Research Findings: Very little research has examined whether the contributions of Head Start's Family Service Workers (FSWs) and family partnership services influence family and child outcomes. Using data from 215 families in the 2014 Head Start Family and Child Experiences Survey (FACES), this study used structural equation models to examine…

Needle anxiety symptoms are prevalent among college students and predict lack of engagement in student health initiatives including influenza immunization programs. Most do not seek treatment for their anxiety. Objective: To develop and test a peer-delivered, brief motivational interview to promote help-seeking behaviors among college students…

Objective: Both aerobic exercise and Cognitive Behavioral Therapy (CBT) improve depression, but perceptions of their credibility and efficacy are underexplored. These perceptions can contribute to treatment seeking and outcome. A previous online sample ranging in age and education rated a combined treatment higher than individual components and…

The majority of school-age children with or displaying characteristics of a mental health disorder do not independently seek help, often go undiagnosed or undetected, and fail to receive treatment or intervention leaving them susceptible to and at risk for poor school and life outcomes. In response to these concerns and in an effort to improve the…

Objective: This pilot study assessed the feasibility and acceptability of "The Mindfulness App" with college students and the utility of daily text-message reminders for increasing adherence. Participants: Students from a mid-sized Midwestern University (N = 59) during the spring and fall of 2016. Methods: Using a pretest-posttest…

Youth purpose was investigated using a two-phase embedded design with youth participating in Scouts BSA (N = 3,943), ages 9-20 (M = 14.0, SD = 1.9). Participating Scouts were mostly White (91%) and male (98%). In Phase 1, we conducted a two-step cluster analysis on Scouts' survey responses to three purpose dimensions (personal meaning,…

Objective: Low mental well-being is increasingly reported among vocational education and training (VET) students. Changing moderate-to-vigorous physical activity (MVPA) and sedentary behaviour (SB) may be beneficial for student mental well-being (SMW). Therefore, the effect of an existing physical activity (PA)-based lifestyle intervention on…

Autistic individuals are at significantly higher risk of suicide than non-autistic individuals, with transition-aged youth at potentially the highest risk. While lower executive function (EF) skills have been significantly associated with suicide risk in other clinical samples, the link between EF and suicidality has not yet been examined for…

Objective: The current study explored differences in mental health problems, services utilization, and support of graduate students by gender, race/ethnicity, and year in school. Participants: Participants consisted of 734 graduate students from a large, Midwestern university. Methods: Graduate students answered a series of questionnaires in fall…

Research Findings: We examined whether Head Start teachers' depressive symptoms are associated with their engagement in high-quality conversations with children, and we considered the extent to which this association is consistent across classroom contexts and activities. Observations of Head Start teachers' conversations with children were…

The 2016 U.S. Presidential election led to a rise in mental health concerns among marginalized youth. We consider how LGBTQ+ and ally youth responded in Gender-Sexuality Alliances (GSAs). In this secondary analysis, we used survey data to assess for associations between frequency of discussions of the election in GSAs and mental health outcomes.…

Objective: To examine short-term (i.e., post-intervention) outcomes from a randomized controlled trial comparing a school-based telehealth-delivered depression prevention program, Interpersonal Psychotherapy-Adolescent Skills Training (IPT-AST), to services as usual (SAU). We expected IPT-AST would be acceptable and feasible and that IPT-AST…

Research indicates that student loans have negative implications on students' mental health, including depression. However, research on the mechanism by which the student loan leads to depression has lagged. Drawing from the hopelessness theory of depression, this paper investigates the mediating role of negative financial management behaviors as…

Secondary analysis of the Early Head Start Family and Child Experiences Survey 2018 data set (Baby FACES 2018) explored links between family risk events and referral-making and referral uptake among families receiving Early Head Start (EHS) services. Referrals to both behavioral health and entitlement programs were considered. Results showed that…

With the increasing prevalence of mental health issues among children, there is a growing need to implement school-based preventive programs for emotional well-being in Malaysia. Super Skills for Life (SSL) is a transdiagnostic preventive program designed based on the cognitive-behavioral therapy concept to address emotional problems among…