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Background: Significant disparities in utilization of mental health services exist among immigrant and Canadian-born populations. These gaps may be associated with a 'double stigma' – stigma related to being from a racialized background exacerbated by mental health stigma. Immigrant young adults may be particularly susceptible to this phenomenon, given developmental and social transitions from adolescence to adulthood. Aims: To investigate the joint effects of racial microaggression and mental health stigma on mental health and service use among first-generation immigrant and Canadian-born university students. Method: We conducted an online cross-sectional study among first-generation immigrant and Canadian-born university students (N = 1,280, M age = 19.10, SD = 1.50). Results: Despite no differences in anxiety or depression symptoms, first-generation (foreign-born) immigrants were less likely to have received therapy and to have taken medication for mental health issues compared to Canadian-born participants. First-generation immigrants also reported experiencing higher levels of racial microaggression and stigma toward service use. Results suggest the presence of a double stigma, mental health stigma and racial microaggression, each explained significant additional variance in symptoms of anxiety and depression and medication use. No effects of double stigma for therapy use were found – while higher mental health stigma predicted lower use of therapy, racial microaggression did not predict unique variance in therapy use. Conclusions: Our findings highlight the joint effects of racial microaggression and stigma toward mental health and service as barriers to help-seeking among immigrant young adults. Mental health intervention and outreach programmes should target overt and covert forms of racial discrimination while incorporating culturally sensitive anti-stigma approaches to help reduce disparities in mental health service use among immigrants in Canada. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

School transitions are common educational experiences for children and adolescents and many of them worry about being bullied during this type of major life‐changing point. In a sample of 701 Canadians assessed yearly from grade 5 (age 10) to grade 12 (age 18), we examined heterogeneous patterns of bullying involvement while statistically accounting for the transition into high school. Gender differences were also examined. Results indicated that on average, bullying victimization declined over time with a significant drop noted between grade 8 and grade 9 (the transition into high school), with few differences between girls and boys. Bullying perpetration also declined for most students (no gender differences), with a notable drop found at the transition into high school. However, for a subset of adolescents, the transition into high school was accompanied by an increase in bullying perpetration. These varied experiences highlight the need to model heterogeneity when examining the impact of school transitions on bullying, a neglected focus of inquiry to date. Our results suggest that moving into high school is beneficial for most adolescents involved in bullying, but not for all. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Concerns have been raised about the loneliness and well-being of children and adolescents during the COVID-19 pandemic. The extent to which the ongoing pandemic has impacted loneliness and the association between loneliness and well-being is unclear. Therefore, a systematic review of empirical studies on the COVID-19 pandemic was conducted to examine the (1) prevalence of loneliness in children and adolescents, (2) associations between loneliness and indicators of well-being, and (3) moderators of these associations. Five databases (MEDLINE, Embase, PsycInfo, Web of Science, ERIC) were searched from 1 January 2020 to 28 June 2022 and 41 studies met our inclusion criteria (cross-sectional: n = 30; longitudinal: n = 11; registered on PROSPERO: CRD42022337252). Cross-sectional prevalence rates of pandemic loneliness varied, with some finding that over half of children and adolescents experienced at least moderate levels of loneliness. Longitudinal results reflected significant mean increases in loneliness compared to pre-pandemic levels. Cross-sectional results indicated that higher levels of loneliness were significantly associated with poorer well-being, including higher depression symptoms, anxiety symptoms, gaming addiction, and sleep problems. Longitudinal associations between loneliness and well-being were more complex than cross-sectional associations, varying by assessment timing and factors in the statistical analyses. There was limited diversity in study designs and samples, preventing a thorough examination of moderating characteristics. Findings highlight a broader challenge with child and adolescent well-being that predates the pandemic and the need for future research to examine underrepresented populations across multiple timepoints. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

First-generation refugee children often experience pre- and post-migration adversity and display high levels of mental health/wellbeing difficulties, but to date, research has not examined the impact of such factors on refugee children's L2 acquisition. Accordingly, this study examined the influence of externalizing and internalizing problem behaviours (wellbeing), time in refugee camps and low socioeconomic status (SES) (adversity) on the English-L2 abilities of 117 Syrian refugee children (7–14 years) in their third year of residency in Canada. Wellbeing difficulties and adversity factors accounted for variance on L2 vocabulary, morphosyntax, listening comprehension and narrative production tasks, beyond the variance accounted for by age of L2 acquisition and length of L2 exposure. Specifically, externalizing problem behaviours, time in refugee camp, maternal education and maternal employment predicted variance in L2 abilities. It is concluded that refugee children could have influences on their L2 acquisition that are different from those of bilinguals with other backgrounds. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

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We examined students' perceptions of mattering during the pandemic in relation to in-person versus online learning in a sample of 6578 Canadian students in Grades 4–12. We found that elementary school students who attended school in-person reported mattering the most, followed by secondary school students who learned part-time in-person and the rest of the time online (blended learning group). The students who felt that they mattered the least were those who learned online full-time during the pandemic (elementary and secondary students). These results were not driven by a selection effect for school choice during the pandemic—our experimental design showed that students' perceptions of mattering did not differ by current learning modality when they were asked to reflect on their experiences before the pandemic even though some were also learning online full-time at the time they responded to our questions. No gender differences were found. As a validity check, we examined if mattering was correlated with school climate, as it has in past research. Results were similar in that a modest association between mattering and positive school climate was found in both experimental conditions. The results of this brief study show that in-person learning seems to help convey to students that they matter. This is important to know because students who feel like they matter are more protected, resilient, and engaged. Accordingly, mattering is a key educational indicator that ought to be considered when contemplating the merits of remote learning. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

High levels of distress in post-secondary students, alongside the real or perceived barriers to accessing services, highlight the need for evidence-based, accessible, and brief interventions for students such as mindfulness-based interventions (MBIs). This systematic review and meta-analysis seeks to determine the effectiveness of MBIs for mental health outcomes in post-secondary students. We searched OVID MEDLINE In-Process, EMBASE, CENTRAL, CINAHL, PsychInfo, World Health Organization International Clinical Trials Registry Platform, ClinicalTrials.gov, Google Scholar, Proquest Dissertations, and OpenGrey. When possible, data were pooled using a random-effects model. Effect estimates were reported as standardized mean differences (SMDs) and then back-transformed into common scales of measurement. This review includes 41 randomized controlled trials reported in 49 studies. When comparing to a passive control, MBIs appear to reduce symptoms of depression [SMD − 0.49 (95% CI − 0.68, − 0.30)], anxiety [SMD − 0.53 (95% CI − 0.78, − 0.29)], and perceived stress [SMD -0.39 (95% CI -0.50, -0.27)] post-intervention (low-quality evidence). These findings were similar for shorter compared to longer interventions, although mindfulness-based cognitive therapy appeared to be the most effective for depression and anxiety. This review found no differential effects of MBIs compared to active comparators for depressive symptoms, anxiety symptoms, or perceived stress (low-quality evidence). Overall, MBIs of at least 2 weeks in duration appear to be a better alternative than no intervention for students with symptoms of depression, anxiety, and perceived stress. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Background: A better understanding of factors contributing to the observed variability in estimates of test–retest reliability in published studies on standardized diagnostic interviews (SDI) is needed. The objectives of this systematic review and meta‐analysis were to estimate the pooled test–retest reliability for parent and youth assessments of seven common disorders, and to examine sources of between‐study heterogeneity in reliability. Methods: Following a systematic review of the literature, multilevel random effects meta‐analyses were used to analyse 202 reliability estimates (Cohen's kappa = ҡ) from 31 eligible studies and 5,369 assessments of 3,344 children and youth. Results: Pooled reliability was moderate at ҡ = .58 (CI 95% 0.53–0.63) and between‐study heterogeneity was substantial (Q = 2,063 (df = 201), p < .001 and I2 = 79%). In subgroup analysis, reliability varied across informants for specific types of psychiatric disorder (ҡ = .53–.69 for parent vs. ҡ = .39–.68 for youth) with estimates significantly higher for parents on attention deficit hyperactivity disorder, oppositional defiant disorder and the broad groupings of externalizing and any disorder. Reliability was also significantly higher in studies with indicators of poor or fair study methodology quality (sample size <50, retest interval <7 days). Conclusions: Our findings raise important questions about the meaningfulness of published evidence on the test–retest reliability of SDIs and the usefulness of these tools in both clinical and research contexts. Potential remedies include the introduction of standardized study and reporting requirements for reliability studies, and exploration of other approaches to assessing and classifying child and adolescent psychiatric disorder. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

We examined ethnic differences in bullying perpetration in order to assess whether ethnic group membership was associated with higher involvement among (1) nonimmigrant and immigrant youth; and (2) White and visible minority youth (i.e., Black, Hispanic, Asian, Indigenous, and Biracial). Fifty‐three studies (N = 740,176; 6‐18‐year‐olds) were included in the meta‐analysis. Results yielded very small and nonsignificant effect size differences across all group comparisons. Methodological moderator analyses indicated several differences across groups. Our findings provide initial support that the assessment of ethnicity as a descriptive variable is not sufficient to account for group differences in bullying perpetration. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Bullying in ethnically diverse schools varies as a function of the ethnic composition and degree of diversity in schools. Although Canada is highly multicultural, few researchers have focused on the role of context on ethnic majority and minority youths’ bullying involvement. In the present study, 11,649 European-Canadian/ethnic majority (77%) and non-European Canadian/ethnic minority (23%) students in Grade 4 to Grade 12 completed an online Safe Schools Survey on general, physical, verbal, social, and cyber bullying. Hierarchical Linear Modeling (HLM) analyses indicated significant interactions between the proportion of non-European Canadian children in a school (Level 2) and individual ethnicity (Level 1) across most types of bullying victimization. Non-European Canadian students experienced less peer victimization in schools with higher proportions of non-European Canadian students, but ethnic composition was not related to European Canadian students’ peer victimization. No differences in bullying perpetration were found as a function of school ethnic composition across groups. Our findings suggest that ethnic composition in Canadian schools may not be strongly associated with bullying perpetration and that a higher representation of other ethnic minority peers may act as a buffer against peer victimization. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Research on the prevalence of peer victimization across ethnicities indicates that no one group is consistently at higher risk. In the present two meta-analyses representing 692,548 children and adolescents (age 6-18 years), we examined ethnic group differences in peer victimization at school by including studies with (a) ethnic majority-minority group comparisons (k = 24), and (b) White and Black, Hispanic, Asian, and Aboriginal comparisons (k = 81). Methodological moderating effects (measure type, definition of bullying, publication type and year, age, and country) were examined in both analyses. Using Cohen's d, results indicated a null effect size for the ethnic majority-minority group comparison. Moderator analyses indicated that ethnic majority youth experienced more peer victimization than ethnic minorities in the US (d = .23). The analysis on multiple group comparisons between White and Black (d = .02), Hispanic (d = .08), Asian (d = .05), Aboriginal (d = -.02) and Biracial (d = -.05) groups indicated small effect sizes. Overall, results from the main and moderator analyses yielded small effects of ethnicity, suggesting that ethnicity assessed as a demographic variable is not an adequate indicator for addressing ethnic group differences in peer victimization. Although few notable differences were found between White and non-White groups regarding rates of peer victimization, certain societal and methodological limitations in the assessment of peer victimization may underestimate differences between ethnicities. Aggr. Behav. Aggr. Behav. 42:149-170, 2015. © 2014 Wiley Periodicals, Inc. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The aim of this study was to explore possible parent and peer influences on adolescents’ valuing of academics and intrinsic academic motivation in cultures varying in traditional emphasis on the family unit (Cuba, Canada, and Spain). Perceived parent and peer support, parents’ expectations, and valuing of academics significantly predicted adolescents’ valuing of education and motivation. Spanish adolescents were less motivated than members of the other ethnic groups. The Spanish participants also reported lower perceived parental expectations than Chinese Canadians and less perceived peer support than did Cubans and Chinese Canadians. Perceived social support from same- and opposite-sex friends predicted adolescents’ valuing of academics and intrinsic motivation most strongly in the Canadian sample. Cuban parents’ perceived valuing of academics predicted adolescents’ intrinsic academic motivation more strongly than in the other cultures sampled. [ABSTRACT FROM PUBLISHER]