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This review aimed to synthesise studies examining the presence of gender stereotypes and biases expressed by young children aged 3-5 years, with a focus on informing early childhood settings. Our review located only 21 separate studies in 16 articles, highlighting a dearth of research in this area. There was substantial heterogeneity in the operationalisation of gender stereotypes and biases. There was evidence that children in early childhood are aware of, and can apply, gender stereotypes. There was also evidence of the malleability of these biases and stereotypes. The social and cultural environment plays a large role in defining the cues by which young children classify on the basis of gender. Research is needed to understand ways to support the establishment of equitable gender attitudes amongst children in early childhood, as this could deliver important benefits to individuals across their lifetime, as well as society more broadly.

Background: We conducted a cluster randomized trial of a workplace mental health intervention in an Australian police department. The intervention was co‐designed and co‐implemented with the police department. Intervention elements included tailored mental health literacy training for all members of participating police stations, and a leadership development and coaching program for station leaders. This study presents the results of a mixed‐methods implementation evaluation of the trial. Methods: Descriptive quantitative analyses characterized the extent of participation in intervention activities, complemented by a qualitative descriptive analysis of transcripts of 60 semistructured interviews with 53 persons and research team field notes. Results: Participation rates in the multicomponent leadership development activities were highly variable, ranging from <10% to approximately 60% across stations. Approximately 50% of leaders and <50% of troops completed the mental health literacy training component of the intervention. Barriers to implementation included rostering challenges, high staff turnover and changes, competing work commitments, staff shortages, limited internal personnel resources to deliver the mental health literacy training, organizational cynicism, confidentiality concerns, and limited communication about the intervention by station command or station champions. Facilitators of participation were also identified, including perceived need for and benefits of the intervention, engagement at various levels, the research team's ability to create buy‐in and manage stakeholder relationships, and the use of external, credible leadership development coaches. Conclusions: Implementation fell far short of expectations. The identified barriers and facilitators should be considered in the design and implementation of similar workplace mental health interventions. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Objective: To assess depression literacy, help-seeking and help-offering to others in members of the police force in the state of Victoria, Australia. Methods: All staff in police stations involved in a cluster randomised controlled trial of an integrated workplace mental health intervention were invited to participate. Survey questions covered sociodemographic and employment information, recognition of depression in a vignette, stigma, treatment beliefs, willingness to assist co-workers with mental health problems, help-giving and help-seeking behaviours, and intentions to seek help. Using the baseline dataset associated with the trial, the paper presents a descriptive analysis of mental health literacy and helping behaviours, comparing police station leaders and lower ranks. Results: Respondents were 806 staff, comprising 618 lower-ranked staff and 188 leaders. Almost 84% of respondents were able to correctly label the problem described in the vignette. Among those who had helped someone with a mental health problem, both lower ranks and leaders most commonly reported ‘talking to the person’ although leaders were more likely to facilitate professional help. Leaders’ willingness to assist the person and confidence in doing so was very high, and over 80% of leaders appropriately rated police psychologists, general practitioners, psychologists, talking to a peer and contacting welfare as helpful. However, among both leaders and lower ranks with mental health problems, the proportion of those unlikely to seek professional help was greater than those who were likely to seek it. Conclusion: Knowledge about evidence-based interventions for depression was lower in this police sample than surveys in the general population, pointing to the need for education and training to improve mental health literacy. Such education should also aim to overcome barriers to professional help-seeking. Interventions that aim to improve mental health literacy and help-seeking behaviour appear to be suitable targets for better protecting police member mental health. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Objectives: To report age-standardised rates and methods of suicide by health professionals, and to compare these with suicide rates for other occupations.Study Design: Retrospective mortality study.Setting, Participants: All intentional self-harm cases recorded by the National Coronial Information System during the period 2001-2012 were initially included. Cases were excluded if the person was unemployed at the time of death, if their employment status was unknown or occupational information was missing, or if they were under 20 years of age at the time of death. Suicide rates were calculated using Australian Bureau of Statistics population-level data from the 2006 census.Main Outcome Measures: Suicide rates and method of suicide by occupational group.Results: Suicide rates for female health professionals were higher than for women in other occupations (medical practitioners: incidence rate ratio [IRR], 2.52; 95% CI, 1.55-4.09; P < 0.001; nurses and midwives: IRR, 2.65; 95% CI, 2.22-3.15; P < 0.001). Suicide rates for male medical practitioners were not significantly higher than for other occupations, but the suicide rate for male nurses and midwives was significantly higher than for men working outside the health professions (IRR, 1.50; 95% CI 1.12-2.01; P = 0.006). The suicide rate for health professionals with ready access to prescription medications was higher than for those in health professions without such access or in non-health professional occupations. The most frequent method of suicide used by health professionals was self-poisoning.Conclusion: Our results indicate the need for targeted prevention of suicide by health professionals. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Background: In this paper, we present the protocol for a cluster-randomised trial to evaluate the implementation and effectiveness of a workplace mental health intervention in the state-wide police department of the southeastern Australian state of Victoria. n. The primary aims of the intervention are to improve psychosocial working conditions and mental health literacy, and secondarily to improve mental health and organisational outcomes. Methods/design: The intervention was designed collaboratively with Victoria Police based on a mixed methods pilot study, and combines multi-session leadership coaching for the senior officers within stations (e.g., Sergeants, Senior Sergeants) with tailored mental health literacy training for lower and upper ranks. Intervention effectiveness will be evaluated using a two-arm cluster-randomised trial design, with 12 police stations randomly assigned to the intervention and 12 to the non-intervention/usual care control condition. Data will be collected from all police members in each station (estimated at >20 per station). Psychosocial working conditions (e.g., supervisory support, job control, job demands), mental health literacy (e.g., knowledge, confidence in assisting someone who may have a mental health problem), and mental health will be assessed using validated measures. Organisational outcomes will include organisational depression disclosure norms, organisational cynicism, and station-level sickness absence rates. The trial will be conducted following CONSORT guidelines. Identifying data will not be collected in order to protect participant privacy and to optimise participation, hence changes in primary and secondary outcomes will be assessed using a two-sample t-test comparing summary measures by arm, with weighting by cluster size. Discussion: This intervention is novel in its integration of stressor-reduction and mental health literacy-enhancing strategies. Effectiveness will be rigorously evaluated, and if positive results are observed, the intervention will be adapted across Victoria Police (total employees ~16,500) as well as possibly in other policing contexts, both nationally and internationally. Trial registration: Current Controlled Trials: ISRCTN82041334. Registered 24th July, 2014. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Objective: To examine whether positive mental health (PMH)—a positively focused well-being construct—moderates the job stress-distress relationship. Methods: Longitudinal regression was used to test two waves of matched, population-level data from a sample of older, working Australian adults (n = 3291) to see whether PMH modified the relationship between work stress and later psychological distress. Results: Time 1 work stress was positively associated with distress at both time points. Positive mental health was negatively associated with work stress at both time points. Positive mental health modified the impact of work stress on psychological distress. This effect only occurred for those with the highest levels of PMH. Conclusions: Positive mental health may help protect workers from the effect of workplace stress but only in a small proportion of the population. Therefore, to improve workplace mental health, workplaces need to both prevent stress and promote PMH. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Background Mental health problems are prevalent and costly in working populations. Workplace interventions to address common mental health problems have evolved relatively independently along three main threads or disciplinary traditions: medicine, public health, and psychology. In this Debate piece, we argue that these three threads need to be integrated to optimise the prevention of mental health problems in working populations. Discussion To realise the greatest population mental health benefits, workplace mental health intervention needs to comprehensively 1) protect mental health by reducing work-related risk factors for mental health problems; 2) promote mental health by developing the positive aspects of work as well as worker strengths and positive capacities; and 3) address mental health problems among working people regardless of cause. We outline the evidence supporting such an integrated intervention approach and consider the research agenda and policy developments needed to move towards this goal, and propose the notion of integrated workplace mental health literacy. Summary An integrated approach to workplace mental health combines the strengths of medicine, public health, and psychology, and has the potential to optimise both the prevention and management of mental health problems in the workplace. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]