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Refugee populations are often characterized by their high exposure to violence, which are tied to various challenges upon resettlement. This systematic review synthesizes the empirical literature related to violence exposure for refugees resettled in high-income countries and the impact of that exposure on mental health symptoms. The authors reviewed quantitative studies published from 2000 to 2018 and found 12 studies met criteria for inclusion. Studies were excluded if the study did not include a measured mental health outcome, if violence exposure was not measured and reported on distinctly from nonviolent exposures, if the sample did not include a refugee population, or if the relationship between violence exposure and mental health of refugees was not empirically examined. Overall, studies found that resettled refugee populations were more likely to have higher rates of violence exposure than comparison groups. This violence exposure was significantly related to higher mental health symptoms, including symptoms of depression, anxiety, and, most commonly reported, posttraumatic stress disorder. However, there is substantial heterogeneity in measurement of violence exposure, particularly in the use of author-created scales. The vast majority of included studies examined only exposure to violence prior to resettlement. The review shows significant evidence for the effect of violence prior to resettlement on mental health after resettlement and reveals a need for improved measurement and definitions of violence exposure at different time points for resettled refugee populations. Assessing current exposure to violence is an important step for effective intervention related to mental health dilemmas for refugee populations. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Copyright of Japanese Journal of Child & Adolescent Psychiatry is the property of Japanese Society for Child & Adolescent Psychiatry (Nihon Jido Seinen Seishin Igakkai) and its content may not be copied or emailed to multiple sites or posted to a listserv without the copyright holder's express written permission. However, users may print, download, or email articles for individual use. This abstract may be abridged. No warranty is given about the accuracy of the copy. Users should refer to the original published version of the material for the full abstract. (Copyright applies to all Abstracts.)

At present, there is no established cognitive behavioral therapy (CBT) for treating emotional disorders in Japanese children. Therefore, we introduced the Unified Protocol for Transdiagnostic Treatment of Emotional Disorders in Children (UP-C) in Japan and adapted it to the Japanese context. We then examined its feasibility and preliminary efficacy using a single-arm pretest, posttest, follow-up design. Seventeen Japanese children aged between 8 and 12 years (female n = 11; male n = 6; M = 10.06 ± 0.97 years) with a principal diagnosis of anxiety, obsessive-compulsive, or depressive disorders, and their parents were enrolled in the study. The primary outcome was the overall severity of emotional disorders as assessed by psychiatrists using the Clinical Global Impression-Severity Scale. Secondary outcomes included child- and parent-reported anxiety symptoms, depressive symptoms, and functional status. No severe adverse events were observed. The feasibility was confirmed by the low dropout proportion (11.76%), high attendance proportion (children: 95.6%; parents: 94.6%), and sufficient participant satisfaction. Linear mixed models (LMMs) showed that the overall severity of emotional disorders and child- and parent-reported anxiety symptoms improved from pre-treatment to post-treatment, and that these treatment effects were maintained during the 3-month follow-up period. Additionally, child- and parent-reported functional status improved from pre-treatment to the 3-month follow-up. In contrast, child-reported depressive symptoms improved from pre-treatment to follow-up, but there was no significant change in parent-reported depressive symptoms between pre-treatment and other time points. These findings demonstrate the feasibility and preliminary efficacy of the Japanese version of the UP-C, suggesting that future randomized controlled trials (RCTs) are warranted (Clinical trial registration: UMIN000026911). [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Substantial evidence supports the effective reduction of child behavior problems and increase of positive parenting skills in behavioral parent-training (BPT) programs; however, many of these treatments suffer from high rates of family termination after the first few sessions and low family adherence to treatment protocol (e.g., homework completion). The current study presents preliminary results of a larger randomized controlled trial of families randomly assigned to one of two conditions: incentivized Parent-Child Interaction Therapy (PCIT) (N = 34) and PCIT alone (N = 30). This study aimed to investigate the effectiveness of incentives in increasing families session attendance, session homework completion, and use of positive parenting skills as well as decreasing negative parenting practices and children's behavior problems in the first few treatment sessions. Data were analyzed using independent sample t-tests, analyses of variance, and Pearson correlations. Families in the incentive group received approximately five incentives (worth approximately $5–12 each) during treatment (M = 5.41, SD = 2.38) with the maximum of nine incentives possible for the duration of the study. Families receiving incentives were not significantly different from families in parent training alone on a number of adherence-related factors during the first five sessions. Although not significant (p > 0.05), the incentive group had proportionally fewer participants (14.7%) end services compared to the non-incentive group (26.7%). Paper homework completion and attendance were positively correlated with changes in positive parenting behaviors, suggesting that parental early engagement is an important factor in the therapeutic process of BPT programs. However, the use of small incentives may not be sufficient to enhance early treatment attendance when families are most likely to drop out of treatment. Highlights: To combat high rates of early treatment dropout, families in the study were randomized to receive incentives for adherence to treatment protocol. While not statistically significant, incentivized families were less likely to drop out of treatment than non-incentivized families. Families who received incentives were equally likely to attend treatment and complete homework assignments. Families in both treatment groups had similar parent and child outcomes in the first few treatment sessions. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Research reports that young people aged 10 to 24 years are reluctant to seek help for a mental health problem due to multiple factors and that intervention within this demographic is critical. The aim of this review was to critique the existing literature, using a systematic approach on how the type of helping relationship affects young people's help-seeking behavior, engagement, and maintenance in mental health care. Searches of nine databases produced 22 relevant articles of original research with young people aged 10 to 24 years for inclusion in this review. A thematic analysis identified three themes: (a) context of trust and confidentiality, (b) supportive rapport, and (c) collaborative approach to treatment. Findings indicate that researchers, practitioners, and policy makers need to prioritize the role of the helping relationship and its core components of trust and confidentiality, supportive rapport, and collaborative treatment, as essential in the provision of meaningful mental health care for young people. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Background: Parenting styles play a critical role in children's development, especially for those in families with a depressed parent. To date, no study has explored whether youth perceptions of parenting style are heterogeneous in families with a depressed parent or whether heterogeneous parenting styles are associated with children's internalizing symptoms. Methods: Participants were children aged 8–16 years who had a parent with major depressive disorder; they were enrolled through their parents, who were outpatients at two hospitals in Ningxia. Parenting styles were measured using the Parental Bonding Instrument. Youth depression and anxiety were measured using the Depression Self-Rating Scale for Children and the Screen for Child Anxiety-Related Emotional Disorders, respectively. We applied latent profile analysis to identify the subtypes of parenting styles with similar patterns. Differences between subtypes in relation to demographic variables and parenting style scores were calculated using one-way ANOVAs, Wilcoxon rank sum tests, and chi-squared tests. Bivariate logistic analyses were conducted to examine the associations between parental bonding subtypes and children's depression and anxiety. Results: Four parenting styles were identified through latent profile analysis: care-autonomy, overprotection-indifference, indifference, and undifferentiated parenting. Youth with care-autonomy parents had a lower risk of depression (OR: 0.16; 95% CI: 0.06–0.41) and anxiety (OR: 0.22; 95% CI: 0.10–0.48), while indifference parenting increased children's risk of depression (OR: 5.29; 95% CI: 1.30–21.54) more than undifferentiated parenting. Conclusions: Children with a depressed parent had heterogeneous perceptions of parenting styles. Mothers' and fathers' parenting styles were largely congruent. Care-autonomy parenting (high care and high autonomy) may decrease children's risk of depression, whereas indifference parenting (low care and autonomy) may increase their risk of depression. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Copyright of Japanese Journal of Developmental Psychology / Hattatsu Shinrigaku Kenkyū is the property of Japan Society of Developmental Psychology and its content may not be copied or emailed to multiple sites or posted to a listserv without the copyright holder's express written permission. However, users may print, download, or email articles for individual use. This abstract may be abridged. No warranty is given about the accuracy of the copy. Users should refer to the original published version of the material for the full abstract. (Copyright applies to all Abstracts.)

Almost 80 million people globally are forcibly displaced. A small number reach wealthy western countries and seek asylum. Over half are children. Wealthy reception countries have increasingly adopted restrictive reception practices including immigration detention. There is an expanding literature on the mental health impacts of immigration detention for adults, but less about children. This scoping review identified 22 studies of children detained by 6 countries (Australia, Canada, Hong Kong, Netherlands, the UK and the US) through searches of Medline, PsychINFO, Emcare, CINAHL and Scopus data bases for the period January 1992–May 2019. The results are presented thematically. There is quantitative data about the mental health of children and parents who are detained and qualitative evidence includes the words and drawings of detained children. The papers are predominantly small cross-sectional studies using mixed methodologies with convenience samples. Despite weaknesses in individual studies the review provides a rich and consistent picture of the experience and impact of immigration detention on children's wellbeing, parental mental health and parenting. Displaced children are exposed to peri-migration trauma and loss compounded by further adversity while held detained. There are high rates of distress, mental disorder, physical health and developmental problems in children aged from infancy to adolescence which persist after resettlement. Restrictive detention is a particularly adverse reception experience and children and parents should not be detained or separated for immigration purposes. The findings have implications for policy and practice. Clinicians and researchers have a role in advocacy for reception polices that support the wellbeing of accompanied and unaccompanied children who seek asylum. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Background: Spinal muscular atrophy (SMA) is a rare neurogenetic disease which involves multisystem dysfunctions such as respiratory, digestive, and motor disorders. Anxiety, depression and other psychological disorders often accompany severe chronic physical diseases. The aim of this study was to investigate the prevalence of anxiety and depression along with their influencing factors among school-age patients with SMA.Methods: We conducted a cross-sectional study on school-age SMA patients in China. Patients aged 8-18 years with a genetic diagnosis of 5qSMA were invited to answer a questionnaire composed of sociodemographic and clinical questions, then to complete the Screen for Child Anxiety-Related Emotional Disorders and Depression Self-Rating Scale for depression and anxiety level evaluation. At the end of the questionnaire, further questions assessed the subjective anxiety and subjective depression of patients' caregivers and their expectations for their child's future.Results: Complete data were available for 155 patients. The sample included 45.8% boys and 54.2% girls; 65.2% were type II, 27.1% were type III, and the remainder were type I SMA. Rates of anxiety and depression in these school-age SMA patients were 40.0% and 25.2%, respectively. Gender, age, and disease type were not associated with anxiety or depression, but respiratory system dysfunction, digestive system dysfunction, skeletal deformity, rehabilitation exercise, academic delay, specialized support from school, household income level, caregivers' subjective anxiety, and caregivers' expectations were significantly related to both anxiety and depression.Conclusions: There was a high prevalence of anxiety and depression in school-age SMA patients in China. Professional psychological care maybe included in the standard of care. These results also call for possible targets for intervention such as reducing complications, improving drug accessibility, retaining normal schooling, strengthening school support, and enhancing the ability of the caregivers of SMA patients to assist in the diagnosis and treatment of the disease, so improving the mental health of SMA patients. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The aim of this study is to examine the association between maternal adverse childhood experiences (ACEs) and mental health problems in adolescent offspring. Data were obtained from the population-based Kochi Child Health Impact of Living Difficulty (K-CHILD) study in 2016, and participants were 10,810 children in the fifth grade (3,144 pairs), eighth grade (3,497 pairs), and eleventh grade (4,169 pairs) living in Kochi Prefecture, Japan. Mothers of participating children were asked about their ACEs, childhood social economic status, current mental and physical health, current social economic status, positive parenting behaviors, child maltreatment, marital status, and child behavior problems using the Strength and Difficulty Questionnaire. Children reported their depressive symptoms using the Depression Self-Rating Scale. Children of mothers with a larger number of ACEs showed higher levels of behavior problems (p for trend <.001) and depressive symptoms (p for trend <.001), adjusting for potential confounders. In particular, maternal psychological distress mediated the association between maternal ACEs and child mental health. The adverse effects of maternal ACEs may have a direct intergenerational impact on behavior problems and depressive symptoms in adolescent offspring. Further studies to elucidate possible mediators are needed. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Patient navigation is a model of care that aims to improve access to care by reducing the complexity of navigating health, education, and social services across the continuum of care and care settings. Little is known about the processes that facilitate or impede the implementation of patient navigation programs (PNPs). We conducted a scoping review to identify and summarize the current state of knowledge regarding the implementation and outcomes of existing implemented PNPs. We employed a 6-stage scoping review framework to identify and review eligible articles. Sixty-articles met the inclusion criteria (58 peer-reviewed and 2 grey literature). The Consolidated Framework for Implementation Research served as the theoretical framework during analysis to help extract factors relevant to implementation of navigator programs. Results of the scoping review are reported thematically. Influences on implementation were identified: (a) planning to ensure alignment with organizational need (b) funding (c) multidisciplinary engagement (d) establishing workflow (e) mechanisms for communication (f) stakeholders to encourage buy-in (g) appropriate caseload (h) in kind resources. PNPs improve the experiences of patients and families. The findings of this scoping review provides implementation considerations of PNPs across global care settings. Strategies for overcoming pragmatic and logistical issues must be developed for optimal implementation. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

We examined the association of mental health problems with preventive behavior and caregivers' anxiety in children with neurodevelopmental disorders (NDD) and their caregivers during the coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) pandemic. Data were obtained from 227 pairs of children with NDD and their caregivers in a clinic in Fukui Prefecture, Japan, from October 1 to December 31, 2020. During this period, the activities of children and caregivers were not strongly restricted by the public system. Caregivers' anxiety about children's activities was positively associated with caregivers' and children's fears of COVID-19 and children's depressive symptoms. Children's preventive behavior was negatively associated with children's depressive symptoms. These findings suggested that caregivers' fear of COVID-19 stemmed from worry about the relationship between children's activity and COVID-19 infection, and children might have reflected caregivers' expressions of concern. In schools and clinics, practitioners educate children on how to engage in preventive behavior against COVID-19. Our results support the effectiveness of such practices in mitigating mental health problems in children with NDD. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Purpose: This study aimed to provide a summary of the measures to assess narcoleptic symptoms or complications in pediatric narcolepsy patients. Methods: We searched in the National Center for Biotechnology Information (NCBI) for measures of narcoleptic symptoms for pediatric patients. Further review was conducted if relevant questionnaires or information were mentioned. Results: There were only two narcolepsy-specific questionnaires, the narcolepsy severity scale and Ullanlinna Narcolepsy Scale, neither of them was developed or validated in the pediatric population. For cataplexy, all the measures were study-specific diaries and were not validated questionnaires. For excessive daytime sleepiness, the Epworth Sleepiness Scale was most frequently used to measure excessive daytime sleepiness in children. For nighttime sleep, the Children's Sleep Habits Questionnaire was most frequently used. For depression, the Children Depression Inventory was the most frequently used. For attention-deficit/hyperactivity disorder, the Child Behavior Checklist was the most frequently used. For quality of life, KIDSCREEN was most frequently used. Conclusions: At present, there is a lack of disease-specific and validated questionnaires for pediatric narcoleptic patients. This need can be met by modifying and adjusting the existing adult questionnaires and developing new questionnaires for pediatric narcoleptic patients. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Research examining trauma, memory, and mental health among refugee and asylum-seeking people has increased in recent years. We systematically reviewed empirical work focusing on the link between autobiographical memory and mental health among these populations. The review protocol was registered with PROSPERO (CRD42018095888). Six major databases were searched in August-2020 with no time limit for publication. Following PRISMA Statement guidelines, 22 articles reporting ten quantitative, nine qualitative, and three mixed-method studies were selected from 254 articles identified in the initial search. A basic convergent and qualitative meta-integration technique was employed for data extraction. Four recurrent themes were extracted: (1) memory activation method, (2) memory features, (3) memory content, and (4) refugee mental health. Theme 1 illustrates that narrative interviews, important event recall, and cue word methods were used in most studies. Theme 2 highlights that memories of refugee people were often less specific, inconsistent, and negative-focused. Retrieval failure was also common among these people. Theme 3 reveals that refugee and asylum-seeking people frequently discussed their abandoned identities, lost resources, injustices, ongoing sufferings, and pointless futures. Finally, theme 4 identifies the prevalence of various mental health conditions like Post-traumatic Stress Disorder, depression, helplessness, and anger among these people. The results are discussed in the context of the current autobiographical memory and mental health theories, considering refugee-specific experiences in the asylum process and refugee status. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Copyright of Japanese Journal of Developmental Psychology / Hattatsu Shinrigaku Kenkyū is the property of Japan Society of Developmental Psychology and its content may not be copied or emailed to multiple sites or posted to a listserv without the copyright holder's express written permission. However, users may print, download, or email articles for individual use. This abstract may be abridged. No warranty is given about the accuracy of the copy. Users should refer to the original published version of the material for the full abstract. (Copyright applies to all Abstracts.)

Copyright of Japanese Journal of Developmental Psychology / Hattatsu Shinrigaku Kenkyū is the property of Japan Society of Developmental Psychology and its content may not be copied or emailed to multiple sites or posted to a listserv without the copyright holder's express written permission. However, users may print, download, or email articles for individual use. This abstract may be abridged. No warranty is given about the accuracy of the copy. Users should refer to the original published version of the material for the full abstract. (Copyright applies to all Abstracts.)

BACKGROUND: The long-term separation of parents and children as well as the incomplete family structure affect the mental health development of left-behind children and the formation of healthy personality, good interpersonal relationships and positive coping styles in adulthood. At present, there is insufficient empirical investigations on the mental resilience of left-behind children. OBJECTIVE: It is aimed to understand the mental health of left-behind children and explore the characteristics of mental resilience, self-esteem and emotional processing bias, as well as social coping styles. METHODS: The random sampling method is used to select the left-behind children as the research subject. The general demographic information questionnaire, RSCA (Resilience Scale for Chinese Adolescent), emotional self-rating scale, SES (Self-Esteem Scale), and coping style questionnaire are used for the survey. Also, the experiments on cognitive processing bias effects of self-esteem and emotion are further carried out. RESULTS: There are differences in demographic variables in mental resilience, self-esteem level, emotional level, and social coping styles. The low mental resilience group shows a processing bias towards low praise words, while the high mental resilience group shows a processing bias towards high praise words. At a low level of self-esteem, there is an interaction between mental resilience and self-esteem on low praise words. Mental resilience has a significant effect on the cognitive processing bias of emotion. Under the induction of positive emotions, the high mental resilience group responds significantly more slowly to the negative words than the low mental resilience group. Under the induction of negative emotions, the high mental resilience group responds significantly faster to the negative words than the low mental resilience group. CONCLUSIONS: Promoting the mental health education of left-behind children can start from enhancing positive emotions, reducing negative emotions, developing high self-esteem, and improving mature coping styles. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Copyright of Praxis der Kinderpsychologie und Kinderpsychiatrie is the property of Vandenhoeck & Ruprecht GmbH & Co. KG and its content may not be copied or emailed to multiple sites or posted to a listserv without the copyright holder's express written permission. However, users may print, download, or email articles for individual use. This abstract may be abridged. No warranty is given about the accuracy of the copy. Users should refer to the original published version of the material for the full abstract. (Copyright applies to all Abstracts.)

Different types of specific anxiety symptoms commonly co-occur but also display distinct developmental trajectories over time in children and adolescents. Nevertheless, little is known about the co-developmental trajectories of specific anxiety symptoms among youth during the transition into adolescence and how identified trajectories are associated with important psychological and academic outcomes. This study thus aimed to determine the (a) heterogeneous co-developmental trajectories of five specific anxiety symptoms (generalized anxiety, separation anxiety, social anxiety, school anxiety, and panic disorder) from middle childhood to early adolescence, and (b) associations between the identified, distinct trajectories and youth's psychological well-being and academic achievement. A total of 715 Chinese elementary school students (45.6% girls, Mage = 8.96, SD = 0.76) completed measures on six occasions across three years, using 6-month intervals. Parallel process latent class growth modeling revealed five distinct anxiety trajectory groups: "congruent-low" (49.8%), "moderately low with predominant social anxiety" (18.5%), "moderately low with predominant school anxiety" (12.6%), "moderately high with predominant generalized and social anxiety" (8.6%), and "congruent-high" (10.5%). The lowest psychological well-being and academic achievement were observed for youth who persistently experienced the co-occurrence of two or more specific anxiety symptoms, followed by those who persistently experienced one predominant anxiety symptom, and finally, youth who persistently experienced low levels of all five specific anxiety symptoms. The identification of five heterogeneous groups with differential outcomes highlights the importance of individual differences considerations in understanding the co-developmental patterns of specific anxiety symptoms from middle childhood to early adolescence and the need for more sophisticated intervention programs tailored to members of specific groups to promote optimal psychological well-being and academic success. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Background: Epilepsy, the most common neurological disorder in children, may present with many psychiatric comorbidities, the most common of which is depression. Aim of the Work: We evaluated the frequency of depressive symptoms in epileptic children, with regard to the possible association between depression and their demographic data or seizure-related variables. Patients and Methods: This cohort study was conducted on 80 children (6– 13 years old) diagnosed as idiopathic epilepsy and were regularly recruiting the pediatric neurology clinic at Minya University Children Hospital. The Structured Birleson Depression Scale Questionnaire was used for assessment of presence of depressive symptoms, and Quality Of Life in Epilepsy (QOLIE-31) score was used to assess quality of life in those patients. Results: Depressive symptoms were found in 37.5% of enrolled patients. There were statistically significant differences between the patients with depressive symptoms and the other group regarding age (p=0.001), residence (p=0.006) and past history of mood disorders (p=0.03). Sleep disturbance was the highest predictor of depression in cases with depressive symptoms, detected in 90% of cases, followed by appetite disturbance in 86.6% of cases, while delusions and hallucinations were the lowest, detected in only 10% of cases. Both duration of epilepsy and frequency of seizures were significantly higher in cases with depressive symptoms than the other group (p=0.001) for both. QOLIE score was significantly lower in cases with depressive symptoms than the other group (p= 0.01 for all). Conclusion: Depressive symptoms are common in epileptic children, and it is often challenging and underestimated. It should be screened during the management of such children. Early diagnosis and more comprehensive package of care for depression in epileptic children will enable them to have a better quality of life. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

In our prospective study, 168 adolescents exposed directly or indirectly to the same traumatic event—a fatal school bus accident—in which seven students were killed instantly, were assessed for post-traumatic stress, depression and grief symptoms at 2- and 18-months post-accident. Prevalence rates of likely PTSD and depression were noted across all types of physical proximity exposure: 77.6% and 48.1% respectively in the indirectly exposed group, 79.4% and 47.1% respectively in the directly in-the-area exposed group, and 77.8% and 42.1% respectively in the directly in-bus exposed group. One-fifth experienced high and unremitting levels of grief symptoms over time ("persistent grief"); 17% with initially high levels of grief symptoms showed a decrease at 18 months but were still within the low medium range ("towards recovery"); 39% with initially medium/high grief symptoms reported low levels of grief at the follow-up ("recovery"); and 23% of the participants experienced grief symptoms that remained persistently low ("resilient"). The absence of both PTSD and depression at 18 months predicted adjustment to loss, whereas the absence of depression at 18 months predicted a recovering course of grief. The findings highlight the impact of high levels of post-traumatic stress and depression symptoms on the long-term persistent grief outcome. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Although there is a vast literature on the concept of well‐being, there appears to be no consensus regarding its meaning. A clear conceptualization of adolescent well‐being is necessary as the foundation for interventions and research addressing this phenomenon. Adolescence is a transitional period characterized by rapid growth, gaining independence, and learning social skills as well as behaviours that lay the foundations for future well‐being. Therefore, the purpose of this paper was to analyse the concept of adolescent well‐being and identify its attributes, antecedents, and empirical referents based on the literature. The Walker and Avant (2019) method was used. Ninety‐four articles were included in the final review. The defining attributes of adolescent well‐being were identified as autonomy, connectedness, optimism and competency. The antecedents were grouped under internal and external factors. Internal factors included the behavioural, physical, psychological, and spiritual domains. External factors included the environmental, economic, education, leisure, social, and safety as well as security domains. For the adolescent to reach well‐being, all these domains must be present, albeit, the social domain was highly stressed. The consequences of adolescent well‐being included eudaimonia, having high resilience as well as low risk‐taking behaviours and delinquency. Empirical referents were discussed in terms of ways of measuring the defining attributes. Stemming from the eudaimonic perspective, to promote adolescent well‐being, care providers need to integrate in education, practice, and research the importance of establishing positive relations and connectedness, to enhance adolescent autonomy and optimism and assist them to grow into competent and self‐fulfilled beings. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Background: In this study, we examined psychometric properties of the Chinese version of the Resilience Scale (RS) and parenting-related factors associated with resilience among disaster-exposed adolescents. Methods: Eighteen months after the earthquake, a total of 1266 adolescents (43.4% male, mean age = 15.98; SD = 1.28) were assessed using the RS, the Post-traumatic Stress Disorder Self-Rating Scale, the Depression Self-rating Scale for Children, the Screen for Child Anxiety Related Emotional Disorders, and Parental Bonding Instrument. Results: Through exploratory factor analyses (EFAs) and parallel analysis, responses were characterized into a 3-factor structure: personal competence, meaningfulness, and acceptance of self and life. Cronbach's alpha coefficient for the RS was 0.89 and the test-retest reliability coefficient was 0.72. In terms of predictive validity, resilience was found to be a significant predictor for PTSD, depression, and anxiety. Multiple regression analysis showed that maternal parenting styles were significant predictors of resilience after adjusting for gender, age, sibling number, and earthquake experiences. Conclusions: The Chinese version of RS is a reliable and valid tool for assessing resilience among adolescent survivors after disasters. The implications for research and resilience-oriented interventions were also discussed. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The burden of adolescent depression is high in low- and middle-income countries (LMICs), yet research into prevention is lacking. Development and validation of models to predict individualized risk of depression among adolescents in LMICs is rare but crucial to ensure appropriate targeting of preventive interventions. We assessed the ability of a model developed in Brazil, a middle-income country, to predict depression in an existing culturally different adolescent cohort from Nepal, a low-income country with a large youth population with high rates of depression. Data were utilized from the longitudinal study of 258 former child soldiers matched with 258 war-affected civilian adolescents in Nepal. Prediction modelling techniques were employed to predict individualized risk of depression at age 18 or older in the Nepali cohort using a penalized logistic regression model. Following a priori exclusions for prior depression and age, 55 child soldiers and 71 war-affected civilians were included in the final analysis. The model was well calibrated, had good overall performance, and achieved good discrimination between depressed and non-depressed individuals with an area under the curve (AUC) of 0.73 (bootstrap-corrected 95% confidence interval 0.62–0.83). The Brazilian model comprising seven matching sociodemographic predictors, was able to stratify individualized risk of depression in a Nepali adolescent cohort. Further testing of the model's performance in larger socio-culturally diverse samples in other geographical regions should be attempted to test the model's wider generalizability. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This paper presents the first systematic case-control study of correlates of mass psychogenic illness (MPI) in an adolescent school population. MPI is generally construed as a dissociative phenomenon spread by social contagion to individuals who are prone to dissociation. We sought to test if the correlates of dissociative experiences most commonly proposed in the literature could predict caseness among students affected by episodes of mass psychogenic illness occurring in schools in Nepal. We assessed 194 cases and 190 controls (N = 384) of ages 11–18 years from 12 public schools. Cases and controls were comparable on all demographic variables, except for family configuration, with nuclear families more common among those affected. In bivariate comparisons, caseness was associated with childhood physical neglect and abuse, as well as living in nuclear families, peritraumatic dissociation, dissociative tendencies, and depressive and post-traumatic stress symptoms. Hypnotizability emerged as the strongest correlate of psychogenic illness among the cognitive and personality trait variables. However, in multivariable logistic regression, the correlates of dissociation did not predict caseness, suggesting that they do not adequately account for the phenomenon of mass psychogenic illness. An ad-hoc Classification and Regression Trees analysis showed that if an adolescent was highly hypnotizable and reported high rates of peritraumatic dissociative experiences, then there was a 73% probability of being a case in a mass psychogenic illness episode. Future studies involving other psychological, social and cultural factors, as well as school- and family-related factors are needed to understand the correlates of mass psychogenic illness and guide prevention and intervention. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Increasing evidence has supported the dual-factor model of mental health which propose that both negative (i.e., psychological symptoms) and positive (e.g., well-being) indicators should be included in comprehensive assessments of youth's mental health. However, the nature of the profiles and transitions of dual-factor mental health and their predictors remain unclear during early adolescence, thus precluding a meaningful understanding of the development in comprehensive mental health status. This study included measures of negative (i.e., depressive symptoms and anxiety symptoms) as well as positive (i.e., life satisfaction and self-esteem) mental health to identify heterogeneous profiles, transition patterns, and key school-related predictors of dual-factor mental health statuses among Chinese early adolescents. A total of 1009 participants with a range of 10 to 15 years old (Mage = 12.97, SD = 0.67, 50.7% female) completed assessments on three occasions, every six months. The results revealed three distinctive groups: Flourishing youth (i.e., low depressive and anxiety symptoms, high self-esteem and life satisfaction), Vulnerable youth (i.e., low depressive and anxiety symptoms, low self-esteem and life satisfaction), and Troubled youth (i.e., high depressive and anxiety symptoms, low self-esteem and life satisfaction). The findings also indicated differential stability and unique transition patterns among the three groups. The results also revealed that higher levels of autonomy, relatedness and competence need satisfaction in school operated as protective factors whereas higher levels of academic and peer relationship stress operated as risk factors for the profiles and transition patterns. The identification of three groups with unique transition patterns highlights the importance of subgroup differences and possible cultural considerations in understanding the progression of mental health and the need for universally screening and dynamically monitor changes in youth's dual-factor mental health to develop more sophisticated intervention programs tailored to the unique characteristics of the relevant groups. Furthermore, the identification of important school-related predictors of mental health, specifically experiences surrounding the satisfaction of psychological needs in school (especially relatedness needs) and school stress (especially peer relationship stress), should inform prevention and intervention programs. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Conduct disorder (CD) is an important mental health problem in childhood and adolescence. There is presently a trend of revealing neural mechanisms using measures of brain networks. This study goes further by presenting a classification scheme to distinguish subjects with CD from typically developing healthy subjects based on measures of small-world networks. In this study, small-world networks were constructed, and feature data were generated for both the CD and healthy control (HC) groups. Two methods of feature selection, including the F-score and feature projection with singular value decomposition (SVD), were used to extract the feature data. Furthermore, and importantly, the classification performances were compared between the results from the two methods of feature selection. The selected feature data by SVD were employed to train three classifiers—least squares support vector machine (LS-SVM), naive Bayes and K-nearest neighbour (KNN)—for CD classification. Cross-validation results from 36 subjects showed that CD patients can be separated from HC with a sensitivity, specificity and overall accuracy of 88.89%, 100% and 94.44%, respectively, by using the LS-SVM classifier. These findings suggest that the combination of the LS-SVM classifier with SVD can achieve a higher degree of accuracy for CD diagnosis than the naive Bayes and KNN classifiers. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Objectives: Dropout from children's mental health services has negative impacts on children, families and mental health agencies. Correctly defining individuals as treatment dropouts may help efforts to reduce dropout. The development of a novel definition of dropout is described, which suggested the optimal number of sessions required should vary based on a client's need at intake. Dropout was defined as receiving lower than the optimal number of sessions. The novel definition was compared to existing definitions in a secondary data analysis of individual's first and second episodes of care. Methods: The sample contained children (N = 650; 61% male) aged 5–13 who attended one of five studied mental health agencies in Ontario, CA. Discriminant function analysis was used to predict individuals who met: (a) all current dropout definitions and the need-based definition, (b) any one or two definitions of dropout, or (c) no definitions of dropout. Results: In the first and second episodes of care respectively, the prevalence of dropout was 63.5 and 69.7% using the need-based definition, 93.5 and 76.5% using the dose definition, and 53.3 and 84.4% using the clinician judgment definition. In the first episode of care, higher child internalizing and externalizing problems and greater caregiver needs differentiated dropouts from treatment completers using the need-based definition. Further, families with higher child problem severity and higher caregiver needs were more likely to be categorized as a dropout by all definitions. Conclusions: A need-based definition is a valuable method for categorizing treatment dropouts and mitigates disadvantages of existing definitions of dropout. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Background: Chinese adolescents encounter a lot of stressors, such as academic burden and parental pressure. However, little is known about their perception of stress. The 10-item Perceived Stress Scale (PSS-10) is a widely used instrument to measure individuals' appraisal of global stress in academic research and clinical practice. The current study aimed to evaluate the best-fit factor structure model of the PSS-10 and the measurement invariance across genders in Chinese adolescents. Methods: A total of 1,574 Chinese senior high school students completed the PSS-10 (mean age = 15.26 ± 0.56 years, female = 54%). Confirmatory factor analysis (CFA) was conducted to determine the factor structure of the PSS-10. Multigroup CFA was carried out to test the measurement invariance of the PSS-10 across genders. A subsample (N = 1,060) answered additional questionnaires measuring stressful life events, anxiety, and depression to examine the convergent and concurrent validity of the PSS-10. Results: The two-factor model was supported [i.e., χ2 (34) = 332.224, p < 0.001; non-normal fit index (NNFI) = 0.901, comparative fit index (CFI) = 0.925, root mean square error of approximation (RMSEA) = 0.075, standardized root mean square residual (SRMR) = 0.051]. Importantly, the model exhibited strong measurement invariance across female and male groups. Furthermore, the PSS-10 had adequate convergent validity for stressful life events (number: r = 0.13, p < 0.001; impact: r = 0.23, p < 0.001) and could explain incremental variance in predicting anxiety (Δ R 2 = 0.13, β = 0.38, p < 0.001) and depression (Δ R 2 = 0.16, β = 0.41, p < 0.001), suggesting excellent concurrent validity. Conclusion: A two-factor model best fits the structure of PSS-10 among Chinese adolescents, with strong measurement invariance between gender groups, demonstrating its validity for assessing perceived stress among Chinese adolescents. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Mental health is one of the most pervasive health concerns in the refugee population due to the combined effects of traumatic experiences prior to migration and post-migration stressors related to resettlement. The objectives of this systematic search were to synthesize evidence on the effectiveness and identify gaps of mental health interventions on mental health outcomes for refugees resettled in the United States. This review search identified a combination of quasi-experimental (7 studies) and qualitative research studies (5 studies). Twelve papers, published between 2003-2017, evaluating twelve different interventions, were selected for review. Studies were conducted in a variety of refugee populations: Africans (8), Southeast Asians (2), Bhutanese (1), and multicultural (1). Interventions included groups/workshops (10) and individual counseling (2). The results from the mental health interventions showed increases in health confidence, health seeking behaviors, consistency with treatment course, English proficiency, quality of life, and level of enculturation. Results also showed decreases in depression and psychological distress. Also identified from this review were different methods for interventions including linguistic and ethnically-matched facilitators versus non-matched facilitators, as well as group interventions versus non-group interventions. These differences were identified in the review and discovered to be areas for further research as these items were not often addressed in the literature. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Variations in serotoninergic signaling have been related to behavioral outcomes. Alterations in the genome, such as DNA methylation and histone modifications, are affected by serotonin neurotransmission. The amygdala is an important brain region involved in emotional responses and impulsivity, which receives serotoninergic input. In addition, studies suggest that the serotonin transporter gene network may interact with the environment and influence the risk for psychiatric disorders. We propose to investigate whether/how interactions between the exposure to early life adversity and serotonin transporter gene network in the amygdala associate with behavioral disorders. We constructed a co-expression-based polygenic risk score (ePRS) reflecting variations in the function of the serotonin transporter gene network in the amygdala and investigated its interaction with postnatal adversity on attention problems in two independent cohorts from Canada and Singapore. We also described how interactions between ePRS-5-HTT and postnatal adversity exposure predict brain gray matter density and variation in DNA methylation across the genome. We observed that the expression-based polygenic risk score, reflecting the function of the amygdala 5-HTT gene network, interacts with postnatal adversity, to predict attention and hyperactivity problems across both cohorts. Also, both postnatal adversity score and amygdala ePRS-5-HTT score, as well as their interaction, were observed to be associated with variation in DNA methylation across the genome. Variations in gray matter density in brain regions linked to attentional processes were also correlated to our ePRS score. These results confirm that the amygdala 5-HTT gene network is strongly associated with ADHD-related behaviors, brain cortical density, and epigenetic changes in the context of adversity in young children. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Refinement, targeting, and better dissemination of trauma-focused therapies requires understanding their underlying mechanisms of change. Research on such mechanisms among multiply traumatized children and adolescents is scarce. We examined the role of improvements in problematic qualities of traumatic memories and maladaptive posttraumatic cognitions in PTSD symptom reduction, in a randomized, pragmatic trial of narrative exposure therapy vs. treatment as usual with 40 participants 9–17 years old (48% female, 75% refugee background) repeatedly exposed to war or family violence related trauma. Posttraumatic cognitions, quality of traumatic memories and PTSD symptoms were assessed by self-report before and after treatment. Improvements in both quality of traumatic memories (rMI =.36) and posttraumatic cognitions (rMI =.46) correlated with symptom reduction. However, improvement during treatment was only significant for quality of traumatic memories (FMI(11,333.56) = 4.77), not for posttraumatic cognitions. We detected no difference in effects of narrative exposure therapy and treatment as usual on cognitions or memories. We tentatively suggest problematic, overly sensory and incoherent quality of traumatic memories may be a useful target in the treatment of PTSD symptoms among multiply traumatized children and adolescents. Changing maladaptive posttraumatic cognitions, though important, may be challenging among those with severe, repeated trauma. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Objectives: Although the relation between low self‐esteem and depression has been well established, little is known about the possible psychological mechanisms that account for the relation between them. Based on Beck's cognitive theory of depression, the main aim of this study was to explore the notion that rejection sensitivity and loneliness serve as mediators of the relation between low self‐esteem and depression among early adolescents. Design: Using a longitudinal design, we evaluated the hypothesized model with a sample of 866 Chinese early adolescents (51% females) between 11 and 15 years old who completed questionnaires on three occasions at 1‐year intervals. Results: Structural equation modelling showed that: (1) low self‐esteem at Time 1 positively predicted depression at Time 3; (2) rejection sensitivity at Time 2 partially mediated the relation between low self‐esteem at Time 1 and depression at Time 3; (3) low self‐esteem at Time 1 demonstrated partial indirect effects on depression at Time 3 successively via rejection sensitivity and loneliness at Time 2; and (4) rejection sensitivity predicted an increase in loneliness but not vice versa, and depression accounted for later loneliness, but not for rejection sensitivity. Conclusions: The associations between low self‐esteem and depression among early adolescents may be explained by rejection sensitivity and loneliness. These results suggest implications for effective interventions for depression in early adolescents. Practitioner points: Low self‐esteem is a risk factor for depression in early adolescents, and rejection sensitivity and loneliness help explain the vulnerability model.Implementing empirically based intervention plans to overcome low self‐esteem may be helpful in efforts to reduce depression in early adolescents.Effective interventions should likely include efforts to decrease rejection sensitivity and loneliness and their effects, such as training to interpret verbal and behavioural cues in social interactions more accurately and to develop more effective social skills to enhance social confidence. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This study examines the efficacy of the Japanese version of the Program for the Education and Enrichment of Relational Skills (PEERS), which focuses on improving social functioning through making friends and maintaining good relationships for adolescents with autism spectrum disorder (ASD) without intellectual disabilities. Originally developed in the United States, PEERS is one of the few evidence-based social skills training programs for youth with ASD. The present study shows that with linguistic and cultural modifications, PEERS is effective in improving social functioning for adolescents with ASD in Japan. Positive results were found specifically in the areas of socialization, communication, knowledge of social skills, autistic mannerisms, and behavioral and emotional problems. In addition, most treatment gains were maintained at a 3-month follow-up assessment. These findings suggest that the Japanese version of PEERS is beneficial across multiple socio-emotional and behavioral domains for adolescents with ASD. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

To assess the independent and joint associations between cardiorespiratory fitness (CRF), screen time and mental health among Chinese school-aged children, a cross-sectional study was conducted in 3 primary schools in Wuhan city, China. Children self-reported ST, and their height, weight and CRF were measured. Mental health (anxiety, depressive symptom, and self-esteem) was assessed by self-administered questionnaires. A total of 805 children aged 9.1 ± 0.6 years participated in this study. High ST was associated with significantly increased risk for anxiety and low self-esteem, while high CRF was associated with a decreased risk of low self-esteem. In the joint model, children with low ST and high CRF showed the lowest risk for anxiety (OR: 0.42, 95%CI: 0.20-0.89) and low self-esteem (OR:0.44, 95%CI: 0.24-0.82). High ST and low CRF were negatively associated with mental health in Chinese schoolchildren. Health care and interventions on limiting ST and improving CRF level are warranted to promote the mental health in this population., Competing Interests: The authors have no funding and conflicts of interest to disclose., (Copyright © 2022 the Author(s). Published by Wolters Kluwer Health, Inc.)

Background: Youth mental health challenges are an emerging and persistent global public health issue despite efforts for improvement. As part of a broader social innovation study to transform youth mental health systems, this scoping review assesses interventions that aim for systems-level changes to improve the mental well-being of transitional age youth (TAY) (15-25 years) in high-income countries., Methods: The scoping review method of Arksey and O'Malley (International Journal of Social Research Methodology, 8, 2005, 19) was used. Seven health and social service databases were utilized with study inclusion criteria applied. Titles and abstracts were screened by two independent reviewers, and four members of the research team were involved in the review and thematic analysis of selected studies., Results: A total of 5652 peer-reviewed articles were screened at the title and abstract level, of which 65 were assessed in full for eligibility, and 29 were included for final analysis. The peer-reviewed articles and gray literature were based in seven different high-income countries and published between 2008 and 2019. Four major themes to support youth mental health were identified in the literature: (a) improving transitions from youth to adult mental healthcare services; (b) moving care from institutions to the community; (c) general empowerment of youth in society; and (d) youth voice within the system. Inconsistent or limited systems-level approaches to TAY mental health care were noted., Conclusions: There remains a need for innovative, evidence-based approaches to improve TAY mental health care., (© 2022 Association for Child and Adolescent Mental Health.)

Background: The adolescents’ growth and development can be developed by the style of parents. Parenting style has been discussed to influence on psychological status of adolescent in which it may produce depression or decrease self-concept. The Aim of the Study: Was to assess parental style and its relation to adolescents’ self-concept and depression. Research Design: descriptive correlation research design was used. Research Question: Is there a relation between Parental style and adolescents’ self-concept and depression? Setting: This study was carried out in Zohra preparatory and El-Fath preparatory schools at Minia City. Sampling: A convenient sample consisted of 200 adolescent students. Tools: Three tools were used; Parental style (MOPS), Self-Concept Clarity Scale, and Birleson depression scale. Results: There was significant negative statistical correlation between self – concept and total parent style. Conclusion: The current study concluded that most of the studied adolescent pained from depression symptoms. Parents with abusive behavior their adolescent self-concept decreased and become depressed. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Purpose: We developed a Japanese version of the Emotion Regulation Questionnaire for Children and Adolescents (ERQ-CA) and examined its reliability and validity across three studies. Patients and Methods: In Study 1, the Japanese version of ERQ-CA was developed and administered to 389 children aged 8– 12 years. In Study 2, the questionnaire was administered to 1738 adolescents aged 12– 18 years. In Study 3, utilizing a sample of 1300 children and adolescents, the test was administered twice over a period of four weeks in order to assess test–retest reliability. Results: In Study 1, the Japanese version of ERQ-CA showed the same factor structure as the original version, along with good internal consistency reliability and acceptable construct validity. In Study 2, the questionnaire's factor structure, internal consistency reliability, and construct validity were again confirmed. Finally, in Study 3, measurement invariance was tested across distinct age groups (8– 11, 12– 15, and 16– 18 years), and the questionnaire had good test–retest reliability over a period of four weeks. Conclusion: The Japanese version of the ERQ-CA had good reliability and validity. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

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Adolescents' depressive symptoms are affected by a number of factors including life stress, gender, socio-economic status, and parental depression symptoms. However, little is known about whether adolescent depressive symptoms are also affected by parental motivational characteristics. The current study explores the relationship between parental motivational perseverance (i.e., parents' persistency in the face of setbacks and difficulties) and children's depressive symptoms during the adolescence, given the critical role of perseverance in psychological well-being. The predictive utility of two motivational characteristics relevant to perseverance: parents' growth mindset (i.e., one's belief about the malleability of human competence) and grit (i.e., perseverance for long term goals) were examined. Four hundred pairs of Japanese parents (82% mothers) and their adolescent children (50% females; average age at the time of the first assessment = 14.05 years; SD = 0.84) independently completed surveys measuring their growth mindset, grit, and depressive symptoms at two time points (approximately one year apart; attrition rate = 25%). The Actor-Partner Independence Model, a statistical model that accounts for inter-dependence between dyads (e.g., parents and children), was used to examine how parental motivational perseverance predicts the long-term change in their offspring's depressive symptoms. The results showed that parental grit led to the decrease in adolescents' depressive symptoms through the changes in adolescents' grit. On the other hand, parental growth mindset directly predicted the adolescents' depressive symptoms, and this was not mediated by the adolescents' growth mindset. These findings underscore the importance of parental motivational characteristics in regards to adolescents' depressive symptoms. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The Keio Twin Research Center (KoTReC) was established in 2009 at Keio University to combine two longitudinal cohort projects - the Keio Twin Study (KTS) for adolescence and adulthood and the Tokyo Twin Cohort Project (ToTCoP) for infancy and childhood. KoTReC also conducted a two-time panel study of self-control and psychopathology in twin adolescence in 2012 and 2013 and three independent anonymous cross-sectional twin surveys (ToTcross) before 2012 - the ToTCross, the Junior and Senior High School Survey and the High School Survey. This article introduces the recent research designs of KoTReC and its publications. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Background: The adolescents' growth and development can be developed by the style of parents. Parenting style has been discussed to influence on psychological status of adolescent in which it may produce depression or decrease self-concept. The aim of the study: Was to assess parental style and its relation to adolescents' self-concept and depression Research design: Descriptive correlation research design was used. Research question: Is there a relation between Parental style and adolescents' self-concept and depression? Setting: This study was carried out in Zohra preparatory and El-Fath preparatory schools at Minia City. Sampling: A convenient sample consisted of 200 adolescent students. Tools: Three tools were used; Parental style (MOPS), Self-Concept Clarity Scale, and Birleson depression scale. Results: There was significant negative statistical correlation between self--concept and total parent style; Conclusion: the current study concluded that most of the studied adolescent pained from depression symptoms. Parents with abusive behavior their adolescent self-concept decreased and become depressed. Recommendations: Parents training regarding parenthood had a power on self-concept of their children which as a consequently induced the depression. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The death of a parent in a child's life is a significant risk factor for later mental and physical health problems. While much has been written about the surviving parent's functioning and its effects on their bereaved children, little work has been done to look into factors underlying this effect such as how the parent copes. The present study recruited 38 parent–child dyads from a community-based grief support center. Parent and child, independently, completed various measures of emotional functioning, including grief symptoms and coping such as social support and locus of control. The results indicated that parental coping did have an impact on children's grief symptoms. This represents a unique view of adaptation in bereaved children: Parental coping strategies can have an impact on the child, independent of the child's coping strategies. By focusing on parent coping, we have highlighted another possible pathway through which parental functioning affects children's grief. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]