandalas in the context of visual literacy

This research investigates the significance of creative freedom and self-expression through the visual analysis of artworks produced in a workshop under the theme ‘Visual Literacy’. This multi-layered qualitative study presents the findings from a participatory arts-based research approach that elicits students’ creative expression through their personal mandalas. Artworks collected from this creative process were assessed using the interpretive phenomenological analysis method whereas the Common European Framework of Reference for Visual Literacy (CEFR-VL) was used as an assessment tool. Supporting youth through arts-based interventions and motivating them to communicate their feelings and perceptions can be an integral part of students’ creative development. Hence, as the focus of the study, this paper aims to illustrate the youths’ perception, interpretation, and meaning-making through the artistic creative processes to stimulate their creative and critical thinking.

16.2 Youth Voice in Project Youth Empowerment and Support (YES): An Online Anonymous Adolescent Mental Health Single Session Intervention to Decrease Hopelessness

16.2 Youth Voice in Project Youth Empowerment and Support (YES): An Online Anonymous Adolescent Mental Health Single Session Intervention to Decrease Hopelessness

4.4 Social Media Contagion in Adolescents

Social media engagement is an aspect of everyday routine for most adolescents. While many youth support, educate, and inspire one another through social media, digital platforms can also serve as vehicles for the promotion of misleading ideas and unhealthy behaviors. This presentation will focus specifically on the ways in which social media interactions may induce contagion effects and copycat risk behaviors in vulnerable youth. Following this talk, the audience will be able to: 1) understand how types of social media–related contagion impact mental health; 2) appreciate how social media platforms create a unique environment for contagion to spread; and 3) recognize and manage social media–related contagion in the clinical setting.

39.2 Supporting Youth, Families, and Schools After Hospitalization: The BFaST Program

Transitioning from an inpatient psychiatric stay presents a variety of challenges for youth and their families. Many hospitalized youth have difficulties returning to the community from inpatient settings that feel safe, follow routines, and provide respite from family/social stressors. At discharge, many youth worry about the stigma of mental illness and fear that family and friends will be judgmental. Families also frequently struggle during this transition period, with worries about their children having continued problems and relapse.

Survivors “Surviving Well” and “Surviving Poorly”: Reflections on the Limitations and Possibilities of Transformative Justice

Survivors “Surviving Well” and “Surviving Poorly”: Reflections on the Limitations and Possibilities of Transformative Justice

2.110 Characterizing High-Risk Adolescents’ Disclosures of Suicidal Thoughts and Behaviors

Disclosure of suicidal thoughts and behaviors (STB) is a critical step in identifying and intervening to support youth at risk. While youth are encouraged to talk to a trusted adult (eg, parent/guardian), there is limited research in patterns of and responses to STB disclosure among at-risk youth. The present study aims to characterize youth experiences of STB disclosure to inform family-based suicide prevention.

청년층의 지각된 사회적 지지와 조직몰입이 이직의도에 미치는 영향

This study examined the mediating effect of job involvement moderated by job satisfaction in the relation between social support and turnover intention in youth,. For this purpose, the responses of 805 youth under the age of 39 in ‘The 19th KLIPS(2016)’ were analyzed using SPSS 25.0 and PROCESS Macro 4.0. The results indicated that social support, turn over intention, job involvement and job satisfaction were significantly correlated. Social support, job involvement and job satisfaction were positively associated with each other, and turnover intention was negatively associated with the other variables. Next, the mediation effect of job involvement on the relation between social support and turnover intention was significant. Additionally, low level of job satisfaction had a moderation effect on the relation between job involvement an turnover intention. The mediation effect of job involvement on the relation between social support and turnover intention was mo derated by low level job satisfaction. This finding implies that job involvement and job satisfaction are important factors in understanding the turnover intention of youth and in order to reduce their turnover intention, it is especially necessary to find ways to increase job involvement. Limitations and recommendations for future research are present.

Factors Influencing Drug Abuse among Youth (15-24 Years) in Kisenyi Slum, Kampala District of Uganda

Introduction: Globally, youths are at risk of engaging in drug abuse. In Uganda, the prevalence of drug abuse among youths is 70.1% which is a lot higher than that of East Africa which is approximated at 45.5%. The study examined the factors influencing drug abuse among the youth in Kisenyi slum of Kampala district. It specifically assessed the relationship between socio-cultural factors, economic factors, and individual factors on drug abuse among youth. Methods: The study adopted a cross-sectional survey design in which a quantitative data collection approach was applied. Questionnaires were used to collect data from 239 youths. Data was cleaned, coded and entered into SPSS software for analysis. The results generated were in the form of descriptive statistics, Pearson chi-square analyses and binary logistics regressions. Results: The study found that the following factors had a statistically significant relationship with drug abuse in Kisenyi slum; religious service attendance (AOR=0.12; 95%CI=0.02-0.68; p=0.03*), family structure (AOR=20.04; 95%CI= 1.75-29.66; p<0.001*), family member smoking cigarettes/tobacco (AOR=0.83; 95%CI= 0.21-3.35; p=0.001*), a friend who drinks alcohol (AOR=1.21; 95%CI= 0.50-2.95; p=0.050*), a friend who smokes cigarettes/tobacco (AOR=0.47; 95%CI= 0.06-3.75; p=0.003*), television watching (AOR=3.56; 95%CI= 1.19-10.71; p<0.001*), social media access (AOR=1.51; 95%CI= 0.51-4.42; p=0.002*), type of house lived in (AOR=3.64; 95%CI= 0.91-14.5; p<0.001*), source of livelihood (AOR=0.88; 95%CI= 0.06-13.39; p=0.014*), drug availability (AOR=0.18; 95%CI= 0.03-1.20; p=0.029*), cost of drugs (AOR=5.92; 95%CI= 1.81-19.40; p<0.001*), perceptions on drugs (AOR=0.70; 95%CI= 0.17-2.88; p=0.002*), and convenience in talking (AOR=1.41; 95%CI= 0.48-4.15; p=0.002*). Conclusion: It can be concluded that socio-cultural, economic and individual factors have a statistically significant influence on drug abuse among youths in Kisenyi Slum, Kampala district. The study recommends engagement of religious leaders to include drug abuse and its effects in their sermons, regular police patrols to remand street children, rolling out business, technical vocational education and training (BITVET) to provide skills to youths, support youth businesses with seed capital and identification of youth champions to sensitize youths on drug abuse, its dangers and how to overcome addiction.

Promoting relational collaborative partnership to implement coastal settlement revitalization

Collaborative partnerships have played important roles in addressing globally critical issues. In terms of policy implementation, establishing partnerships can not only facilitate task distribution but also help garner consensus and provide mutual support. Since the allocation and provision of financial resources are key to the sustainability of collaborative partnerships, local organizations or groups may lose flexibility and innovativeness in promoting regional development if they hinge too much on government funding. This study was attempted to build a collaborative partnership which was not relied on government subsidies to promote coastal settlements development. This study adopted participatory action research (PAR) to organizing case studies focusing on the features of coastal settlements in Hualien, Taiwan, constructing a diversified network for collaborative partnerships without government subsidies, and proposing the idea of Ocean Youth Support Team (OYST). Through the case study of Hualien within a real-world context, the roles played by different collaborators in the public and private partnerships, the missions, and the model of operation are elaborated. From the empirical analysis, the result of this research: communication, recognition, and mutual support can be determinant to the formation of relational collaborative partnership. Although relational collaborative partnership may not easily be formed, this research intends to present a case study based on empirical analysis for future reference.

Stigma, coping strategies, and their impact on treatment and health outcomes among young men living with HIV in Vietnam: A qualitative study.

Stigma affects persons living with HIV in myriad ways, including mental health, adherence to antiretroviral therapy, and retention in care, and may manifest at inter- and intra-personal levels. Youth are particularly vulnerable; those in vulnerable groups may experience multiple stigmas. In Vietnam, new HIV infections are rising among men in young age groups. To better understand the facets of stigma experienced by young men living with HIV in Vietnam, we conducted a qualitative study with youth and clinicians. We conducted in-depth interviews with ten youth and two clinicians in Hanoi, querying experiences of inter- and intra-personal stigma, coping strategies, and disclosure. As a framework for further research, we developed a conceptual model based on our findings and the published evidence base which portrays interactions among HIV-related stigma, coping strategies, and ART adherence, care engagement, and health outcomes. Common themes that emerged from interviews with youth included extensive internalized/self-stigma and perceived stigma, yet limited experienced interpersonal stigma due to non-disclosure and avoidant coping strategies. Within different types of relationships or contexts, youth used different strategies. Non-disclosure with family, friends, and workplaces/school, and avoidance of romantic relationships and health care were common. Mental health and social support appeared to be mediating factors between coping strategies and health outcomes. Validation of this model of mechanisms of the impact of stigma for youth will require further research with larger samples. In the meantime, public campaigns to increase public awareness related to HIV should be implemented in Vietnam. Critical support for youth and their mental health should involve approaches tailored to the individual, taking into account context and personal capacity, including adequate time to prepare psychologically for disclosure. Some strategies for safe and effective disclosure are suggested.

Supporting youth and families to prevent risky youth behavior and delinquency: An impact evaluation of a family counseling program in the Caribbean

This study provides the first randomized controlled trial (RCT) of a family counseling intervention in the Caribbean, and one of the few RCTs on a violence and delinquency prevention program in the region. This trial studies the impact of the Family Matters program for youth aged 10–18 years old and at risk of engaging in delinquent behavior. As a result of the program, parental supervision improved and there wasareduction insome of the youths’ negativebehaviors and attitudes, but the magnitude of improvements was small: participants’ average number of risk factors decreased by only one fifth of a standard deviation. Improved behaviors did not translate into reduced youth delinquency. The findings suggest that with some adjustments to improve program targeting and address pressing family challenges, the intervention may have a more meaningful impact on caregiving practices and youth behaviors and delinquency levels.

The Importance of Centers for Independent Living Supporting Youth With Disabilities: A Critical Contribution to Maximize Transition Service Delivery

An integral element of maximizing positive postschool outcomes for youth with disabilities is interagency collaboration. Centers for Independent Living (CILs) can be critical service providers for youth and young adults with disabilities. This study explored CIL professionals’ contributions in supporting transition-age youth. Furthermore, the study examined these professionals’ perspectives of why CIL involvement is vital in transition service delivery. Eight dyads consisting of a CIL administrator and a CIL staff member providing direct services to transition-age youth with disabilities were interviewed from eight U.S. CILs. Thematic analysis of each interview transcript yielded themes related to the scope of services that CILs are providing in tandem with special education professionals, and why CIL professionals believe their involvement in secondary transition is critical. Findings included that interview participants delineated three overarching areas where CILs support transition-age youth while collaborating with schools. Furthermore, the findings showed that the crucial nature of CIL involvement in the transition service delivery process is rooted in several value-based principles. These five value-based principles were as follows: (a) Empowerment-, autonomy-, and independence-based, (b) youth-led and individualized, (c) strengths-based and goal-driven, (d) peer-based and disability-pride-driven, and (e) ensuring services were available and accessible. These findings, implications for practice, and future research directions are also discussed.