Introduction
It is increasingly accepted that young people need to be centrally involved in research on issues that affect them. The aim of this study was to explore young people's perceptions of the ...benefits for them of being involved in mental health research and the processes that enabled these benefits.
Methods
Qualitative interviews were conducted by co‐researchers (young people with lived experience and/or interest in mental health) with 13 young people (aged 13–24 years) who had experience of being involved in mental health research when they were between 11 and 16 years of age. Reflective thematic analysis was used to identify important aspects of young people's experiences.
Results
Four main themes were identified: (1) opportunity to have a meaningful impact, (2) opportunity to be part of a supportive community, (3) opportunity to learn and grow and (4) increasing opportunities for young people.
Conclusion
This study highlights young people's experiences of being involved in mental health research and identifies ways in which researchers can ensure that involvement opportunities bring benefits to both the young people and the research.
Patient or Public Contribution
This research was a response to issues raised by young people involved in research. The project was supported by co‐researchers throughout, including design, data collection, analysis and write‐up.
BackgroundYoung people’s advisory groups (YPAGs) for research are comprised of children or adolescents who work with researchers to shape different stages of the research process. Their involvement ...is expected to ensure studies better reflect the preferences and needs of targeted youth populations. However, despite their increasing use in health research, there is little systematic evidence on the methods and impacts associated with YPAGs.MethodTo address this gap, we conducted a scoping review of YPAGs in youth-focused health studies. We systematically searched MEDLINE for empirical studies in populations between 12 years and 18 years of age published in 2019. If a potential YPAG was identified, authors were contacted for additional information about the activities and level of involvement of the YPAG.FindingsOf all studies that collected primary data from persons aged 12–18 years, only 21 studies reported using youth advice during their research. This represents less than 1% of all published empirical child and adolescent studies. There was variation in the type of research activity undertaken by YPAGs and their level of involvement. Most studies involved YPAGs in co-production of research design and/or in dissemination activities. The majority of authors that responded were positive about the impact of YPAGs.InterpretationRecommendations for consistent reporting of YPAG involvement in empirical studies include reporting on the match between YPAG and study populations, frequency/format of meetings, and the nature and level of involvement.
Feedback is typically incorporated in word learning paradigms, in both research studies and commercial language learning apps. While the common-sense view is that feedback is helpful during learning, ...relatively little empirical evidence exists about the role of feedback in spoken vocabulary learning. Some work has suggested that long-term word learning is not enhanced by the presence of feedback, and that words are best learned implicitly. It is also plausible that feedback might have differential effects when learners focus on learning semantic facts, or when they focus on learning a new phonological sequence of sounds. In this study, we assess how providing evaluative (right/wrong) feedback on a spoken response influences two different components of vocabulary learning, the learning of a new phonological form, and the learning of a semantic property of the phonological form. We find that receiving evaluative feedback improves retention of phonological forms, but not of semantic facts.
Partnerships between school staff and mental health professionals have the potential to improve access to mental health support for students, but uncertainty remains regarding whether and how they ...work in practice. We report on two pilot projects aimed at understanding the implementation drivers of tailored strategies for supporting and engaging front-line school staff in student mental health. The first project provided regular, accessible mental health professionals with whom school staff could meet and discuss individual or systemic mental health concerns (a school 'InReach' service), and the other offered a short skills training programme on commonly used psychotherapeutic techniques (the School Mental Health Toolbox; SMHT). The findings from the activity of 15 InReach workers over 3 years and 105 individuals who attended the SMHT training demonstrate that school staff made good use of these services. The InReach workers reported more than 1200 activities in schools (notably in providing specialist advice and support, especially for anxiety and emotional difficulties), whilst most SMHT training attendees reported the utilisation of the tools (in particular, supporting better sleep and relaxation techniques). The measures of acceptability and the possible impacts of the two services were also positive. These pilot studies suggest that investment into partnerships at the interface of education and mental health services can improve the availability of mental health support to students.
Behavioral parenting programs, such as Incredible Years (IY), reduce conduct problems in children. However, conduct problems encompass many different behaviors, and little is known about the effects ...of parenting programs on specific aspects of children’s conduct problems, such as children’s relationships with others. The aim of this study was to examine, for the first time, the effects of the IY parenting program on children’s levels of conflict with their parents, siblings, and peers. We used individual participant-level data pooled across 12 randomized trials in Europe, comprising a total of 1,409 families: child aged 1–11 years ( M = 5.53 years, SD = 1.56) and 61% male, 60% low-income families, and 30% from an ethnic minority. Multilevel models were used to explore the effects of IY on children’s conflict with parents, siblings, and peers. The IY program reduced children’s conflict with their parents (β = −.21), but there were no main effects of the program on conflict with siblings or peers. Moderation analyses showed that IY reduced conflict in sibling relationships for the 22% of families with the most severe sibling conflict at baseline. This suggests that high-quality behavioral parenting programs, such as IY, can effectively reduce children’s conflict within the home (i.e., with parents and siblings), especially when initial levels of sibling conflict are high, but do not have broader benefits on children’s interpersonal conflict outside of the home (i.e., with peers). (PsycInfo Database Record (c) 2024 APA, all rights reserved) (Source: journal abstract)
BackgroundPreventing mental health problems in early adolescence is a priority. School-based mindfulness training (SBMT) is an approach with mixed evidence.ObjectivesTo explore for whom SBMT ...does/does not work and what influences outcomes.MethodsThe My Resilience in Adolescence was a parallel-group, cluster randomised controlled trial (K=84 secondary schools; n=8376 students, age: 11–13) recruiting schools that provided standard social–emotional learning. Schools were randomised 1:1 to continue this provision (control/teaching as usual (TAU)), and/or to offer SBMT (‘.b’ (intervention)). Risk of depression, social–emotional–behavioural functioning and well-being were measured at baseline, preintervention, post intervention and 1 year follow-up. Hypothesised moderators, implementation factors and mediators were analysed using mixed effects linear regressions, instrumental variable methods and path analysis.FindingsSBMT versus TAU resulted in worse scores on risk of depression and well-being in students at risk of mental health problems both at post intervention and 1-year follow-up, but differences were small and not clinically relevant. Higher dose and reach were associated with worse social–emotional–behavioural functioning at postintervention. No implementation factors were associated with outcomes at 1-year follow-up. Pregains−postgains in mindfulness skills and executive function predicted better outcomes at 1-year follow-up, but the SBMT was unsuccessful to teach these skills with clinical relevance.SBMT as delivered in this trial is not indicated as a universal intervention. Moreover, it may be contraindicated for students with existing/emerging mental health symptoms.Clinical implicationsUniversal SBMT is not recommended in this format in early adolescence. Future research should explore social−emotional learning programmes adapted to the unique needs of young people.
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