scholarly journals Social behavior and youth psychopathology during the COVID-19 pandemic: A longitudinal study

2021 ◽  
Author(s):  
Alexandra M Rodman ◽  
Maya L. Rosen ◽  
Steven William Kasparek ◽  
Makeda Mayes ◽  
Liliana Lengua ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Social Behavior ◽  
Children And Adolescents ◽  
Peer Relationships ◽  
Internalizing Symptoms ◽  
Mental Health Problems ◽  
Longitudinal Design ◽  
Well Being ◽  
The Impact ◽  
Internalizing And Externalizing ◽  
At Home

Objective: The COVID-19 pandemic has brought unprecedented changes to the lives of youth, including social distancing measures and stay-at-home orders resulting in a sudden and stark reduction in daily social interactions for children and adolescents. Given that peer relationships are especially important during this developmental stage, it is crucial to understand the impact of COVID-19 pandemic on social behavior and risk for mental health problems in children and adolescents. Method: In a longitudinal sample (N=224, aged 7-15 years old) assessed at three strategic time points (prior to the pandemic, during the stay-at-home order period, and again six months later), we examine the social lives of children and adolescents and whether certain social behaviors may protect against increases in internalizing and externalizing problems during the pandemic. Results: Youth who reported lower levels of in-person and digital socialization, greater social isolation, and less peer and parent support had heightened internalizing and externalizing symptoms during the pandemic, controlling for pre-pandemic symptoms. Youth who reported more social connectedness and increased use of digital socialization during the pandemic were less likely to develop psychopathology after experiencing pandemic-related stressors. In addition, children, but not adolescents, who maintained some socialization in-person were less likely to develop internalizing symptoms following exposure to pandemic-related stressors. Conclusion: Using a longitudinal design, we identify social factors that promote well-being and resilience in children and adolescents during this societal event. We provide practical recommendations to mitigate risk of psychopathology resulting from the dramatic changes in youths’ social experiences during the pandemic.

scholarly journals A call to action to address COVID-19–induced global food insecurity to prevent hunger, malnutrition, and eating pathology

2020 ◽  
Vol 79 (1) ◽  
pp. 114-116 ◽  
Author(s):  
Georgios Paslakis ◽  
Gina Dimitropoulos ◽  
Debra K Katzman
Keyword(s):  
Food Insecurity ◽  
Children And Adolescents ◽  
Mental Health Problems ◽  
Well Being ◽  
Eating Attitudes ◽  
Eating Pathology ◽  
Food Prices ◽  
Food Sources ◽  
The Impact ◽  
Global Food

Abstract The coronavirus 2019 disease (COVID-19) pandemic has led to food shortages, increased food prices, and loss of income. As a result, global food insecurity alerts have been issued. The pandemic threatens millions of children and adolescents and their families currently living with or at risk for development of food insecurity. The lack of consistent access to nutritious food sources is associated with chronic physical and mental health problems and death. Studies on food insecurity and eating pathology have heightened our concern about the impact the added effect of the pandemic may have on eating behaviors of children and adolescents. Here, we want to draw attention to the need for making food security and healthy eating attitudes and behaviors a global priority during the COVID-19 pandemic to guarantee the current and future health and well-being of our children and adolescents.

Promoting youth mental health during COVID-19: A Longitudinal Study spanning pre- and post-pandemic

2021 ◽  
Author(s):  
Maya L. Rosen ◽  
Alexandra M Rodman ◽  
Steven William Kasparek ◽  
Makeda Mayes ◽  
Malila M. Freeman ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Mental Health ◽  
News Media ◽  
Screen Time ◽  
Internalizing Symptoms ◽  
Mental Health Problems ◽  
Strong Association ◽  
Wide Range ◽  
The Face ◽  
Internalizing And Externalizing ◽  
At Home

The COVID-19 pandemic has introduced many novel stressors into the lives of youth. Identifying factors that protect against the onset of psychopathology in the face of these pandemic-related stressors is critical. We examine a wide range of factors that may protect youth from developing psychopathology during the pandemic. We assessed pandemic-related stressors, internalizing and externalizing psychopathology, and potentially protective factors in a longitudinal sample of children and adolescents (N=224, 7-15 years) assessed prior to the pandemic, during the stay-at-home orders, and six months later. We evaluate how family behaviors during the stay-at-home orders are related to changes in psychopathology relative to the assessment prior to the pandemic, identify factors that moderate the association of pandemic-related stressors with psychopathology, and determine whether these associations vary by age. Higher exposure to pandemic-related stressors was associated with increases in both internalizing and externalizing symptoms and this association persisted six months later. Greater engagement in exercise, a structured routine, greater time spent in nature, and less screen time, were associated with reduced internalizing and externalizing problems. The association between pandemic-related stressors and increases in psychopathology was significantly lower for youths with limited passive screen time, and marginally so for those with more time outdoors. The strong association between pandemic-related stressors and internalizing symptoms was absent among children, but not adolescents, with lower news media consumption related to the pandemic both concurrently and prospectively. We provide insight into simple and practical steps that families can take that may promote resilience against mental health problems in youth during the COVID-19 pandemic and protect against psychopathology following pandemic-related stressors.

scholarly journals Child maltreatment, cognitive functions and the mediating role of mental health problems among maltreated children and adolescents in Uganda

2021 ◽  
Vol 15 (1) ◽  
Author(s):  
Herbert E. Ainamani ◽  
Godfrey Z. Rukundo ◽  
Timothy Nduhukire ◽  
Eunice Ndyareba ◽  
Tobias Hecker
Keyword(s):  
Mental Health ◽  
Working Memory ◽  
Child Maltreatment ◽  
Executive Functions ◽  
Cognitive Functioning ◽  
Children And Adolescents ◽  
Mental Health Problems ◽  
Depression Scale ◽  
Well Being ◽  
Health Problems

Abstract Background Child maltreatment poses high risks to the mental health and cognitive functioning of children not only in childhood but also in later life. However, it remains unclear whether child maltreatment is directly associated with impaired cognitive functioning or whether this link is mediated by mental health problems. Our study aimed at examining this research question among children and adolescents in Uganda. Methods A sample of 232 school-going children and adolescents with a mean age of 14.03 (SD = 3.25) was assessed on multiple forms of maltreatment using the Maltreatment and Abuse Chronology Exposure—Pediatric Version (pediMACE). Executive functions were assessed by the Tower of London task and working memory by the Corsi Block Tapping task, while mental health problems were assessed using the Child PTSD Symptom Scale for PTSD and the Center for Epidemiological Studies Depression Scale for Children (CES-DC). Results In total, 232 (100%) of the participant reported to have experienced at least one type of maltreatment in their lifetime including emotional, physical, and sexual violence as well as neglect. We found a negative association between child maltreatment and executive functions (β = − 0.487, p < 0.001) and working memory (β = − 0.242, p = 0.001). Mental health problems did not mediate this relationship. Conclusions Child maltreatment seems to be related to lower working memory and executive functioning of affected children and adolescents even after controlling for potential cofounders. Our study indicates that child maltreatment the affects children’s cognitive functionality beyond health and well-being.

scholarly journals Contributing Factors in Adolescents’ Mental Well-Being—The Role of Socioeconomic Status, Social Support, and Health Behavior

2020 ◽  
Vol 12 (22) ◽  
pp. 9597
Author(s):  
Gabriella Nagy-Pénzes ◽  
Ferenc Vincze ◽  
Éva Bíró
Keyword(s):  
Social Support ◽  
Socioeconomic Status ◽  
Life Satisfaction ◽  
Health Behavior ◽  
Mental Health Problems ◽  
Well Being ◽  
Cross Sectional ◽  
Unhealthy Eating ◽  
The Impact ◽  
Mental Well Being

Mental disorders are common in adolescents, and for effective interventions we should be aware of their determinants. However, there are only a small number of studies investigating the combined effect of multiple factors. Therefore, our aim is to assess the impact of socioeconomic status, social support, and health behavior on adolescents’ mental well-being. A cross-sectional health survey of 1641 children was carried out in accordance with the study protocol of the Hungarian Health Behavior in School-aged Children survey. Multivariate multiple regression was used to analyze the main determinants of mental well-being. The boys’ mental well-being was favorable compared to girls; lower subjective family wealth was associated with lower life satisfaction and depressive mood. Life satisfaction was positively related to healthy eating, social support, and physical activity. Unhealthy eating, sedentary lifestyle, and lower social support were associated with higher depression scores. Higher social support reduces psychosomatic symptoms, while unhealthy eating and spending a lot of time in front of the computer increase them. Both social support and healthy lifestyle seem to be protective against mental health problems among adolescents, and thus interventions should focus on these factors regardless of the socioeconomic status of the participants, with special attention given to girls.

Improving lives not just saying no to substances: Evaluating outcomes for a young people’s substance use team trained in the AMBIT approach

2021 ◽  
Vol 26 (2) ◽  
pp. 490-504
Author(s):  
Peter Fuggle ◽  
Laura Talbot ◽  
James Wheeler ◽  
Jessica Rees ◽  
Emily Ventre ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Mental Health ◽  
Substance Use ◽  
Alcohol Use ◽  
Young People ◽  
Peer Relationships ◽  
Functional Outcomes ◽  
Daily Living ◽  
Mental Health Problems ◽  
Integrative Therapy ◽  
The Impact

Adaptive Mentalization Based Integrative Therapy (AMBIT) is a systemic, mentalization based intervention designed for young people with multiple problems including mental health problems. The purpose of this paper is to examine the impact of this approach both on clinical and functional outcomes for young people seen by a specialist young people’s substance use service between 2015 and 2018. About 499 cases were seen by the service during this period. Substance use outcomes were obtained for 383 cases using the Treatment Outcome Profile (TOP). Cannabis and alcohol use were the key substance use problems for 81% and 63% respectively. Functional outcomes using the AMBIT Integrative Measure (AIM) were obtained for 100 cases covering domains of daily living, socio-economic context, peer relationships and mental health. At treatment end, cannabis use reduced significantly ( t = 10.78; df = 311; p = .00; Cohen’s d ES.61 as did alcohol use ( t = 6.938; df = 242; p = .000; ES 0.44). Functional improvements were shown in five out of seven domains with highly significant total functional improvements on key problems selected by the client ( t = 14.01; df = 99; p = .000; ES1.34). Measuring functional as well as clinical outcomes appears to reflect more accurately the overall benefit of the service to clients.

Leveraging Twitter Using Artificial Intelligence to Explore Mental Health Insights in the UK During the COVID-19 Pandemic (Preprint)

2021 ◽  
Author(s):  
Christopher Marshall ◽  
Kate Lanyi ◽  
Rhiannon Green ◽  
Georgie Wilkins ◽  
Fiona Pearson ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Mental Health ◽  
Artificial Intelligence ◽  
Language Processing ◽  
Mental Health Problems ◽  
Well Being ◽  
Research Activity ◽  
Health Crisis ◽  
Key Topics ◽  
The Uk ◽  
The Impact

BACKGROUND There is increasing need to explore the value of soft-intelligence, leveraged using the latest artificial intelligence (AI) and natural language processing (NLP) techniques, as a source of analysed evidence to support public health research activity and decision-making. OBJECTIVE The aim of this study was to further explore the value of soft-intelligence analysed using AI through a case study, which examined a large collection of UK tweets relating to mental health during the COVID-19 pandemic. METHODS A search strategy comprising a list of terms related to mental health, COVID-19, and lockdown restrictions was developed to prospectively collate relevant tweets via Twitter’s advanced search application programming interface over a 24-week period. We deployed a specialist NLP platform to explore tweet frequency and sentiment across the UK and identify key topics of discussion. A series of keyword filters were used to clean the initial data retrieved and also set up to track specific mental health problems. Qualitative document analysis was carried out to further explore and expand upon the results generated by the NLP platform. All collated tweets were anonymised RESULTS We identified and analysed 286,902 tweets posted from UK user accounts from 23 July 2020 to 6 January 2021. The average sentiment score was 50%, suggesting overall neutral sentiment across all tweets over the study period. Major fluctuations in volume and sentiment appeared to coincide with key changes to any local and/or national social-distancing measures. Tweets around mental health were polarising, discussed with both positive and negative sentiment. Key topics of consistent discussion over the study period included the impact of the pandemic on people’s mental health (both positively and negatively), fear and anxiety over lockdowns, and anger and mistrust toward the government. CONCLUSIONS Through the primary use of an AI-based NLP platform, we were able to rapidly mine and analyse emerging health-related insights from UK tweets into how the pandemic may be impacting people’s mental health and well-being. This type of real-time analysed evidence could act as a useful intelligence source that agencies, local leaders, and health care decision makers can potentially draw from, particularly during a health crisis.

scholarly journals Impact of the COVID-19 pandemic on healthcare workers

2021 ◽  
Author(s):  
Versha Prasad
Keyword(s):  
Health Care Professionals ◽  
Healthcare Workers ◽  
Mental Health Problems ◽  
Mainland China ◽  
Well Being ◽  
Working Environment ◽  
Mental Condition ◽  
Post Traumatic Stress ◽  
Personal Protection Equipment ◽  
The Impact

The coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) pandemic has heavily burdened, and in many cases overwhelmed, healthcare systems including healthcare workers. The novel COVID-19 started from Wuhan in mainland China. Since then it has affected most of the nations and continents because of its rapid spread. Most commonly affected are the healthcare professionals who are working on the frontline. The COVID-19 epidemic has mushroomed globally, disrupting the existence of millions It is a generalized mental condition occurring without any trigger or stimulus. Various symptoms of depression are: anxious, sad and empty feelings, hopelessness, guilt and may be sense of helplessness, restless attitude, irritation, and lack of interest in various hobbies and activities and were once considered relax able and which are used to provide pleasure. Furthermore, healthcare workers reported mental health problems putatively associated with healthcare workers’ occupational activities during and up until years after epidemics, including symptoms of post-traumatic stress, burnout, depression and anxiety. As for lack of material, a high percentage of professionals are getting infected for not having adequate personal protection equipment (PPE) and not using it properly, having to re-use in many occasions equipment which is only recommended for one-time utilization. During work performed by healthcare workers, several pressure elements from different sources may impact on keeping optimal conditions for a healthy working environment, and because of the saturation of the sanitary facilities due to the high level of virus infection, the health of these professionals has been obviously affected. While the main focus is concentrated on laboratory testing, finding the disease cure and prevention of transmission, all individuals are undergoing a plethora of psychological problems while adjusting to current lifestyles and disease fear. In current study, an attempt has been made to find out the impact of this pandemic situation on psychological well-being of healthcare and non-healthcare workers. Our study has reported identical findings to those reported by numerous investigators working across the globe. The present paper has outlined the stressors which the frontline health care professionals have faced including fear of spreading disease to co-workers and members of the family, irregular sleep patterns, abrupt work cycles, and lack of adequate training skills in dealing with such a novel situation.

scholarly journals Iraq: children's and adolescents' mental health under conditions of continuous turmoil

2011 ◽  
Vol 8 (1) ◽  
pp. 4-5 ◽  
Author(s):  
AbdulKareem AlObaidi
Keyword(s):  
Mental Health ◽  
Children And Adolescents ◽  
Health Systems ◽  
Mental Health Problems ◽  
Family Members ◽  
Well Being ◽  
Health Problems ◽  
Civil Unrest ◽  
Education And Health

Children and adolescents constitute half of Iraq's population of over 30 million. Mental health problems experienced by Iraqi children and adolescents are a hidden problem. Many factors contribute to the mental health problems of young Iraqis, including being victims and witnesses to violence, seeing family members become victims, being displaced from their homes, and experiencing the instability that still plagues their nation. Iraqis have experienced severe deprivation caused by many years of war, economic embargoes and civil unrest. Violence, poverty and the failure of the education and health systems have severely undermined the well-being of Iraqis, especially children (AlObaidi et al, 2009).

scholarly journals Child maltreatment, cognitive functions and the mediating role of mental health problems among maltreated children and adolescents in Uganda

2020 ◽  
Author(s):  
Herbert E Ainamani ◽  
Godfrey Z Rukundo ◽  
Timothy Nduhukire ◽  
Eunice Ndyareba ◽  
Tobias Hecker
Keyword(s):  
Mental Health ◽  
Working Memory ◽  
Child Maltreatment ◽  
Executive Functions ◽  
Cognitive Functioning ◽  
Children And Adolescents ◽  
Mental Health Problems ◽  
Depression Scale ◽  
Well Being ◽  
Health Problems

Abstract Background: Child maltreatment poses high risks to the mental health and cognitive functioning of children not only in childhood but also in later life. However, it remains unclear whether child maltreatment is directly associated with impaired cognitive functioning or whether this link is mediated by mental health problems. Our study aimed at examining this research question among children and adolescents in Uganda. Methods: A sample of 232 school-going children and adolescents with a mean age of 14.03 (SD = 3.25) was assessed on multiple forms of maltreatment using the Maltreatment and Abuse Chronology Exposure – Pediatric Version (pediMACE). Executive functions were assessed by the Tower of London task and working memory by the Corsi Block Tapping task, while mental health problems were assessed using the Child PTSD Symptom Scale for PTSD and the Center for Epidemiological Studies Depression Scale for Children (CES-DC).Results: In total, 232(100%) of the participant reported to have experienced at least one type of maltreatment in their lifetime ranging from having been intentionally pushed by an authority figure (89.7%, n = 208) to entering an object in the participant’s body (2.6%, n =6). We found a negative association between child maltreatment and executive functions (β = -0.487, p < .001) and working memory (β = -0.242, p = .001). Mental health problems did not mediate this relationship.Conclusions: Child maltreatment seems to be related to lower working memory and executive functioning of affected children and adolescents even after controlling for potential cofounders. Our study indicates that child maltreatment affects children’s cognitive functionality beyond health and well-being.

scholarly journals Impact of community gardening on lifestyles' sustainability: quantitative & qualitative evaluation of a natural experiment

2020 ◽  
Author(s):  
Marion Tharrey ◽  
Ashby Sachs ◽  
Marlène Perignon ◽  
Chantal Simon ◽  
Caroline Mejean ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Longitudinal Design ◽  
Community Gardens ◽  
Well Being ◽  
Social Health ◽  
Lower Percentage ◽  
Independent Effect ◽  
First Year ◽  
Community Garden ◽  
Community Gardening ◽  
The Impact

Abstract Background: Despite the increasing number of studies on gardening and health, evidence of health benefits of community gardening is limited by cross-sectional design. The “JArDinS” quasi-experimental study aimed to assess the impact of community garden participation on the adoption of more sustainable lifestyles in French adults. Methods: Individuals starting gardening in community gardens in Montpellier (France) in 2018 (N=66) were compared to pairwise matched individuals with no experience in community gardening (N=66). Monthly household food supplies, physical activity measured by accelerometers and questionnaires on physical, mental and social well-being, sensitivity to food waste, and connection with nature were used to explore sustainability of lifestyles in social/health, environmental and economic dimensions. Data were collected at baseline (t0) and 12 months later (t1). Linear mixed models were used to determine the independent effect of community gardening on investigated lifestyles components. In-depth interviews were conducted at t1 with 15 gardeners to better understand changes that may have occurred in gardeners’ lives during the first year of gardening.Results: At t0, gardeners had lower education level, lower BMI and reported lower percentage of meals consumed outside of the home in total household meals compared to non-gardeners (p<0.05). At t1, the mean weight of fruit and vegetables harvested from the garden was 19.5g/d/p. Participating in the community garden had no significant impact on any of the social/health, environmental and economic lifestyle components investigated. Qualitative interviews suggested the existence of pre-established health and environmental consciousness in some gardeners and revealed several barriers to the participation such as lack of time, lack of gardening knowledge, difficulty of gardening, health problems and conflicts with other gardeners. Conclusions: Using a longitudinal design allowing causality assessment, no impact was observed of the first year of community gardening on lifestyle sustainability. The pre-established sensitivity to sustainability and the various barriers encountered by new gardeners might explain the absence of community gardening impact. Further rigorous longitudinal studies are needed to determine whether or not community gardening is a relevant public health tool.Trial registration: The study was registered at clinicaltrials.gov as NCT03694782. Date of registration: 3rd October 2018, retrospectively registered.

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