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Objective The aim of the present study was to describe self-regulation (the ability to influence or control one's thoughts or behavior in response to situational demands and social norms) in children ages 3-5 years using a nationally representative sample and examine risk and protective factors to identify opportunities to support children and families. Methods Using a cross-sectional design, we examined data from a parent-reported pilot measure of self-regulation from the 2016 National Survey of Children's Health (NSCH). We compared U.S. children aged 3-5 years who were described by parents as 'on track' with self-regulation development with children who were not. In addition, we described how health care and developmental services, community, family, and child health and development factors are associated with children's self-regulation. Results The majority of children (4 of 5) were described by their parents to be developmentally on track with self-regulation. Compared to children described as not on track, children described as on track more often lived in financially and socially advantaged environments and less often experienced family adversity. They also had other positive health and development indicators, whether or not they were receiving developmental services. However, only half of children not on track received developmental surveillance, and only 1 in 4 children described as not on track received educational, mental health, or developmental services. Conclusion The findings are a step towards using self-regulation as an indicator of healthy child development and as a potential strategy to identify groups of children who may need additional support., Author(s): Angelika H. Claussen [sup.1] , Lara R. Robinson [sup.1] , Jennifer W. Kaminski [sup.1] , Sana Charania [sup.1] [sup.2] , Joseph R. Holbrook [sup.1] , Marvin So [sup.1] [sup.2] [...]

The present study describes 4 strategies for increasing response rates to a community-based survey on youth violence in an ethnically diverse population in Hawai'i. A total of 350 households were mailed a Safe Community Survey using 4 different randomly assigned incentive strategies. The strategies varied by length of survey and timing of incentive for completion (given before completion, after completion, or both). In univariate analyses, there were no significant differences across survey strategies on participant demographics, community perceptions of violence-related behaviors, or percent of missing items. However, in multivariate regressions, respondents' sex and percent of missing items on the surveys were consistently significant predictors across multiple outcomes. Although the use of strategies to increase response rates in community-based surveys might be desirable, resulting data need to be examined for the potential that strategies might recruit different populations, which may have an impact on the data obtained. This study offers lessons and recommendations for surveying Native and Indigenous communities. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Previous research has linked greater social connectedness with a lowered risk of self-directed violence among adolescents. However, few studies have analyzed the comparative strength of different domains of connectedness (e.g., family, peers and school) to determine where limited resources might best be focused. Data to address that gap were taken from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention's Student Health and Safety Survey, administered to 4,131 7th-12th graders (51.5% female; 43.8% Hispanic; 22.6% African American or Black). Logistic regressions (controlling for age, gender, race/ethnicity, family structure, academic performance, and depressive symptoms) suggest that family connectedness was a stronger predictor than connectedness to peers, school, or adults at school for non-suicidal self-harm, suicidal ideation, suicide plans, and non-fatal suicidal behavior. In some analyses, peer connectedness was unexpectedly a risk factor. Results have implications for prevention of suicide in adolescence, especially in the context of the current trend towards school-based prevention programs.

Scholars have noted the need to examine the psychometric properties of measures that can be used in evaluating moral education programs. The present study was designed to examine the best-fitting factor model of a commonly-used measure of prosocial moral reasoning (PROM) across samples from Brazil and the USA, gender and adolescent age groups. The samples consisted of 619 college students (M age = 20.59 years, SD = 4.08; 41% men, 59% women) and 239 middle and high school students (M age = 14.02 years, SD = 3.04; 45% boys, 55% girls) from the USA. There were 114 college students (M age = 21.81, SD = 4.33; 35% men, 65% women) and 136 middle and high school students (M age = 14.93 years, SD = 1.55; 42% boys, 58% girls) from Brazil. A series of (multigroup) confirmatory factor analyses were conducted to test the best fitting factor structure of the PROM and the invariance of this factor structure across culture, gender and age groups. Evidence for measurement invariance was found such that a four-factor model was a slightly better fitting model than the five-factor model across all groups. Discussion focuses on theoretical and methodological implications of the findings. (Contains 2 tables.)

Mosaicism in fragile X syndrome (FXS) refers to two different FMR1 allele variations: size mosaicism represents different numbers of CGG repeats between the two alleles, such that in addition to a full mutation allele there is an allele in the normal or premutation range of CGG repeats, while methylation mosaicism indicates whether a full‐mutation allele is fully or partially methylated. The present study explored the association between mosaicism type and cognitive and behavioral functioning in a large sample of males 3 years and older (n = 487) with FXS, participating in the Fragile X Online Registry with Accessible Research Database. Participants with methylation mosaicism were less severely cognitively affected as indicated by a less severe intellectual disability rating, higher intelligence quotient and adaptive behavior score, and lower social impairment score. In contrast, the presence of size mosaicism was not significantly associated with better cognitive and behavioral outcomes than full mutation. Our findings suggest that methylation mosaicism is associated with better cognitive functioning and adaptive behavior and less social impairment. Further research could assess to what extent these cognitive and behavioral differences depend on molecular diagnostic methods and the impact of mosaicism on prognosis of individuals with FXS. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Mental health encompasses a range of mental, emotional, social, and behavioral functioning and occurs along a continuum from good to poor. Previous research has documented that mental health among children and adolescents is associated with immediate and long-term physical health and chronic disease, health risk behaviors, social relationships, education, and employment. Public health surveillance of children's mental health can be used to monitor trends in prevalence across populations, increase knowledge about demographic and geographic differences, and support decision-making about prevention and intervention. Numerous federal data systems collect data on various indicators of children's mental health, particularly mental disorders. The 2013-2019 data from these data systems show that mental disorders begin in early childhood and affect children with a range of sociodemographic characteristics. During this period, the most prevalent disorders diagnosed among U.S. children and adolescents aged 3-17 years were attention-deficit/hyperactivity disorder and anxiety, each affecting approximately one in 11 (9.4%-9.8%) children. Among children and adolescents aged 12-17 years, one fifth (20.9%) had ever experienced a major depressive episode. Among high school students in 2019, 36.7% reported persistently feeling sad or hopeless in the past year, and 18.8% had seriously considered attempting suicide. Approximately seven in 100,000 persons aged 10-19 years died by suicide in 2018 and 2019. Among children and adolescents aged 3-17 years, 9.6%-10.1% had received mental health services, and 7.8% of all children and adolescents aged 3-17 years had taken medication for mental health problems during the past year, based on parent report. Approximately one in four children and adolescents aged 12-17 years reported having received mental health services during the past year. In federal data systems, data on positive indicators of mental health (e.g., resilience) are limited. Although no comprehensive surveillance system for children's mental health exists and no single indicator can be used to define the mental health of children or to identify the overall number of children with mental disorders, these data confirm that mental disorders among children continue to be a substantial public health concern. These findings can be used by public health professionals, health care providers, state health officials, policymakers, and educators to understand the prevalence of specific mental disorders and other indicators of mental health and the challenges related to mental health surveillance. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Infant and early childhood mental health (IECMH) has been defined as the capacity of infants and young children to regulate their emotions, form secure relationships, and explore their environments. For this special issue, we conducted a review of IECMH outcomes from evaluations of couple‐ and family‐based psychosocial interventions not explicitly designed for trauma exposure published from 2010 through 2019, following Evidence Base Update criteria and the current convention of classifying general categories of intervention approaches rather than the former practice of evaluating specific brand‐name packaged programs. Full‐text review of 695 articles resulted in 39 articles eligible for categorization into intervention approaches, taking into consideration the theoretical orientation of the treatment, the population served, the intervention participants, the target outcomes, the treatment theory of change, and the degree to which the intervention was standardized across participants. Four intervention approaches were identified in this review as Probably Efficacious: Behavioral Interventions to Support Parents of Toddlers, Interventions to Support Adolescent Mothers, Tiered Interventions to Provide Support Based on Assessed Risk, and Home Visiting Interventions to Provide Individualized Support to Parents. Other intervention approaches were classified as Possibly Efficacious, Experimental, or did not have sufficient evidence in this time period to classify under these criteria. Further research could explore how to ensure that all families who need support can receive it, such as by increasing the reach of effective programs and by decreasing the number of families needing additional support. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Two letters to the editor are presented in response to the article "Behavioral and Socioemotional Outcomes Through Age 5 Years of the Legacy for Children Public Health Approach to Improving Developmental Outcomes Among Children Born Into Poverty" by J. W. Kaminski et al., which appeared in a previous issue.

Objective: The authors examined licensing requirements for select children's behavioral health care providers., Methods: Statutes and regulations as of October 2021 were reviewed for licensed clinical social workers, licensed professional counselors, and licensed marriage and family therapists for all 50 U.S. states and the District of Columbia., Results: All jurisdictions had laws regarding postgraduate training and license portability. No jurisdiction included language about specialized postgraduate training related to serving children and families or cultural competence. Other policies that related to the structure, composition, and authority of licensing boards varied across states and licensure types., Conclusions: In their efforts to address barriers to licensure, expand the workforce, and ensure that children have access to high-quality and culturally responsive care, states could consider their statutes and regulations., Competing Interests: The authors report no financial relationships with commercial interests.

Competing Interests: Conflict-of-Interest Disclosures: Erin Fox discloses employment by the National Academies of Sciences, Engineering, and Medicine while this paper series was being drafted.