scholarly journals Early Childhood Educators' Knowledge and Perception of Mental Health In Their Preschool Classroom

2021 ◽  
Author(s):  
Asia Leon
Keyword(s):  
Mental Health ◽  
Health Promotion ◽  
Early Childhood ◽  
Future Research ◽  
Health Concerns ◽  
Knowledge And Skills ◽  
Knowledge Practices ◽  
Preschool Classrooms ◽  
Mental Health Challenges ◽  
The Impact

Decades of research on the impact of early mental health challenges in young children suggest that the effects are detrimental on children’s development without the presence of protective factors. As a factor for promoting mental health, early childhood classrooms and educators create optimal opportunities to identify and respond to children’s mental health concerns. However, little research explores the knowledge and skills of ECEs to effectively promote and support mental health challenges. The present study aimed to identify the mental health promotional knowledge, practices and experiences of ECEs in their preschool classrooms, as well as contribute to mental health promotion. Findings indicate that ECEs have little knowledge in promoting and supporting mental health in their classrooms and how that influences their practice. Suggestions for policymakers, early childhood practitioners, and future research are provided.

scholarly journals Early Childhood Educators' Knowledge and Perception of Mental Health In Their Preschool Classroom

2021 ◽  
Author(s):  
Asia Leon
Keyword(s):  
Mental Health ◽  
Health Promotion ◽  
Early Childhood ◽  
Future Research ◽  
Health Concerns ◽  
Knowledge And Skills ◽  
Knowledge Practices ◽  
Preschool Classrooms ◽  
Mental Health Challenges ◽  
The Impact

Decades of research on the impact of early mental health challenges in young children suggest that the effects are detrimental on children’s development without the presence of protective factors. As a factor for promoting mental health, early childhood classrooms and educators create optimal opportunities to identify and respond to children’s mental health concerns. However, little research explores the knowledge and skills of ECEs to effectively promote and support mental health challenges. The present study aimed to identify the mental health promotional knowledge, practices and experiences of ECEs in their preschool classrooms, as well as contribute to mental health promotion. Findings indicate that ECEs have little knowledge in promoting and supporting mental health in their classrooms and how that influences their practice. Suggestions for policymakers, early childhood practitioners, and future research are provided.

scholarly journals Did that Professional Education about Mental Health Promotion Make Any Difference? Early Childhood Educators’ Reflections upon Changes in Their Knowledge and Practices

2013 ◽  
Vol 23 (2) ◽  
pp. 201-221 ◽  
Author(s):  
Helen Askell-Williams ◽  
Rosalind Murray-Harvey
Keyword(s):  
Mental Health ◽  
Health Promotion ◽  
Early Childhood ◽  
Professional Learning ◽  
Professional Education ◽  
Mental Health Promotion ◽  
Policy Makers ◽  
Education And Care ◽  
Health Promotion Initiative ◽  
The Impact

Educators are at the heart of educational reforms, such as the introduction of mental health promotion initiatives into early childhood education and care (ECEC) settings. Good quality implementation of reforms requires educators to engage in high quality professional learning: If educators have not had opportunities to gain appropriate knowledge and expertise, new initiatives may be poorly implemented and may consequently achieve limited outcomes. This article reports ECEC educators’ perspectives about the impact on their knowledge and practices of the professional education component of the KidsMatter mental health promotion initiative. Educators from 111 ECEC services across Australia contributed a range of types of data, including questionnaires about their knowledge and self-efficacy, feedback about each professional education session, and photo stories about their changed professional practices. Participants indicated that their professional learning led to changed practices in areas such as interpreting children's behaviours, interacting with children, approaching parents, and collaborating with colleagues. Participants’ photo stories illustrate how professional education that focuses on content, active learning, coherence, and collaboration can positively influence knowledge and practices. However, if such gains are to last beyond relatively highly resourced start-up phases of initiatives, professional education needs to integrate with, and draw from, the ongoing availability of other professionals such as guidance and counselling staff, who have complementary knowledge and expertise; be recognised and embedded as a core component of ECEC educators’ roles and their workplace practices; and be culturally and contextually situated. Staff accounts of the impact of their professional learning on their practices can highlight to policy-makers the practical outcomes of strong investments in professional education. Awareness by other professions of the affordances and constraints faced by ECEC educators may contribute to interdisciplinary synergies among the range of professions involved in mental health promotion in educational settings.

scholarly journals Training may enhance early childhood educators’ self-efficacy to lead physical activity in childcare

2021 ◽  
Vol 21 (1) ◽  
Author(s):  
Brianne A. Bruijns ◽  
Andrew M. Johnson ◽  
Jennifer D. Irwin ◽  
Shauna M. Burke ◽  
Molly Driediger ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Physical Activity ◽  
Early Childhood ◽  
Self Efficacy ◽  
Critical Role ◽  
Early Childhood Educators ◽  
Outdoor Play ◽  
Future Research ◽  
Intervention Component ◽  
Space Extension ◽  
The Impact

Abstract Background Early childhood educators (ECEs) play a critical role in promoting physical activity (PA) among preschoolers in childcare; thus, PA-related training for ECEs is essential. The Supporting PA in the Childcare Environment (SPACE) intervention incorporated: 1. shorter, more frequent outdoor play sessions; 2. provision of portable play equipment; and, PA training for ECEs. An extension of the SPACE intervention (the SPACE-Extension) incorporated only the shorter, more frequent outdoor play periods component of the original SPACE intervention. The purpose of this study was to explore the individual impact of these interventions on ECEs’ PA-related self-efficacy and knowledge. Methods ECEs from the SPACE (n = 83) and SPACE-Extension (n = 31) were administered surveys at all intervention time-points to assess: self-efficacy to engage preschoolers in PA (n = 6 items; scale 0 to 100); self-efficacy to implement the intervention (n = 6 items); and, knowledge of preschooler-specific PA and screen-viewing guidelines (n = 2 items). A linear mixed effects model was used to analyze the impact of each intervention on ECEs’ self-efficacy and knowledge and controlled for multiple comparison bias. Results The SPACE intervention significantly impacted ECEs’ self-efficacy to engage preschoolers in PA for 180 min/day (main effect), and when outdoor playtime was not an option (interaction effect). Further, the interaction model for ECEs’ knowledge of the total PA guideline for preschoolers approached significance when compared to the main effects model. Participants within the SPACE-Extension did not demonstrate any significant changes in self-efficacy or knowledge variables. Conclusions Findings from this study highlight the benefit of ECE training in PA with regard to fostering their PA-related self-efficacy and knowledge. Future research should explore the impact of PA training for ECEs uniquely in order to determine if this intervention component, alone, can produce meaningful changes in children’s PA behaviours at childcare.

scholarly journals Enhancing Behavioral Health Competencies for Senior Center Staff: Lessons Learned From Workforce Training Efforts

2020 ◽  
Vol 4 (Supplement_1) ◽  
pp. 1-1
Author(s):  
Bronwyn Keefe ◽  
Jennifer Tripken
Keyword(s):  
Mental Health ◽  
Older Adults ◽  
Behavioral Health ◽  
Lessons Learned ◽  
Organizational Level ◽  
Senior Center ◽  
Senior Centers ◽  
Knowledge And Skills ◽  
Center Staff ◽  
The Impact

Abstract Increases in the numbers of older adults with mental health and substance use concerns compel us to identify best practices in training to address these issues. Senior Centers are an ideal location for behavioral health education programs as they are the go-to place for many older adults. This session will describe a program funded by The Retirement Research Foundation and offered in collaboration with Center for Aging and Disability Education and Research at Boston University and NCOA to increase senior center staff knowledge and skills. Approximately 250 senior center staff in Illinois, Florida, and Wisconsin completed an online certificate in Behavioral Health and Aging. Results show that 100% of respondents felt that the training was useful for their job; 93% felt that they will be a more effective worker as a result of the training; and 97% felt that the information they learned in the training will make a difference with the people they serve. We held key informant interviews to assess the impact of training and participants stated that their knowledge, skills, and behaviors were influenced by the program. At the organizational level, leaders reported new programming related to behavioral health and revised practices and protocols. This presentation will cover: (1) the extent to which training participants mastered the competencies needed for effective practice; (2) knowledge and skills gained from the training program; (3) Senior Centers’ capacity to identify and refer older adults to mental health services; and (4) organizational changes related to behavioral health programming with older adults.

scholarly journals Training Preservice Mental Health Counselors for Suicide Assessment: A Multiple Baseline Study

2019 ◽  
Author(s):  
Teal Bohrer ◽  
Cass Dykeman
Keyword(s):  
Mental Health ◽  
Suicidal Ideation ◽  
Self Efficacy ◽  
The United States ◽  
Multiple Baseline ◽  
Future Research ◽  
Probe Design ◽  
Mental Health Clinicians ◽  
Suicide Assessment ◽  
The Impact

Rates of death by suicide continue to increase across the United States. Mental health clinicians often have contact with individuals expressing suicidal ideation, but research suggests clinicians may not be appropriately prepared to assess a client’s suicide risk. Numerous models and theories explain and assess suicidal ideation. In 2009, Thomas Joiner and his colleagues proposed the interpersonal-psychological theory of suicide (IPT), which focused on three main factors strongly supported by research over the preceding decade. The present study utilized a nonconcurrent, multiple-baseline, multiple-probe design as well as a one-group pretest–posttest design to examine the impact of an IPT-based training model. Participants were preservice mental health clinicians currently enrolled in Master’s degree programs. Participants completed assessments on IPT knowledge and suicide-assessment self-efficacy, and results from this study indicated a significant increase in knowledge after completion of the training, as well as a slight decrease in self-efficacy. This study suggests that suicide-assessment training, even when done remotely, can increase suicide-assessment knowledge. Future research should explore preservice mental health clinicians’ self-efficacy as well as those factors influencing the confidence these professionals feel in their assessments of risk.

scholarly journals Normative range parenting and the developing brain: a scoping review of the literature

2019 ◽  
Author(s):  
Madeline Farber ◽  
Dylan Gee ◽  
Ahmad R. Hariri
Keyword(s):  
Mental Health ◽  
Brain Development ◽  
Scoping Review ◽  
Developmental Trajectories ◽  
Future Research ◽  
Risk And Resilience ◽  
Abuse And Neglect ◽  
Brain Structure And Function ◽  
And Function ◽  
The Impact

Studies of early adversity such as trauma, abuse, and neglect highlight the critical importance of quality caregiving in brain development and mental health. However, the impact of normative range variability in caregiving on such biobehavioral processes remains poorly understood. Thus, we lack an essential foundation for understanding broader, population-representative developmental mechanisms of risk and resilience. Here, we conduct a scoping review of the extant literature centered on the question, “Is variability in normative range parenting associated with variability in brain structure and function?” After removing duplicates and screening by title, abstract, and full-text, 23 records were included in a qualitative review. The most striking outcome of this review was not only how few studies have explored associations between brain development and normative range parenting, but also how little methodological consistency exists across published studies. In light of these limitations, we propose recommendations for future research on normative range parenting and brain development. In doing so, we hope to facilitate evidence-based research that will help inform policies and practices that yield optimal developmental trajectories and mental health.

scholarly journals Shame Mediates the Relationship Between Pain Invalidation and Depression

2021 ◽  
Vol 12 ◽  
Author(s):  
Brandon L. Boring ◽  
Kaitlyn T. Walsh ◽  
Namrata Nanavaty ◽  
Vani A. Mathur
Keyword(s):  
Mental Health ◽  
Depressive Symptoms ◽  
Social Withdrawal ◽  
Well Being ◽  
Poor Mental Health ◽  
Future Research ◽  
Internalized Shame ◽  
Self Worth ◽  
The Impact ◽  
The Relationship

The experience of pain is subjective, yet many people have their pain invalidated or not believed. Pain invalidation is associated with poor mental health, including depression and lower well-being. Qualitative investigations of invalidating experiences identify themes of depression, but also social withdrawal, self-criticism, and lower self-worth, all of which are core components of shame. Despite this, no studies have quantitatively assessed the interrelationship between pain invalidation, shame, and depression. To explore this relationship, participants recounted the frequency of experienced pain invalidation from family, friends, and medical professionals, as well as their feelings of internalized shame and depressive symptoms. As shame has been shown to be a precursor for depression, we further explored the role of shame as a mediator between pain invalidation and depressive symptoms. All sources of pain invalidation were positively associated with shame and depressive symptoms, and shame fully mediated the relationship between each source of pain invalidation and depression. Relative to other sources, pain invalidation from family was most closely tied to shame and depression. Overall, findings indicate that one mechanism by which pain invalidation may facilitate depression is via the experience of shame. Future research may explore shame as a potential upstream precursor to depression in the context of pain. Findings provide more insight into the harmful influence of pain invalidation on mental health and highlight the impact of interpersonal treatment on the experiences of people in pain.

scholarly journals Critical Review of North Korean Women and Children's Health, 2000-2019: Physical and Mental Health Challenges with a Focus on Gender

2019 ◽  
Vol 20 (2) ◽  
pp. 95-128
Author(s):  
Amanda Wright ◽  
Lynn Pyun ◽  
Eunhee Ha ◽  
Jungsun Kim ◽  
Hae Soon Kim ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Mental Health ◽  
South Korea ◽  
Future Research ◽  
Policy Recommendations ◽  
Physical And Mental Health ◽  
Potential Health ◽  
North Korean Defectors ◽  
Women And Children ◽  
Mental Health Challenges ◽  
Gender Based

Women account for over eighty percent of recent North Korean defectors arriving in South Korea, yet there is dearth of gender-based research. Given the speed with which the dialogue on denuclearization with the Democratic People’s Republic of Korea (DPRK, North Korea) has progressed since 2017, there is a surprising gap in research on possible health threats. If sanctions are eased, interactions with these previously isolated people will increase leading to potential health problems. This article reviews studies published since 2000 to understand physical and mental health faced in DPRK, among North Korean defectors to South Korea, and to provide policy recommendations. A content analysis of ninety studies found that mental health challenges are severe for North Korean defectors, and that women suffer differently than men during defection and its aftermath. We recommend a more nuanced and gendered approach for future research in order to devise tangible solutions to improve the health of North Koreans in general, and defector women and children in particular.

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