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• Many mental health disorders first emerge during early childhood or adolescence. • Wait times for children's mental health services have been an international and widespread problem. • Long wait times prolong the emotional distress of children and/or adolescents and their caregivers which can exacerbate mental health difficulties. • The majority of research in this area has been conducted in the United Kingdom and Canada and focus on one waitlist strategy. • Common strategies include alternative service delivery models, increasing system capacity, and improving intake and assessment processes. Background: Although many mental health disorders first emerge during early childhood or adolescence, there is a significant gap between demand and availability of mental health resources, leading to long waitlists for services. Objective: The objective of this scoping review was to identify and characterize the research literature related to the range of waitlist management strategies that have been implemented in outpatient child and adolescent mental health care. Methods: Electronic databases reviewed included: Medline (Ovid), Embase (Ovid), PubMed, PsychINFO, SCOPUS, CINAHL, and ISI Web of Science. Grey literature databases included: OpenGrey, Conference Papers Index, and Proquest Digital Dissertations. Articles were screened by two reviewers in two steps: first by title and abstract, then full text level. Data were extracted using an a-priori developed data extraction framework, which was piloted and modified iteratively. Results: A total of 119 papers related to waitlist interventions in child and adolescent mental health were reviewed. Of these 119 papers, 11% were reviews, summary, or theoretical papers; 8% used a randomized control trial design and 2.5% were trial protocols. Most studies used less rigorous designs, such as uncontrolled before-and- after designs. The large majority focused on just one waitlist strategy each. The most commonly used approaches included: prioritization/triage and initial assessment; brief consultation and advice or brief therapy approaches; group-based models; interim services; increasing capacity; and strategies to decrease non-attendance. Most studies were conducted in the United Kingdom or Canada. Discussion: While mental health systems are complex, most studies examining waitlist initiatives explored the implementation of single initiatives. It is unlikely that a single waitlist strategy can be effective in managing wait times for children's mental health. Rather, consistent and systemic approaches to address wait times that consider the impact of the reduction approach on the patient, the program, and the community are needed. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

• This study reviewed forced family separation as the result of migration policies. • Forced family separation is linked to negative mental health outcomes for children. • Forced family separation is linked to adverse health among parents/caregivers. • There is racial and ethnic discrimination in punitive immigration policies. This paper aims to systematically look at the impacts of child separation from the primary caregiver as the result of migration policies from a racial and ethnic equity perspective. An online systematic search of Web of Science Core Collection, PsycINFO, PubMed, and Sociological Abstracts with keywords relevant to migration, family separation, and health outcomes was conducted in January 2022. The studies retrieved through the search were independently reviewed by two of the authors using the PRISMA checklist for scoping reviews and Covidence systematic review software. Based on the inclusion and exclusion criteria of the study, 14 papers were included in the scoping review. We found that none of the studies were centered on a racial and ethnic equity framework. The reviewed studies showed that forced separation was associated with negative mental health outcomes including anxiety, depression, emotional and behavioral problems, post-traumatic stress or post-traumatic stress disorder, sleep disturbance, and stress among children. Similar adverse health outcomes were reported among caregivers. These negative mental health outcomes can have long-term and even generational impacts on the well-being and health of the communities in the U.S. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

• Adverse childhood experiences (ACEs) screeners can be verbal or self-administered. • We used 2 contemporaneous surveys to compare prevalence of caregiver-reported ACEs. • The telephone survey had higher ACEs disclosure rates compared to paper/web survey. • Findings support the importance of verbal communication to identify ACEs exposure. Adverse childhood experiences (ACEs) are traumatic experiences that increase people's susceptibility to adverse physical health, mental health, and social consequences in adulthood. Screening for ACEs in primary care settings is complicated by a lack of consensus on appropriate methods for identifying exposure to ACEs. It is unclear whether self-report methods could increase disclosure of ACEs as compared to interview-based methods. This study compares data on the prevalence of ACEs from two publicly available surveys conducted on the same population of children's caregivers: the 2019 Ohio subsample of the web/mail-based National Survey of Children's Health and the telephone-based 2019 Ohio Medicaid Assessment Survey. We find higher disclosure of caregiver-reported child exposure to ACEs in the telephone interview survey, highlighting the importance of the role of verbal communication in developing a safe and trusting relationship in the disclosure of trauma. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Abstract This paper describes the process of design, development, and implementation of a complex, multi-component, tertiary prevention intervention aimed at stabilizing pathways out of homelessness, the Housing Outreach Project-Collaborative (HOP-C). HOP-C is a multi-organizational, cross-sector, inter-professional collaboration. This process-oriented paper aims to elucidate the rationale for and experience of implementing the three main components of HOP-C: case management, mental health treatment and peer support, as well as the processes that support this wrap-around intervention as a whole. This paper draws on qualitative process-oriented data (i.e. field notes and interviews with staff) collected over the course of the intervention, and integrates perspectives from multiple practitioners involved in this endeavour. Practitioners reported the diversity in the type and intensity of services offered to clients, the building of a close and communicative interprofessional and inter-agency team, as well as the development of broader connectivity between organizations and practitioners as significant strengths of this approach. Challenges and successes in implementation are explored with the intention of providing insight into ways in which other collaborative complex interventions might be approached in the youth homelessness sector. Highlights • Youth homelessness is a complex social problem • HOP-C is a tertiary prevention complex intervention for youth transitioning from homelessness • HOP-C represents a cross-sector, cross-agency, interprofessional collaboration • Intervention provided wrap-around case management, peer, and mental health supports • Individualized supports and close interprofessional teams linked to positive youth outcomes [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Parental difficulties, including mental ill health, substance misuse, domestic violence and learning disability have been associated with children entering out-of-home care. There is also evidence that these issues may co-occur within families. Understanding how the co-occurrence of these difficulties is associated with care entry is complex because they may co-occur in the same or different household members and have different impacts on the likelihood of care entry when they occur in mothers, fathers or in single parent households. Administrative data from local authority children's services in Wales were linked with demographic data to identify households in which children lived prior to entering care. Linkage to birth data identified biological mothers. Linkage with primary care, emergency department, hospital admissions and substance misuse services data enabled indicators of substance misuse, mental health, assaults in the home, learning disability and neurodivergence in the adults in those households to be identified. A series of multilevel binary logistic regression models were used to explore the odds of a household having one or more children entering care if risk factors were present. These considered the effects of individual risks, and cumulative risk both in individual adults in the household, and across the whole household. The effects of the number of adults, having adults with no risks and the differential impacts of risks in biological mothers, other women or men were also explored. Additional models explored these factors in single adult households. Cumulative risks increased the likelihood of care entry, however this effect disappeared when individual risks were controlled for. The presence of an individual with no risks in the household acted as a protective factor. Overall, the impact of the risks on the odds of care entry was substantially greater if the risks were present in the biological mother than if they occurred in other adults (men or women) in the household. In single adult households risk factors had a much greater impact when they occurred in households headed by women as opposed to men. Substantial differences in the effects of risk factors in female and male adults are apparent and further research is needed to understand why this is occurring to ensure that parents are treated equally in terms of support and statutory intervention regardless of their sex. 1 1 Throughout this paper we refer to the "sex" of the parents /adults in households, as opposed to their "gender." This is because in the analysis we carried out the sex of these individuals was determined by their GP records. We have chosen to use the term "sex," rather than "gender," as we believe this data is more likely to reflect their biological sex, rather the gender that the individuals identify as. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

• Describes the development of a new intervention for transition-age foster youth. • Model focuses on improving coping self-efficacy and help-seeking orientation. • Model is designed for implementation within Independent Living (IL) programs. • Iterative approach includes pre-testing of initial program aims and strategies. • Next steps will evaluate impact on key mechanisms prior to effectiveness testing. This study articulates the iterative development of an intervention called Strengthening Youth Networks and Coping (SYNC), which is designed to target coping self-efficacy and help-seeking intentions and behaviors among youth in foster care. The overarching goal is to design an intervention that will be a feasible and acceptable enhancement to existing child welfare services, and that will address modifiable determinants among adolescents involved in child welfare system that are related to elevated risk for mental health challenges, limited support network capacity, and service disengagement after exiting foster care. In this paper, we describe our initial needs assessment, explain how we selected proximal intervention mechanisms (i.e., intermediate outcomes) to target, and outline the preliminary intervention development process, including ongoing insights we received from a research advisory group including members with lived experience. Next, we report and discuss the initial acceptability pre-testing data collected from youth (N = 30) as well as feasibility data collected from providers (N = 82), results from which were used to refine the SYNC intervention framework prior to robust efficacy testing. Findings highlight the need and importance of targeting youth coping and help-seeking, integrating programming within existing transition services, delivering this content in a group-based format that includes near-peer mentors and facilitators with lived experience, and developing options that work for the heterogeneous population of young people in foster care. The results also highlight the key objective of capturing youth's interests prior to enrolling in the program (e.g., language used in recruitment materials), holding their interest throughout the program (e.g., creating opportunities for youth to engage with other youth with similar experiences), and suggestions to encourage youth's engagement and participation. This paper articulates the value of this intervention development approach, and the sequential phases of this intervention development process as well as the results, which may be useful to applied researchers and practitioners working with youth in foster care and other priority populations. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

• A small and limited number of good quality studies have focused on the association between fathers' mental health and child maltreatment. • Of the few studies on this topic, most have focused on common mood disorders such as depression and anxiety. • There is some evidence suggest that there's a significant association between depression and physical abuse, yet the magnitude of this association remains unclear. • Overall the available evidence is not sufficient to make strong conclusions about the association between fathers' mental health and child maltreatment. Parental mental ill-health is often described as a risk factor for child maltreatment. Yet the literature commonly foregrounds maternal mental ill-health. To obtain a more complete picture, it is crucial to also understand the associations between fathers' mental health and child maltreatment. To provide a narrative synthesis of evidence about the relationship between fathers' mental health and child maltreatment. Four electronic databases were searched, identifying 5479 citations. 151 studies were brought to full-text review. 37 were included in the study. Studies revealed mixed evidence for associations between forms of paternal mental ill health and child maltreatment, with stronger evidence for paternal depression and weak or no evidence for PTSD and anxiety. Many confounding factors were identified across the papers. The small number and limited range of good quality studies indicate the need to correct the relative invisibility of fathers within research about mental health and child maltreatment. At present, the available evidence is not sufficient to draw firm conclusions about the association between fathers' mental health and child maltreatment or appropriate policy and practice responses. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

• This study reviewed the prevalence of mental health disorders among Looked After Children in the UK. • Prevalence rates varied across studies. • The Strengths and Difficulties Questionnaire (SDQ) was the most frequently used tool to assess mental health. • There is still uncertainty about the scale and nature of mental health difficulties in this group. Care-experienced children and young people are more likely to experience poorer mental health relative to the general population. Some of the most highly cited literature in this area is becoming increasingly outdated, however, and as the gap between mental health service availability and provision is steadily growing, it is imperative that we understand the scale and nature of the mental health needs of this group. A systematic review of all literature published from the UK was conducted in March 2022 using APA PsycINFO, ASSIA, Cochrane Library, Medline, PubMed, Scopus, Social Policy and Practice, Social Services Abstracts, and Web of Science. Papers were included if they 1) sampled young people (aged 0 to 18 years) with care experience and, 2) used either a standard or non-standardised measurement tool, or health records to assess mental health prevalence rates (reported as a percentage). Risk of bias assessed used the QuADS tool (Harrison et al., 2021) and data was extracted. Thirty-nine studies were included and summarised. The estimated prevalence of mental health disorders of young people in care ranged from 1 to 82 %. The most frequently used tool to assess mental health was the Strengths and Difficulties Questionnaire (Goodman, 1997) and, while over half of studies utilised prevalence information from a comparator group, this was most commonly young people in the general population. The results of the systematic review demonstrate that estimates of mental health disorders among care-experienced young people in the UK vary considerably. Further consideration should be given toward what measures are used to assess mental health in this population and how we can optimally assess and characterise their support needs. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

• This co-produced study explores how young people experience and conceptualise 'feeling (mis)understood' by adults. • Feeling understood by adults has a positive impact on young people's mental health and help-seeking. • When young people feel misunderstood by health and social care professionals, it can negatively impact help-seeking. • Health and social care professionals should help young people to feel understood in to support engagement. The subjective and emotional experience of feeling (mis)understood by another person is distinct from being literally (mis)understood. While there is literature exploring young people's experiences of feeling (mis)understood in therapeutic or clinical settings by adults and the impacts thereof, there is limited exploration of young people's conceptualisations and perspectives of feeling (mis)understood within a range of young person-supporting adult relationships. This paper reports on the first stage of a project that was co-designed and co-produced by young people, exploring how young people experience and conceptualise 'feeling (mis)understood' in the context of receiving support from adults in their lives. This initial stage of the project captures young people's views on what feeling (mis)understood feels like, its impact on their mental health, and how adults can help young people to feel understood. Conceptualisation, design, fieldwork, analysis and writing were all co-produced with peer-researchers. Data for this project was generated through four workshops each held in England, Scotland, Wales and Northern Ireland. A total of 26 participants aged between 16 and 24 years of age took part in these workshops, and each workshop was facilitated by two peer-researchers and a member of university staff. Data was analysed through collaborative thematic analysis. The study found that feeling understood by supporting adults has a very positive impact on young people's wellbeing, mental health and help-seeking behaviour. Feeling misunderstood was found to have the converse effect, and in addition was found to make young people less likely to seek further support. Young people also identified a number of key actions adults can take to help the young people they support feel better understood. The findings of this research suggest that practitioners in the health and social care sector working with young people should consider the ways in which they can help young people feel better understood. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

• Care-experienced young people experience high levels of mental health problems. • System resources, cultures and stakeholder values, impact interventions. • Care-experienced young people valued meaningful relationships in interventions. • Carers felt interventions often overlooked their expertise and experiences. • Future interventions should support carers' time and emotional commitment. The mental health and well-being of care-experienced children and young people remains a concern. Despite a range of interventions, the existing evidence base is limited in scope, with a reliance on standalone outcome evaluations which limits understanding of how contextual factors influence implementation and acceptability. The Care-experienced cHildren and young people's Interventions to improve Mental health and wEll-being outcomes Systematic review (CHIMES) aimed to synthesise evidence of intervention theory, outcome, process and economic effectiveness. This paper reports the process evaluation synthesis, exploring how system factors facilitate and inhibit implementation and acceptability of mental health and wellbeing interventions for care-experienced children and young people. Sixteen databases and 22 websites were searched between 2020 and 2022 for studies published from 1990 and May 2022. This was supplemented with contacting experts in the field, citation tracking, screening of relevant systematic reviews and stakeholder consultations. We drew on framework synthesis of qualitative data and incorporated a systems lens, taking account of contextual influences across socio-ecological domains. Quality appraisal assessed reliability and usefulness. Confidence in synthesised findings was assessed with the GRADE-CERQual tool. We report the review in accordance with relevant elements of both the Preferred Reporting Items for Systematic Reviews and Meta-Analysis (PRISMA), and the Enhancing transparency in reporting the synthesis of qualitative research (ENTREQ) checklist. Searches retrieved 15,068 unique study reports, and 23 of these were eligible for process evaluation synthesis, reporting on sixteen interventions. Studies were published between 2003 and 2021. Nine interventions were from the UK and Ireland, six interventions were from the USA, and one was from Australia. They were largely classified as interpersonal, where the aim was to modify carer-child relationships. Five key context factors were identified that supported and prohibited intervention delivery: (1) lack of system resources; (2) intervention burden, which encompasses the time, cognitive, and emotional burden associated with implementation and participation; (3) interprofessional relationships between health and social care professionals; (4) care-experienced young people's identity; and (5) carer identity. We identified several supportive and restrictive factors across social and health care systems that may impact intervention implementation and acceptability. Key implications include: the importance of involving diverse stakeholders in intervention development and delivery; the need to better resource and support those involved in interventions, particularly training and support for carers; and ensuring future evaluations integrate process evaluations in order to optimise interventions. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

• Every tenth child in Norway is in contact with child welfare services (CWS). • About 40% of the most socioeconomically disadvantaged children have received a CWS initiative. • CWS children are more likely to have criminal charges, be prescribed drugs for mental health and ADHD, fail in the educational system, and experience labor market marginalization. • CWS children constitute a heterogeneous group regarding family background and life-course patterns. • Adolescents with multisystemic therapy or stays in childcare institutions have the most unfavorable life-course patterns. Every tenth Norwegian child has been in contact with the child welfare services (CWS) before age 18. This paper describes the variation in background characteristics of CWS children with different types of services and their life-course patterns from ages 10 to 25, compared to other children. We use high-quality population-wide Norwegian register data, covering about 860 000 children from birth cohorts 1987–2001, of which roughly 85 000 have received a CWS initiative. CWS children typically have lower socioeconomic backgrounds than other children. In terms of individual outcomes, they are more likely to have a criminal charge, be prescribed drugs for mental health and ADHD, fail in the educational system, and experience labor market marginalization. However, the heterogeneity among CWS children receiving different initiatives is more pronounced than differences between those in contact and those not. Adolescents with multisystemic therapy (MST) have the most unfavorable life-course patterns, in line with children in childcare institutions. Still, MST youth enter CWS late and have an advantaged family background compared to other CWS children, suggesting that individual-level risk factors are particularly important for sorting into MST. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

• The National Survey of Child and Adolescent Well-Being (NSCAW) is the only source of nationally representative, longitudinal data on the well-being of children and families involved with the child welfare system. • The baseline data collection for the third cohort (NSCAW III) was completed in March 2022 and data have been archived for researchers. • Methodological and operational challenges faced during the baseline wave of NSCAW III required the identification and implementation of creative solutions for sampling, child welfare agency recruitment, instrumentation, data collection, and weighting. • This paper shares lessons learned and solutions from NSCAW III that may be relevant to other studies utilizing similar methods and/or collecting data from child welfare-involved populations. The National Survey of Child and Adolescent Well-Being (NSCAW) is a national survey that follows children and families who have been the subjects of investigation by child protective services agencies. NSCAW is the only source of nationally representative, longitudinal data on the well-being of children and families involved with the child welfare system (CWS). The survey examines child and family well-being outcomes in detail and seeks to relate those outcomes to experience with the CWS and to family characteristics, service needs and receipt, community environments, and other factors. To date, there have been three cohorts of NSCAW. The design of NSCAW III was guided by three priorities: (1) keeping NSCAW III as comparable to the two previous cohorts as possible, (2) minimizing response burden for all participants, and (3) updating the NSCAW III sample and instruments as needed to reflect the composition and characteristics of children being served by the CWS in 2017. NSCAW III includes 3,298 children ranging in age from 0 to 17.5 years old at the time of sampling. Children were sampled from child welfare investigations closed between July 2017 and September 2021. We provide information about methodological and operational challenges faced during the enrollment of NSCAW III (e.g., COVID-19 pandemic, state-level refusals) that required a new level of persistence and creativity, a pivot from past approaches, and the identification of solutions to maintain the integrity of this nationally representative study. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Objectives Young people's participation in decision making that affects them is increasingly recognised and valued as a right. Youth participation in mental health settings is fundamental to service design and delivery, and is beneficial for the young people as well as the organisation. Headspace recognises the many benefits of youth participation with its national and local youth participation initiatives. In 2013, headspace Gosford in Australia established its current youth participation model, called the Youth Alliance (YA), consisting of 12 young people. These young people contribute ideas and opinions around service design and delivery, and participate in a range of activities. Method This paper presents the findings of a focus group conducted with the YA immediately following recruitment. All 12 young people participated in a two hour focus group which sought to identify the key reasons these young people joined the YA, and what they hope to achieve in their capacity of YA consultants. Results The two main reasons participants joined the YA are to help ‘overcome barriers to help seeking and ensure young people get the support they need’ and ‘to build confidence, social skills and make new friends’. The barriers to help seeking identified by the participants are consistent with those outlined in the literature. Conclusion Youth participation in youth mental health settings is beneficial to young people as well as organisations and the community, and it is crucial that strategies are put in place to increase youth participation. The ways in which these young people perceive their participation as beneficial to themselves as well as the organisation and the community is the focus of this paper. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Abstract: This paper advocates for the use of creative art as an adjunct in the delivery of mental health care for Asian American transition age youth in the United States. A case study of a participant in a community-based mental health program called Project FOCUS in Orange County, California details how art was used to assist a young woman to identify and achieve her personal goals, mitigate her emotional and behavioral problems, and reach a sense of overall well-being. The findings in this paper lay the groundwork for future research into how art can be systematically incorporated into community-based mental health programs to facilitate service utilization. Further, this study demonstrates that Asian American transition age youth face mental health challenges typical of their cohorts, despite being putative members of a “model minority.” The use of creative art transcends cultural and language barriers, and empowers Asian American transition age youth to explore their identity and express their emotions, which ultimately promotes their mental well-being. [Copyright &y& Elsevier]

Abstract: Objective: Children aged 0 to 5years in out-of-home care represent a vulnerable population at high risk of social, emotional and developmental problems, yet there are few services specifically addressing their psychological needs. This paper is the first of two concerning the establishment of The Gumnut Clinic, a specialist mental health assessment clinic in Western Sydney for this population. The current paper provides the rationale for the development of the clinic and detail of the referral and assessment processes. Method: The paper describes the establishment of The Gumnut Clinic at Redbank House in Sydney, Australia, the approach to assessment of these young children and their carers, and the challenges encountered. Conclusions: Young children are overrepresented in child protection and out-of-home care services. Their social, emotional and developmental needs are under-recognized. Development of a specialist mental health service is a step towards improving health outcomes for these children. [Copyright &y& Elsevier]

Abstract: Objectives: Adolescents who have a history of being detained report rates of STI that are 8 to 10 times higher than peers without such histories. Over the last decade, an increasing number of studies have identified multiple factors that are associated with STI risk behaviors and acquisition among detained youth. However to date, no reviews of this literature have been conducted, which is the aim of this paper. Method: We conducted a review of the published literature to identify correlates of risky and STIs among detained youth. PsycINFO, PubMed, MEDLINE and Googlescholar were searched for English-language publications from 1999 to present. These dates represent the time period when the majority of research was conducted among this population. Results: This paper utilizes an ecological model to review risk and protective factors related to STIs among this population. Findings indicated that individual factors (i.e., age, gender, substance use, and mental health); micro factors (i.e., parental monitoring, family violence, and peer influences); meso factors (i.e., school enrollment, student-teacher connectedness, and community violence exposure); and macro factors (i.e., race/ethnicity, cultural norms, gender violence and health care policies) were related to risky sex and STIs. Conclusion: We discuss conceptual and theoretical mechanisms that may account for such relationships and conclude with recommendations for advancing future research and service delivery with this population. [Copyright &y& Elsevier]

Abstract: Schools are large providers of mental health services for children and adolescents. Recent educational policy initiatives at the federal level have ushered in Response to Intervention and school-wide behavior supports that have potential to involve teachers in school mental health interventions. Little research exists investigating the involvement of teachers in school mental health services or the level of efficacy associated with teachers providing these services. This paper conducts a systematic review to investigate the extent to which teachers a) are the primary school-based service providers, b) collaboratively work with other professionals to provide services, and c) what levels of interventions within the Response to Intervention (RTI) framework apply to these interventions. This paper further evaluates how efficacious teachers and school mental health professionals are in impacting outcomes in previous studies. Results indicated that out of the 49 school mental health studies analyzed, teachers were actively involved in 40.8% of mental health interventions evaluated, and were the sole providers of interventions in 18.4% of the studies. It was also found that many of these school mental health interventions were universal (Tier 1) and took place in the classrooms. Further examination of findings suggested that different personnel, such as school mental health professionals and teachers, achieved similar outcomes across the studies. [Copyright &y& Elsevier]

In response to changes in policing practices, scholarship has increasingly begun to explore whether police contact has negative implications for youth. A small subset of scholarship has examined the implications of police contact for educational outcomes. This research has generally focused on serious police contact (arrest, court involvement, and incarceration) and has found that police contact is associated with worse educational outcomes. In this paper, we build on this research in three ways: 1) By differentiating between arrests and stops that do not result in arrest; 2) By examining the implications of vicarious police contact; and 3) By examining the pathways through which experiencing arrest, experiencing a police stop without an arrest, and vicariously experiencing police contact may impact educational achievement. Using data from the Fragile Families and Child Wellbeing Study, we find that arrest, police contact that does not result in arrest, and vicarious police contact are all associated with reductions in educational achievement. We also find that these associations are mediated at least in part by the impact of police contact on teen delinquency, teen attitudes towards teachers, and teen mental health. • We examine the impact of direct and vicarious police contact on the GPA of teens. • We use data from the Fragile Families and Child Wellbeing Study and multivariate regression. • Arrest, police contact not resulting in arrest, and vicarious police contact are all associated with reductions in GPA. • Teen delinquency, teen attitudes towards teachers, and teen mental health at least partially explain the associations. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Abstract This paper reports a qualitative study of parents' experiences of participating in an Australian adapted trial of the Strengthening Families Program (SFP). The SFP is an internationally recognised family-based prevention intervention found to be effective in improving child mental health. The study explored parents' perceptions of how the Australian adapted program influenced parent, child and family functioning. A purposive sample of 15 parents who had taken part in the program in 2015 were interviewed, and thematic analysis was undertaken using a general inductive approach. Parents reported benefits experienced through the program based around eight major themes: (1) the anger diminished; (2) making a connection; (3) a shift towards positive dialogue within the family; (4) greater understanding of parenting and the child; (5) "the clouds lifted a little bit"; (6) engagement in school; (7) my child's behaviour improved; and (8) coping and resilience. Themes relating to parent-child connectedness and communication appeared central to improved child behaviour and family functioning. Collectively, the findings are promising, and themes encapsulated familial factors found to be protective of child psychosocial health. Highlights • Parents felt a stronger connection with their child after participating in the SFC program. • By parents' accounts, there was improvement in parent-child communication. • Themes indicated reduced parent and child anger and improved child behaviour. • Parents reported increased awareness and adjustment in parenting expectations. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Abstract Current political rhetoric and some media commentaries suggest there is a yawning gap of understanding between policymakers and the reality of families living in poverty in 21st century Britain. A key reason identified for the disconnect between policymakers and families is the absence of the voices of the families in public discourse. In this paper accounts of the lived experiences of parents in poverty are examined in four UK qualitative studies published in the period 1998–2016. Their accounts highlight how problems of disadvantage can be cumulative, compounding and enduring. The struggle to provide the basics of family life and the role of supportive communities and relationships are explored. The impact on parents of financial stress, the sense of shame and stigma often experienced and the consequences for their physical and mental health are highlighted. Under the government's austerity policy, there is an increase in poverty even in working families, an increase in homelessness and considerable evidence emerging on the damaging consequences of food and fuel poverty on the health of children and parents. Listening to the lived realities of individual families provides a much greater understanding of family poverty and its causes and consequences, provides a corrective to the critical pejorative rhetoric and lays the foundation for the provision of appropriate government support. Highlights • A significant gap exists between the understanding of policymakers and the reality of families living in poverty in 21st Century Britain. • A key reason for this disconnect is the absence of the voices of the families in public discourse. • Accounts of the lived experiences of parents in poverty highlight how problems of disadvantage can be cumulative, compounding and enduring. • The impact on parents of financial stress, sense of shame and stigma as well as physical/mental health consequences are highlighted. • Under the government's austerity policy, there is an increase in poverty even in working families and an increase in homelessness. • Considerable evidence is emerging on the damaging consequences of food and fuel poverty on the health of children and parents. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Abstract Background This paper presents evidence from a European funded program with national contribution regarding the screening of students using the Strengths and Difficulties Questionnaire (SDQ). The aim of the present study is two-fold: a) to provide a thorough investigation of the factor structure of the Greek parent, teacher, and student versions of the SDQ, and b) to examine psychosocial functioning of a non-clinical student sample, as well as potential differences as a function of student gender, age, grade or year of schooling, and immigration background Method The study instruments (SDQ, The Short Mood and Feelings Questionnaire, and The Classmate Support Scale) were administered to a national sample of 6290 students, aged 11 to 15 years. Results Results provided support for the hypothesised five-factor structure of the SDQ. Agreement was higher between parent and student reports. Immigrants had higher scores in total difficulties, hyperactivity-inattention, and emotional problems than natives, whereas natives were given higher scores on peer problems and prosocial behaviour. Conclusions Assessing the psychosocial well being of students' based on a multi-informant approach has implications for schools and mental health professionals. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Abstract This paper presents themes from qualitative analysis of interviews with parents and practitioners, aiming to consider how families benefit, or do not, from services' intervention. Eleven London families in contact with child protection services were followed for five years. In-depth, repeat interviews were conducted with mothers and with practitioners they nominated as helpful. The families had originally been referred to a therapeutic parenting programme because their child was considered to be at risk for future antisocial behaviour due to their conduct problems, and additional risk factors in the family. However not all families completed, or even began that programme. The interviews explored families' interactions with all services over the five years including social work, mental health and family support provision. The analysis suggested a number of changes in parenting which appeared to be related to improved outcomes for children and their families. For example, changes in mothers' conceptualisation of their child's behaviour, brought about through therapeutic intervention, could transform parent-child relationships and thereby improve longer-term outcomes. However, other mothers could bring about change without these cognitive shifts, through use of strategies to manage children's behaviour or improve mothers' own wellbeing. Services sometimes played an important role in these changes. The analysis also suggested features of provision which prevented intervention with families being effective. Services' focus on parenting, and the associated perceived blame, can sometimes undermine parents and be counter-productive, whereas empowering parents through developing shared goals seems more useful. Highlights • Changing parenting is focus when services see families of conduct disordered children. • This can be helpful when trusting relationships with service providers develop. • Family functioning can improve when parents change attitudes to the child's behaviour. • Parents find implementing consistent behaviour management helps. • Much intervention does not help but is seen as burdensome and judgemental. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Abstract: Experiencing maltreatment is an established risk factor for delinquency. Yet, an understanding of the maltreatment–delinquency link is incomplete as few models have elucidated how maltreated youth become juvenile delinquents. This paper utilizes the latest empirical evidence to propose a diagram detailing pathways from maltreatment to delinquency through potential intervening risk factors, including substance abuse, mental health problems, school difficulties, negative peer networks, and running away from home. Hypothesized gender differences in pathways from maltreatment to delinquency are delineated. Implications for adaptation of child welfare and juvenile justice services to address the link between maltreatment and delinquency are discussed. This paper calls for testing and refining of the proposed pathways from maltreatment to delinquency in order to advance understanding of these complex relationships. [Copyright &y& Elsevier]

• Foster parents are often subjected to trauma-related behaviours that may impact upon their own wellbeing. • Foster parents perceive trauma-related behaviours as unpredictable and omnipresent. • Foster parents living with the trauma of a foster child can feel socially isolated. • Specific training and support opportunities are necessary to support foster parents so as to address or prevent vicarious trauma. In Australia, significant numbers of children in out-of-home care live in foster care placements, with many such placements being long-term. Despite the potential healing that may occur in the context of foster care, many foster children experience high levels of poor mental health, and may enact trauma-related behaviours that can significantly impact upon the foster placement. Yet to date, the topic of foster parents witnessing and living with the trauma experienced by their foster children has received relatively little empirical attention. This paper reports on a thematic analysis of interviews conducted with 85 Australian foster parents providing long-term care to non-indigenous children, focusing specifically on accounts of vicarious trauma. Four themes were developed: (1) Trauma-related behaviours are unpredictable and require constant attention, (2) Trauma histories are always present and make it hard to connect, (3) Caring for children with a trauma history can be socially isolating, and (4) Lack of agency support to understand child's trauma. The paper concludes by exploring implications of the findings for the support, training, and care of foster parents so as to ensure that the potential for vicarious trauma is recognized and addressed. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Abstract: Child welfare decisions are frequently complicated by incomplete or disputed facts, time deadlines, and the unpredictability of future events. In response to such challenges, psychologists or other mental health professionals are often asked to provide clinical evaluations related to parenting capabilities. The current paper describes the background and components of a clinical practice model for mental health evaluations of parents in a child welfare context and provides two case examples of the model''s use. The objectives of the paper are to (a) describe recommended ingredients of clinical evaluations of parents, (b) identify what the evaluations can and cannot do, and (c) illustrate how parent evaluations can enhance caseworkers'' and attorneys'' understanding of issues related to case planning and disposition. [Copyright &y& Elsevier]

• Survey respondents had their first suicidal thoughts, on average, at 13.6 years. • Forms of suicidal thoughts were passive, active and chronic suicidal ideation. • During and after leaving care, suicidal thoughts can re-occur and intensify. • English and German samples show similar occurrences of suicidal thoughts. • English participants judge their care experience to affect their attitude towards life. This paper investigates the range of suicidal ideation among people with care experience. People who grew up in care have an elevated risk of suicidal ideation, behavior and dying by suicide compared to people without care experience. However, a comprehensive and in-depth understanding of when suicidal ideation occurs and how care-experienced people experience suicidal thoughts, especially when leaving care in England and Germany, is currently not available but would help to inform suicide prevention tailored to care-experienced people across different ages. Aiming to address this gap, the current study applied a mixed-methods approach, combining an online survey and semi-structured interviews with young adults with care experience from England and Germany. The survey included 45 adults with care experience, age 18–40, and interviews were conducted with 13 care-experienced young adults from both countries. Descriptive statistical and significance tests were conducted to analyze the survey data with SPSS. Framework analysis was used to analyze the interviews. The findings show that many participants experienced suicidal thoughts from a young age and at different times up to adulthood. A range of suicidal thoughts and trajectories are identified with an increased risk of suicide for young people with care experience, especially during transitions such as when leaving care in early adulthood. The study underlines the need for a stronger recognition of suicide prevention in social work and the (leaving) care system across different countries. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The mental health consumer movement initiated the development of the recovery approach, in which self-determination, human rights and the living of a hopeful life superseded merely symptom management for people living with mental illnesses and addictions. To what degree has this reimagined path to recovery shaped social work practice? In this paper we analyse the perspectives of eleven social workers doing child protection work in Aotearoa New Zealand. We examine also the accounts of thirteen parents living with mental illness or addiction who have been involved in child custody investigations in Aotearoa New Zealand. We ask whether the social workers understand recovery as possible for such parents, and if so, how they see it occurring. We found that there is a substantial difference between the way the social workers and the parents conceived of such ‘recovery’. While parents' descriptions of recovery reflected those of the mental health consumer movement, social workers tended to operate with a focus on clinical intervention, symptom and risk management. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Collaboration between child welfare and adult mental health service providers is important to address parental risk factors that may affect child wellbeing. The aim of this paper is to describe findings from a survey which identified barriers and facilitators to collaboration between these two sectors. A semi-structured instrument, adapted from Frederico et al. (2014), was used for data collection. A total of 339 service providers in Ontario, Canada, completed the survey. The collaborative strategies used most frequently were co-working with staff from other services and case conferences; yet, these strategies were only used by just over one half of all respondents. Several barriers and facilitators to collaboration were identified by respondents. To improve collaboration between child welfare and adult mental health services, respondents recommended better clarity of roles and goals, increased information sharing, capacity building across sectors and new models of integrated service delivery. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

• Exams emergency amidst covid-19 pandemic has created a contention among government, exam authorities and students in India. • The paper presents challenges and problems faced by students while preparing exams and appearing in the exam centres. • The paper finds no concrete attempt of negotiation from government to deal student's concern. • Safety measures taken by government and exam authorities are inadequate. The paper examines 'exam emergency' in India through an engaging dialogue of importance, dissension, and contention over conducting all the annual entrance examinations amidst this covid-19 pandemic that have been postponed earlier due to nationwide lockdown. Drawing on the pre-exam living experiences, this paper presents the challenges and problems of student communities and the insecurities of their mental and physical health risks while they are preparing and appearing for their scheduled entrance tests. The paper finds no concrete attempt of negotiations from the authorities to channel majoritarian concerns. The lack of preparation from government and exam authorities to facilitate students in this crisis period has finally made many to fail writing their exam papers and left them behind with unfulfilled dreams. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

• Risk of maltreatment from combined toxic trio factors a dominant concept in UK child protection. • Systematic review found 20 papers. • Evidence base lacks definition of key measures, intersectionality analysis or theoretical basis. • Other key risk factors, especially family socio-economic circumstances, excluded. • Need to rebuild the evidence base and rethink the focus of policy and practice. The term 'toxic trio' was coined to describe the risk of child abuse and neglect stemming from a combination of domestic violence, parental mental health issues and/or learning disability, and parental alcohol and/or drug misuse (Brandon, 2009). Although concerns about the language have been raised in some quarters, it has become a dominant reference point in children's social care in England and, to an extent, internationally over the past two decades. It has become embedded in the family justice system, child protection assessment processes and national data collection. There is evidence that each factor in isolation can lead to worse child outcomes, although this is of mixed quality and far from comprehensive. This article reports the results of a systematic review of evidence relevant to the relationship between the 'toxic trio' factors in combination and child maltreatment, identifying 20 papers. Despite the term's currency, we found little quality evidence of the incidence of the 'trio' factors in child maltreatment, little consideration of intersectionality and almost no theoretical examination of the supposed relationships. Such studies as have been conducted have too rarely taken into account, or controlled for, contextual factors, such as the socioeconomic circumstances or the ethnicity of the families, or children's ages. The discrepancy between the priority given to the 'toxic trio' and the paucity of the evidence-base makes a case for a shift away from over-simplified attributions of parental risk in policy and practice, and towards greater attention being given to other significant factors for child protection. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Previous international literature describes a lack of systematic research about cross-institutional cooperation in social and health services although the need is indicated. More and more children and adolescents have complex psychosocial needs. Thus, they require help from different institutions and professions to receive optimal care. However, there is a great need of improvement of the cooperation between institutions in social (e.g. Youth Welfare Office) and health services (e.g. Child and Adolescent Psychiatry (CAP), even in Germany. Therefore, an official Agreement of Cooperation (AoC) between these institutions was implemented as a first attempt to enhance and structure cross-institutional work in Dresden, Germany. This methodological paper describes the corresponding evaluation project that includes cross-sectional and longitudinal assessments. It thereby focuses on the employees' and families' satisfaction as well as the psychosocial development and mental health of children at the intersection of the aforementioned institutions before and after the implementation of the AoC. In addition, it gives a review of literature about cross-institutional work. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

In the two last decades, research of the psychosocial needs of adopted children and adolescents has advanced dramatically. Nevertheless, less is known about their mental health when they reach adulthood. The aim of this paper is to systematically review the evidence about mental health and psychological adjustment in adult adoptees. A systematic search was conducted on Web of Science and PsycInfo. The review includes 27 studies that fulfilled the selection criteria (ages between 20 and 40, domestic adoptions and articles published since 1995). Evidence suggests that psychological adjustment in adult adoptees is more unfavourable (with higher levels of depression, anxiety, personality and behavioural disorders and neuroticism) than in non-adoptees. A small group of studies shows similar psychological adjustment of adoptees and non-adoptees. Moreover, there is evidence that the adopted population is quite heterogeneous, involving individual and contextual variables. There are clear diagnostic differences when gender is taken into account. Some family variables (e.g., attachment, parenting styles) emerge as mediating factors of the effects of the adoptive status on psychological adjustment. Other risk and protective factors have been insufficiently studied (e.g., age at the time of adoption), so additional research is needed. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The unique demands of the foster carer role are associated with high levels of self-reported stress among foster carers. The current study examines the amount of carer stress that can be attributed to certain role specific challenges and how stress from these challenges varies between carers and placements. As a secondary aim the study examines carer perceptions on current organisational support and training. Participants were sourced from a national fostering agency with branches in the local area. Carers were eligible to participate in the study if they were caring full time for at least one foster child. Eligible carers completed an identical online or paper survey including measures of general stress and parenting stress as well as study specific measures regarding satisfaction with organisational training and support. Results demonstrated that challenging behaviours are the most stressful unique role demand for foster carers and the largest predictor of carer stress levels. Overwhelmingly carers reported a desire for additional training in order to support them in their role. The results support previous research outlining the difficulties faced by foster carers and the need to improve support and training to ensure good placement outcomes including placement stability and reduced carer attrition. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Youth involved in child welfare and juvenile justice systems suffer from alarmingly high rates of mental health challenges. In particular, exposure to trauma (e.g., maltreatment) is one critical experience that amplifies their risk for delinquency and recidivism. Despite a profound need to address these youth's mental health needs, there is a paucity of trauma-informed and youth-centered treatments that are clinically feasible in under-resourced residential settings (e.g., juvenile detention facilities). In response to this gap, our research team collaborated with the juvenile justice subsection of a large American city's child welfare system with the goal of creating an intervention tailored to the needs of underserved system-involved youth. The resultant program, WRITE ON (Writing and Reflecting on Identity To Empower Ourselves as Narrators), leverages research on the therapeutic benefits of expressive writing to implement a brief, cost-effective intervention in youth residential settings. This paper describes intervention development and presents findings from the pilot study, which comprised a multisite experimental evaluation of youth ( N = 53) residing in short-term detention facilities. This pilot study aimed to: 1) assess intervention implementation fidelity, including participant satisfaction, and 2) evaluate the mental health outcomes of youth receiving WRITE ON as compared to those in a comparison support group (CSG). Results indicated that the intervention was delivered with good fidelity, participants reported high levels of satisfaction, and WRITE ON participants exhibited significant ( p < 0.01) gains in resilience compared to their counterparts in the CSG. Collectively, results suggest that a larger clinical trial investigating the effectiveness of WRITE ON with system-involved youth is warranted. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

• Published evidence about mental health interventions for Indigenous children and youth is limited. • There are few evaluations of interventions that show what works. • There was little explanation of leadership by Indigenous people and paradigms. • Strategies targeted intersectoral systems, workforce skills, program quality and client care. • Outcomes included improved appropriateness, quality and effectiveness. • More Indigenous-led investigations of wellbeing interventions are needed. Key policy directives from Canada, Australia, New Zealand, Norway and the United States (CANNZUS countries) highlight the importance of addressing the unique and complex wellbeing and mental health needs of Indigenous school-aged children and youth. This systematic scoping review of the peer reviewed and grey literature identifies the extant evidence about the conditions, strategies and impacts of wellbeing and mental health screening, management and referral pathways for Indigenous children and youth in CANNZUS countries. A search for peer reviewed and grey literature was conducted of 17 electronic databases and 13 clearinghouses and websites in each of the included countries. Search results were imported into Endnote X9 with titles and abstracts screened against inclusion criteria. The full texts of selected publications were screened by at least two blinded reviewers. Data extracted from the full texts included: authorship, year and publication type; country, target group, sample size and intervention setting, intervention type and study design, outcome measures and reported outcomes. The searches produced 3223 peer reviewed and 278 grey literature publications (after duplicates were removed) giving a total of 3501 references. Screening resulted in 15 papers arising from 14 intervention studies in primary health care services, education, juvenile justice and community settings. Only 9 of the 15 publications evaluated an intervention; 6 were program descriptions. The review identified four key approaches to improve wellbeing and mental health care for Indigenous children and youth – cross-service collaboration, professional education, intervention quality and appropriateness, and enhancing direct service provision pathways. Intervention outcomes included acceptability, appropriateness and effectiveness. The small number of studies found suggests that this research niche area is still in development, with few evaluations of interventions. Identification of interventions within the four broad strategy areas is useful, and the review has some value in guiding the tailored development of interventions in other sites. Further Indigenous-led investigations of wellbeing are needed to identify what works to improve wellbeing and mental healthcare for Indigenous children and youth. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

• Examining adolescent perceptions of their parents influence on their access and use of mental health services. • Use qualitative face to face interviews. • Parents were highlighted by adolescents as prominent influences in adolescent mental health journeys, however this influence could be positive and negative for the adolescent. • Highlights the complexity of the involvement of parents in their child's mental health service use. To explore adolescent experiences of accessing and utilising mental health service in Perth, Western Australia. This paper focusses on the adolescent identified influence of parents in accessing and using mental health services. Qualitative semi-structured face-to-face interviews with 22 adolescents aged 14–18 years old in Perth, Western Australia. Interviews were transcribed verbatim and analysed thematically. The influence of parents on adolescents' experiences within the mental health system were grouped under three themes: parental involvement in accessing and continued use of mental health services for their children; parental understanding and awareness of child's mental health problems; parent–child relationship. It was common for adolescents to report that the influence and involvement of their parents could create facilitators and barriers to mental health care. This research highlighted the complexities in how parents can be both supportive and hindering influences in their child's mental health care. Adolescent experiences highlight the need for parents to be a key area of focus for mental health services and future reforms to support and improve adolescent mental health service use. Additional research is needed to explore how to effectively increase parental mental health literacy in the community and what factors are needed to create trusted parent-adolescent relationships. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

• Social anxiety level of Chinese adolescents increased significantly over time. • Macro social indicators predicated the increase of adolescent social anxiety in China. As social anxiety is a key indicator measuring the mental health of adolescents, it is necessary to examine the changes in social anxiety level of Chinese adolescents with time. This research conducted a cross-temporal meta -analysis of 55 papers using the Interaction Anxious Scale (IAS) to investigate the changing trends and the influencing factors of adolescent social anxiety(N = 83893) from 2002 to 2020. The results showed that: (1) In the past 19 years, the score of social anxiety was significantly positively correlated with the year, indicating that social anxiety level of Chinese adolescents increased significantly year by year; (2) Score of social anxiety was significantly associated with four social indicators of economic condition (the residents' consumption level) and social connectedness (the divorce rate, the family size, and the urbanization level), suggesting that social change may account for the rise in Chinese adolescents' social anxiety level. This research explored the changing trend of social anxiety among Chinese adolescents in the past 19 years and served as a valuable reference for the intervention of Chinese adolescents' social anxiety in practice. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Research suggests that children with involved and engaged fathers tend to have more positive outcomes relative to physical, cognitive, and social emotional health. Of children who become involved in the child welfare system, involving multiple parents in the case (e.g. mother and father) often results in a greater chance of a child returning home, fewer placement episodes, and reduced trauma that may be caused by separation anxiety. With the rise of single parenting homes (which are mostly maternal) in the United States, child welfare agencies are examining the efficacy of engaging multiple caregivers (esp. fathers) in the child welfare process. Research suggests that in order to involve fathers in child welfare processes, practices and policies must be intentional in implementing systems and protocols that encourage involvement of all parents regardless of relationship status of the parents. However, few child welfare agencies are required to inquire about fathers or involve fathers in the child’s case. The purpose of this paper is to highlight efforts of the Connecticut Comprehensive Outcome Review (CCOR) process and discuss challenges and lessons learned from interviews and listening forums/focus groups that included social workers and fathers who are involved in the child welfare system in the state of Connecticut. Recommendations and considerations on engaging and involving fathers are discussed. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

A significant body of research indicates that emotional maltreatment (EMT) is harmful to children, resulting in long-term negative impacts on emotional and behavioral development. The child welfare system's focus on physical abuse, physical neglect, and sexual abuse has led a relative lack of attention to EMT. Reported rates of EMT vary widely across states – ranging from 0.2% to 44.9% in a recent national report on child maltreatment – indicating that it is not being measured consistently. This paper uses data collected by the Longitudinal Studies of Child Abuse and Neglect (LONGSCAN) to (1) describe the nature and characteristics of emotional maltreatment experienced by 846 LONGSCAN youth across time, and (2) describe the relation between four subtypes of emotional maltreatment (psychological safety and security, acceptance and self-esteem, autonomy, and restriction) and child trauma symptoms and risk behaviors at age 18. Exposure to EMT was related to increased trauma symptoms and risky behaviors. EMT is common, identifiable, harmful, and potentially preventable; and a better understanding of it will help to inform the provision of effective child welfare and mental health services to children and their families. Findings suggest a need for greater understanding of parental behaviors, and the motivations behind them, that result in emotionally harmful outcomes for children, as well as a better understanding of appropriate interventions for children who experience various types of EMT. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Abstract: This paper adds to the growing body of research examining the experiences of youth aging out of the child welfare system. Through a comparison of youth aging out with two other groups of child welfare-involved youth—those whose families received child welfare services but were never placed out of home and those who were in out-of-home placement but did not age out—it presents a profile of their care careers and other system involvement (e.g., mental health, justice system). Analyses indicate that young people aging out of care have experienced significant amounts of time in out-of-home placement, a great deal of placement instability, and high levels of other system involvement. In general, their involvement is more extensive than that of the two comparison groups. However, the justice system involvement of youth who experienced out-of-home placement but did not age out is just as high as that of youth who have aged out. This finding highlights the importance of devoting resources not only to youth aging out of care but also to similarly-aged young people with prior child welfare involvement. [Copyright &y& Elsevier]

Abstract: Adolescence is a stage of development when young people explore the larger social world. Accordingly, exposure to violence and other risk factors increase during adolescence. Exposure to community and domestic violence in addition to other contextual and individual correlates have been found associated with substance use. Using a sample of 663 African American adolescents living in urban public housing, this study assesses how multiple risk factors, including for example violence and peers'' behavior, are related to adolescents'' alcohol, tobacco and marijuana use. This paper also assesses how, or whether, these relationships are moderated by social cohesion. The model explained 28% of the variance in substance use. Mental health symptoms in addition to violence were significantly associated with substance use. These effects, however, were dependent upon levels of social cohesion. Implications to practice are discussed. [Copyright &y& Elsevier]

Abstract: This paper explores the research evidence from England and France on the mental health of young people aging out of care and into adulthood. It represents the first comparative review based on the evidence from these two countries. Set in the legal, policy and service framework for both countries, it reviews evidence on the mental health of young people in the general population, young people living in care, young people aging out of care, and young adults. It shows: the high levels of psychological adversity of young people entering care; the high rates of mental health problems of young people in care compared with the general population of young people; the increased risk of mental and physical problems at the time of aging out of care, and the general improvement in longer-term outcomes for young adults, although some continue to have serious mental health problems. In conclusion, it suggests that interventions across the life course of young people are needed. [Copyright &y& Elsevier]

Abstract: The purpose of this paper was to examine the effectiveness of home visiting as a means of improving parental, child, and maternal outcomes and preventing child abuse and neglect. A randomized controlled trial was conducted in a large southwestern metropolitan area. One hundred and ninety-five women were randomly assigned to the Healthy Families Arizona experimental or control conditions. Significant results favoring the experimental group in contrast to the control group were found on some measures in each of five domains including violent parenting behavior, parenting attitudes and practices, parenting support, mental health and coping, and maternal outcomes. [Copyright &y& Elsevier]

Abstract: There is often a disconnect between the best available research and the policy decisions governing the functioning of large child-serving systems. This paper argues that this is, in part, due to conflating system contact with actual service provision. When outcomes are understood in terms of contacts as compared to services, this can lead to inappropriate or inadequate policy responses. Empirical data on contact and services for four large child-serving systems (child welfare, education, juvenile court, and mental health) are presented to illustrate this dilemma. Multi-sector services and need for collaboration are also briefly reviewed. Recommendations are made for improving data infrastructure and research to help bridge the gap between what policy makers see and actual system functioning. This is presented as a key step on the path to achieving evidence-based policy to support children''s well-being. [Copyright &y& Elsevier]

Abstract: Using a national, representative sample of children who received child welfare services, this paper builds longitudinal path models that examine four effects: prior change in living situation or placement on subsequent change, prior behavior problems on subsequent problems, behavior problems on change in living situation or placement, and change in living situation or placement on behavior problems. The first three just-mentioned effects were significant (positive associations) in all models. At some time points, living situation and placement change predicted internalized behavior problems (positive association) but, overall, the effects of change in living situation or placement on children''s behavior problems, if any, were small. Implications for practice and policy are discussed. [Copyright &y& Elsevier]

Abstract: This paper provides an analysis to establish a practical guideline in the therapeutic management and subsequent monitoring of Munchausen Syndrome by Proxy (MSP) adapted to the Spanish social and legal context and based on scientific literature published before December 2008. An interdisciplinary team made up of various professionals involved in caring for the child will design a therapeutic strategy and monitoring at different levels. In the field of mental health there must be a triple therapeutic approach: the child as a victim, the agent as abuser and the family as a whole. In terms of social work, the socio-familiar situation should be evaluated using different resources at a health care level. It is important to plan the time to confront the family to obtain their necessary collaboration. The monitoring plan will be collective at the hospital level and the child''s primary pediatrician, in the medical and educational fields in those of mental health and social work. A therapeutic strategy and monitoring by an interdisciplinary team at the medical, social and mental health level, is proposed as a useful tool in the management of MSP. In this way, in some cases the removal of child from the family nucleus can be avoided. [Copyright &y& Elsevier]

Abstract: Research indicates that the transition to adoptive parenthood can be challenging for many adoptive parents, but that the provision of post-placement services may mitigate these challenges. However, little is known about the specific post-placement service needs of adoptive parents during this transition. This paper describes a pilot project from Ontario, Canada which sought to explore the support needs of adoptive parents in the post-placement period. Eight semi-structured interviews were conducted with nine newly placed adoptive parents. Eight of the nine participants were married; two had adopted internationally, five had adopted through the public system in Ontario and the remaining participant utilized private adoption. Through our analysis of the data, we identified two meta-themes: a) challenges and b) facilitators accompanying the transition to adoptive parenthood. Grounded theory methodology was used to develop these themes into a conceptual framework describing the transition to adoptive parenthood. This framework posits that each parent negotiates a particular set of challenges and facilitators associated with their specific adoption experience. In future, this framework can become a tool to assist adoptive parents and practitioners to proactively identify and address potential challenges during the transition to parenthood. [Copyright &y& Elsevier]

Abstract: The purpose of this paper is to explore depression longitudinally among Latino children and youth, 7 years and older, who had contact with the public child welfare system. The National Survey on Children and Adolescent Well-Being (NSCAW) was analyzed by Latino origin to uncover within group differences in depression. Latent growth models were employed to: 1) explore the rate and severity of depression longitudinally, and 2) examine the predictive role of parental immigration status and Latino origin on children''s depression symptomatology over three years. The growth model results indicated that Latino children''s depression levels varied at baseline, yet the rate of change over time was very similar. Moreover, the initial rate and severity of children''s depression was related to future depressive symptomatology. In addition, older children tended to report higher levels of depression than younger children. The predictive model revealed that change in depression rates over time varied by Latino origin. Mexican and Puerto Rican children experienced higher levels of depression compared to children from other Latino origins. Although Mexican children''s depression symptoms tended to decrease over time, the change occurred at a slower rate compared to children from other Latino origins. Puerto Rican children''s depression symptoms increased compared to children from other Latino origins. Implications for practice are discussed. Recommendations are made for including contextual factors in assessment models and research with Latino families involved with the public child welfare system. [Copyright &y& Elsevier]

• We explore young Black males' understandings of mental health, alongside informal and formal support systems in the UK. • Mental health is constructed through notions of masculinity, culture, weakness and control. • Formal support systems represent an unfamiliar and discriminatory environment for Black males and whilst informal support feels more accessible, speaking to family and friends is hindered by their constructs of mental health. • It is necessary to continue discursive investigations into unique experiences of young Black males in the UK, particularly with regards to statutory services which remains a huge barrier for helpseeking. Black males within Western society, who navigate recurrent racism and discrimination, have frequently been constructed as "high risk" for mental health difficulties. Research, particularly in the USA, has identified the barriers that Black males face in relation to seeking help, with research outlining the underutilisation of mental health services and overrepresentation of acute mental health diagnoses such as psychosis. Research within the UK has explored barriers to help-seeking amongst males in general, or adult Black males who are within the mental health or prison systems, yet to date little is known about the ways in which Black male adolescent youth outside of formal services understand mental health. Therefore, this paper offers a contribution to knowledge by examining the way in which young Black males in the UK make sense of mental health and associated systems of support. Data from ten interviews with males aged 16–18 from a South London school was collected and analysed using thematic analysis (TA). The young Black males' understandings of mental health were embedded with notions of masculinity, being in control and strong, and they understood mental health as something that is experienced by other people. Formal support for mental health difficulties was constructed as an unfamiliar and unapproachable system, that is often unkind and discriminatory towards Black males. Speaking to family and friends about mental health difficulties felt more accessible for these young males, however their construct of mental health and constructs within the community provided further silencing on using this support. This study suggests important implications for understanding the experiences of mental health and seeking support amongst Black male adolescents in the UK. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Abstract: Objectives: To estimate the costs of building a public health infrastructure for delivering a population-wide evidence-based multi-level system of parenting interventions to strengthen parenting; reduce risk for child maltreatment and coercive parenting practices; and reduce the prevalence of early child behavioral and emotional problems. Methods: Using data from 9 South Carolina counties, this study examines the costs to service agencies of training a wide range of providers. Using data on the number of children and families served, the paper estimates the total costs of training providers sufficient to treat all children and families in a hypothetical community. Results: The costs of the universal media and communication component totaled less than $1.00 per child in the population. The costs of training service providers to deliver at other intervention levels were quite modest ($11.74 on a per child basis). Conclusions: This study shows that a population-wide system of efficacious parenting programs aimed at reducing child behavioral and emotional problems and promoting effective parenting is quite feasible. Rough estimates suggest that these costs could be recovered in a single year by as little as a 10% reduction in the rate of abuse and neglect. [Copyright &y& Elsevier]