Teen Mental Health Research Articles

Public Youth Services Librarians’ Perceptions Towards and Experiences in Promoting Teens’ Positive Mental Health: A Mixed Methods Study

Over the last decade, teen mental health has declined rapidly. In Florida, high rates of youth mental health concerns and lowered access to care led to its ranking as the 19th worst in the nation. To help address these issues, a “whole community” approach to mental health promotion has been advocated, with public libraries identified as potential partners. But research exploring public youth librarians’ perceptions and experiences related to this agenda is lacking. Informed by Seligman’s well-being theory, this study addresses that gap by exploring public youth librarians’ perceptions towards and experiences in promoting teens’ positive mental health through an explanatory sequential mixed-methods design consisting of surveys of and interviews with Florida public librarians responsible for teen services. Survey results (n=183) showed that most librarians viewed promoting teens’ positive mental health as an important part of their role and engaged in a variety of related activities. But challenges in carrying out these activities were identified as well as concerns related to professional boundaries and training. Interviews (n=30) further explored how librarians define the scope of their role and their experiences, including any training and support received and challenges related to promoting teens’ positive mental health. Findings provide greater understanding of what members of the profession are doing and what they perceive as their role in response to declining teen mental health, thus improving service provision by informing future education and training efforts and the development of new models for how to best promote teens’ mental health through a holistic lens.

Designing for Teen Mental Health: An exploration of the co-design of virtual reality in the public library setting

Teen mental health is in a state of crisis in the United States. One in three adolescents is suffering from a mental health issue and suicide is the third leading cause of death for teens ages 15–24. The demand for mental health resources far outweighs the supply suggesting creative and accessible mental health resources are needed. The public library is a community resource available to all community members and is an ideal location for providing mental health supports. Therefore, in this project, we engaged three, diverse groups of teens (n = 30) in the design and development of a virtual reality environment intended to support teen mental health. Teens from two urban (Seattle and Washington, D.C.) and one rural setting (Texas) participated in a 13-session, after school co-design program led by local library staff. Through these design sessions, we learned that (1) Teens are interested and engaged in talking about their mental health and find nature and animals relaxing and helpful. (2) Teens envision virtual reality (VR) as an environment to help them manage or avoid stress and feelings of overwhelm. (3) As designers teens enjoy active interaction and the ability to iterate on their designs. (4) VR designs by teens often included being in nature and with animals. These data suggest that virtual reality may be a successful medium and public libraries an appropriate site in which to engage teens in co-design for mental health. More importantly, such programs may offer an invitation to encourage teens to think about and discuss their own mental health.

“Effectiveness of School-based Scaling up Teen Mental Health Program through peer synergy (SUTMP) on mental health promotion, mental health literacy, and resilience among senior secondary students of Sikkim, India- A Cluster Randomized Controlled Trial Protocol.”

BackgroundMental health conditions are a significant burden during adolescence, with up to 50% starting before age 14. Suicide is among the top three causes of death in this age group, highlighting the need for effective mental health interventions. ObjectiveThe primary objective of the study is to determine the effectiveness of school-based Scaling up Teen Mental Health Program through peer synergy (SUTMP) on mental health literacy among senior secondary students. MethodsA cluster randomized controlled trial will be conducted among the students of government senior secondary schools. The intervention comprises five modules focusing on mental health literacy, mental health promotion, peer synergy on first aid in mental health, strengthening resilience, and the fifth module focuses on relaxation exercises, meditation and deep breathing techniques, and mindfulness with “Teen mental health app.” Students will be assessed using the Resilience Scale, Mental Health Promotion Knowledge Scale, Peer Mental Health Stigmatization Scale, Teen Mental Health Literacy Scale, and Peer Synergy on Mental Health First Aid Scale. Assessment will be done before the intervention, one week after, at three and six months post-intervention. Expected ResultsThe anticipated outcome of the study is that the school-based Scaling up Teen Mental Health Program (SUTMP) will increase mental health literacy among school students, strengthen their resilience skills, and increase the use of a peer-led approach for providing initial mental health first aid. ConclusionThe study will employ an innovative module for delivering the intervention, integrating on-site and app-based approaches in a blended manner.

Rx for Teen Mental Health: Volunteering: Helping others might help depression and anxiety.

Rx for Teen Mental Health: Volunteering: Helping others might help depression and anxiety.

The effect of music on teenagers in combatting stress and improving performance

Mental health disorders, especially those related to stress and anxiety, are some of the most critical issues facing teenagers today. While previous studies have focused on music’s effect on brain development and rehabilitation, there is a significant gap in understanding music’s effect on teen mental health. As one of the most avid consumers of music, teenagers’ frequent exposure to music can be utilized to combat the growing teen mental health crisis. We hypothesized that participation in music activities by teenagers would alleviate their stress levels and improve their performance. This research investigated how exposure to active versus passive music affects a teenager’s ability to perform a challenging task, namely a Sudoku puzzle, under stressful conditions. The study tested 75 high school teenagers in a Bay Area high school, split into 2 groups: students singing in a choir (active music) and students listening to low-fidelity music (passive music). Our results showed that active participation in music activities like choir yields a significantly greater improvement in performance compared to passive listening for brief time periods. Additionally, the more a participant listened to music, the better they appeared to manage stress levels and improve their performance on everyday tasks. Most participants reported listening to music while doing everyday tasks to relieve stress, boost mood, and improve focus. These results reinforce the importance of music in helping teens cope with stress and combat the growing mental health crisis. Schools and music teachers can use these findings to advocate for universal access to music programs.

Power Trip-Ups: How Power Dynamics and Provider Bias Can Undermine Alliance and Outcomes in Teen Mental Health Treatment

Power Trip-Ups: How Power Dynamics and Provider Bias Can Undermine Alliance and Outcomes in Teen Mental Health Treatment

To What Extent Are Trends in Teen Mental Health Driven by Changes in Reporting?

To What Extent Are Trends in Teen Mental Health Driven by Changes in Reporting?

Tirani Kebahagiaan dan Media Sosial: Sebuah Kajian Media dan Politik

Social media content has taken up a lot of our attention, a lot of time and energy is spent either creating content or just exploring it. This of course does not only have a positive impact on us, on the other side of the pendulum there are 'mines' ready to blow up anyone who is not aware of the negative effects. This paper attempts to provide an overview of the hidden agendas of social media that are consciously or unconsciously realized by its users, where the hedonic treadmill concept is used as the main analysis knife. This article is qualitative by using impressions on YouTube as the object of writing. Shows that are used as the object of analysis include: 1) Why Social Media Is Toxic for Teen Mental Health | Fault Lines Documentary; 2) Teens, Social Media, and Technology (Full Documentary; 3) The Instagram Effect 2022 Documentary. The author finds that social media has great potential to encourage a continuous search for happiness as evidenced by the acquisition of as many like-view-shares as possible. In addition, the next finding is that social media makes a major contribution to the formation of a negative image of the body and mental disorders that lead to suicide. The ultimate terminal is the utilization of algorithms to generate more profit for social media.

It's just so difficult to get anything done: Teen mental health in the family court setting

AbstractNavigating the family court setting to protect teen mental health, meet teens' mental health needs, and promote resilience and coping skills is challenging. We have tools that can help us meet that challenge. That toolkit includes: expanding who is involved in the work to develop a parenting plan or treatment plan; not reducing the case to a one‐dimensional fact pattern; restructuring family court proceedings for ongoing problem‐solving, providing protections for the teen's privacy; using consensual dispute resolution and adjudication on parallel tracks; and educating the decision makers through expert declarations and Brandeis briefs (even at the trial court level).

What Is Rejection? Lexical, Experimental, and Analytical Specificity Is Needed to Drive Developmental Psychopathology Research Forward

There is increasing urgency in the quest to identify prospective risk factors for nonsuicidal self-injury (NSSI), driven by a growing teen mental health crisis. NSSI, which involves deliberately harming one’s physical body without suicidal intent, increases rapidly in early to middle adolescence and is a risk factor for suicidality and other mental illness ( 1 Nock M.K. Joiner Jr., T.E. Gordon K.H. Lloyd-Richardson E. Prinstein M.J. Non-suicidal self-injury among adolescents: Diagnostic correlates and relation to suicide attempts. Psychiatry Res. 2006; 144: 65-72 Crossref PubMed Scopus (1014) Google Scholar ). Accumulating research highlights social (e.g., rejection, poor relationships, low support) and affective (e.g., reactivity, lability, dysregulation) risk mechanisms, among others ( 2 Cipriano A. Cella S. Cotrufo P. Nonsuicidal self-injury: A systematic review. Front Psychol. 2017; 8: 1946 Crossref PubMed Scopus (224) Google Scholar ). However, social and affective risk mechanisms can be linked and may interact to confer risk for NSSI as well as mental illness more broadly ( 3 Hsu D.T. Jarcho J.M. Next up for psychiatry: Rejection sensitivity and the social brain. Neuropsychopharmacology. 2021; 46: 239-240 Crossref Scopus (8) Google Scholar ). This is particularly relevant in adolescence, a time of rapid brain development and increases in both mental health struggles and reliance on peer affiliation ( 4 Guyer A.E. Adolescent psychopathology: The role of brain-based diatheses, sensitivities, and susceptibilities. Child Dev Perspect. 2020; 14: 104-109 Crossref PubMed Scopus (19) Google Scholar ). Despite the recognition that social difficulties are a common correlate of mental illness, few studies integrate robust measures of real-world peer experience within a neuroscience framework to prospectively predict the emergence of adolescent mental health struggles. Understanding whether neural diatheses confer increased vulnerability to specific stressful peer experiences in adolescence is a critical open question—interventions designed to target neural diatheses or to promote specific types of peer experiences may be critical for prevention efforts in the future ( 4 Guyer A.E. Adolescent psychopathology: The role of brain-based diatheses, sensitivities, and susceptibilities. Child Dev Perspect. 2020; 14: 104-109 Crossref PubMed Scopus (19) Google Scholar ). SEE CORRESPONDING ARTICLE ON PAGE 40 SEE CORRESPONDING ARTICLE ON PAGE 40 Neural Reactivity to Social Punishment Predicts Future Engagement in Nonsuicidal Self-injury Among Peer-Rejected AdolescentsBiological PsychiatryVol. 94Issue 1PreviewRates of nonsuicidal self-injury (NSSI) increase dramatically in adolescence. Affective reactivity and adverse social experiences have been linked to NSSI, but less is known about whether these factors may separately or interactively predict NSSI, especially longitudinally. This study combined functional magnetic resonance imaging and a sociometric measure to test whether a combination of neural (e.g., amygdala) reactivity to social punishment and peer-nominated peer acceptance/rejection predicts NSSI longitudinally in adolescence. Full-Text PDF

A Review of Youth Mental Health Curricula in Peer-Reviewed Studies Addressing Access, Equity, and Belonging

The goal of this literature review was to identify evidence-based curricula that support youth mental health with special attention to inclusion of access, equity, and belonging (AEB). Four databases were searched for peer-reviewed articles published between 2010 and 2019 related to youth mental health curricula. A total of 1446 articles were identified, and 171 articles underwent a full-text review. Of the 61 curricula identified, 44% addressed AEB to some extent and 65% showed program effectiveness. Four programs were recommended (Sources of Strength, Teen Mental Health First Aid, Dynamic Mindfulness, and Youth Mental Health First Aid) and eight conditionally recommended.

Adolescent Mental Health Literacy: Definitions and Program Highlights

Worldwide statistics about adolescent mental health are startling and disturbing. To counteract these growing numbers, worldwide school based and community-based efforts to enhance adolescent mental health literacy have been tried and evaluated. This column defines mental health literacy and highlights school based efforts such as the Knowledge and Attitudes to Mental Health Scales (KAMHS), SchoolSpace Project, HeadStrong, teen Mental Health First Aid (tMHFA), Our Own Voice, FloraMind, and “Mental Health for Everyone”. It also discusses a community-based program from Sri Lanka.

Book Review: Victoria Betton and James Woollard, Teen Mental Health in an Online World

Book Review: Victoria Betton and James Woollard, <i>Teen Mental Health in an Online World</i>

Teen Mental Health First Aid for years 7\u20139: a description of the program and an initial evaluation

BackgroundA teen Mental Health First Aid training course for high school students in years 10–12 (tMHFA 10–12) has previously been evaluated in uncontrolled and randomized controlled trials and found to improve Mental Health First Aid intentions, mental health literacy and to reduce stigma. This 3 × 75-min course has more recently been adapted for younger students in years 7–9 (tMHFA 7–9). The present study reports an initial uncontrolled trial of this new training course which aimed to assess feasibility and acceptability of the course and test effects on knowledge, attitudes and behaviour.MethodsAn uncontrolled trial was carried out in five schools with measures taken at pre-test, post-test and 3-month follow-up. The outcomes measured were: quality of first aid intentions to help peers, confidence in helping, stigmatising attitudes, recognition of anxiety disorder, number of adults thought to be helpful, help-seeking intentions, quality of support provided to a peer, quality of support received, and psychological distress. Questions were also asked about satisfaction with the course.ResultsThere were 475 students (mean age 13.86 years) who provided data at baseline, with 76% of these providing data at post-test and 75% at follow-up. Sustained changes at follow-up were found for: number of adults thought to be helpful, some components of stigma, recognition of anxiety disorder, and quality of support provided to a peer. However, there was an unexpected decline in willingness to tell others about a mental health problem. Most students found the information presented to be new, easy to understand, and useful.ConclusionsThe tMHFA 7–9 training course produced some positive changes that were sustained over 3 months. However, the changes were not as strong as previously found for older high school students, suggesting the need for further refinement of the course.

LG expands programming targeting teen mental health

Nonprofit Business AdvisorVolume 2019, Issue 361 p. 3-3 Articles LG expands programming targeting teen mental health First published: 16 September 2019 https://doi.org/10.1002/nba.30660Read the full textAboutPDF ToolsRequest permissionExport citationAdd to favoritesTrack citation ShareShare Give accessShare full text accessShare full-text accessPlease review our Terms and Conditions of Use and check box below to share full-text version of article.I have read and accept the Wiley Online Library Terms and Conditions of UseShareable LinkUse the link below to share a full-text version of this article with your friends and colleagues. Learn more.Copy URL Share a linkShare onEmailFacebookTwitterLinked InRedditWechat No abstract is available for this article. Volume2019, Issue361October 2019Pages 3-3 RelatedInformation

Teen Mental Health First Aid expands to 20 additional schools

The National Council for Behavioral Health and Lady Gaga, co‐founder of the Born This Way Foundation, on June 11 announced that teen Mental Health First Aid (tMHFA), a new peer‐to‐peer program to support young people during a time of crisis, is expanding to 20 additional high schools.

Illinois embarks on teen Mental Health First Aid pilot

Sophomores in a southwest Chicago suburb high school are preparing to join a select few other high school students from schools around the country to participate in this country's first teen Mental Health First Aid pilot program.

Two Virginia high schools prepare for Teen Mental Health First Aid

Governor Ralph Northam announced April 2 that the National Council on Behavioral Health and Lady Gaga's Born This Way Foundation have selected two Virginia high schools to take part in the Teen Mental Health First Aid (MHFA) pilot program. Freedom High School in Chantilly and Charlottesville High School will be among eight schools in the country to pilot Teen MHFA this spring, according to a press release from Gov. Northam's office. Teen MHFA is an in‐person training designed for high school students to learn about mental illnesses and addictions and help them identify and respond to friends who may be developing a mental health or substance use problem. Similar to how people learn CPR, students learn a five‐step action plan to help their friends who may be facing a mental health problem or crisis, such as suicide. The program aims to teach teens to recognize when a friend is showing signs of a mental health issue or crisis, such as suicidal thoughts, and trains them on how to respond and get help.

A Sports-Based Youth Development Program, Teen Mental Health, and Physical Fitness: An RCT.

To assess the effectiveness of a positive youth development (PYD)-based sports mentorship program on the physical and mental well-being of adolescents recruited in a community setting. This is a randomized controlled trial in which we recruited students from 12 secondary schools in Hong Kong, China. Participants were randomly assigned in a 1:1 ratio to an intervention or a control arm after stratification for school from October 2013 to June 2014. Participants were not blinded to allocation because of the nature of the intervention. Students in the intervention arm received an after-school, PYD-based sports mentorship for 18 weeks. Each weekly session lasted 90 minutes. Students in the control arm received exclusive access to a health education Web site. Six hundred and sixty-four students (mean age 12.3 years [SD 0.76]; 386 girls [58.1%]) completed baseline and postintervention assessments. The intervention improved students' mental well-being (Cohen's d, 0.25; 95% confidence interval [CI], 0.10 to 0.40; P = .001), self-efficacy (Cohen's d, 0.22; 95% CI, 0.07 to 0.37; P = .01), resilience (Cohen's d, 0.19; 95% CI, 0.03 to 0.34; P = .02), physical fitness (flexibility [Cohen's d, 0.28; 95% CI, 0.13 to 0.43; P = .02], lower limb muscle strength [Cohen's d, 0.18; 95% CI, 0.03 to 0.33; P = .03], and dynamic balance [Cohen's d, 0.21; 95% CI, 0.06 to 0.37; P = .01]), and physical activity levels (Cohen's d, 0.39; 95% CI, 0.24 to 0.55; P < .0001). The intervention did not significantly improve physical well-being (Cohen's d, -0.01; 95% CI, -0.17 to 0.14; P = .86), BMI z scores (Cohen's d, -0.03; 95% CI, -0.18 to 0.12; P = .69), body fat proportion (Cohen's d, -0.15; 95% CI, -0.31 to 0.00; P = .051), and social connectedness (Cohen's d, -0.03; 95% CI, -0.18 to 0.12; P = .72). A PYD-based sports mentorship intervention improved healthy adolescents' mental well-being, psychological assets, physical fitness, and physical activity levels.

Decisive Help for Teen Mental Health Care

Decisive Help for Teen Mental Health Care