Search results for ‘Subject term:"mental health problems"’ Sort:
Results 1 - 6 of 6
Green shoots of recovery
- Author:
- HAMILTON Jane
- Journal article citation:
- Mental Health Today, March/April, 2013, pp.28-29.
- Publisher:
- Pavilion
- Place of publication:
- Hove
Branching Out is a programme run by the Forestry Commission in Scotland for mental health service users which aims to encourage people to use woodland spaces, undertake conservation activities and learn basic wilderness survival skills. The outdoor therapy programme helps to improve confidence levels and self-esteem and encourage better mental wellbeing. Originally a six month pilot, Branching Out now has 20 groups operating across Scotland. To date the initiative has transformed the lives of 500 people with mental health issues. An additional programme has now been developed in partnership with healthcare organisations to train those with potential as future leaders. In a short case study one man describes how he has benefited from the programme. (Original abstract)
Football metaphor and mental well-being: an evaluation of the It's a Goal! programme
- Authors:
- SPANDER Helen, et al
- Journal article citation:
- Journal of Mental Health, 22(6), 2013, pp.544-554.
- Publisher:
- Taylor and Francis
- Place of publication:
- London
The It's a Goal! programme utilises football metaphor and football venues as a means to frame and deliver a non-clinical, group-based therapeutic intervention, targeting men with mental health needs. The article evaluates the impact of a pilot in the North West of England hosted by seven professional football clubs in partnership with local Primary Care Trusts and identifies the benefits and key components of the approach from the perspective of participants. Analysis of impact utilised before and after well-being scores measured on a modified version of the Warwick-Edinburgh Mental Well-being Scale. Focus groups provided additional qualitative data that were analysed thematically. Findings suggest that It's a Goal! had a significant impact upon participant's well-being. In addition, participants reported a range of positive benefits especially in relation to confidence, self-esteem and developing better coping mechanisms. Participants related these benefits to a number of key components, not least the therapeutic value of football metaphor, the focus on goal-setting and the mutual support developed within the groups.Using football metaphor to deliver a group therapeutic programme aimed at men appears to be an effective means of facilitating mental health benefits. (Edited publisher abstract)
Giving kids a break: how surfing has helped young people in Cornwall overcome mental health and social difficulties
- Author:
- TAYLOR Joe
- Journal article citation:
- Mental Health and Social Inclusion, 17(2), 2013, pp.82-86.
- Publisher:
- Emerald
Purpose – The paper aims to provide a summary of an innovative three-year project that uses surfing as a health intervention for young people with emotional, social or mental health problems. Design/methodology/approach – The paper outlines the project which delivers six-week surfing courses to 100 young people with mental health needs who are experiencing social exclusion. Participants’ levels of self-confidence, self-esteem and wellbeing were measured using pre and post wellbeing rating scales, along with feedback from clients and the people around them. Findings – The intervention had a positive impact on the lives of participants. Average confidence and wellbeing scores rose over the six weeks. Some clients made significant improvements in managing their own behaviour and in achieving improved social inclusion. Examples of this cited in the paper include children at risk of school refusal who re-engaged with school, and improvements to their behaviour at home or with peers. Research limitations/implications – Evaluation interviews were undertaken by volunteers, not a professional evaluator. Social implications – The paper describes opportunities for health trusts and local authorities to explore surfing as a positive intervention for individuals experiencing mental health or social exclusion problems. Originality/value – The paper highlights a highly innovative approach to re-engaging young people which could be of value to health or local authority (Publisher abstract)
The Assessment Checklist for Adolescents - ACA: a scale for measuring the mental health of young people in foster, kinship, residential and adoptive care
- Author:
- TARREN-SWEENEY Michael
- Journal article citation:
- Children and Youth Services Review, 35(3), 2013, pp.384-393.
- Publisher:
- Elsevier
This article describes the development of the Assessment Checklist for Adolescents (ACA), a 105-item carer-report mental health rating scale, measuring behaviours, emotional states, traits, and manners of relating to others, as manifested by adolescents (ages 12 to 17) residing in various types of alternate care, as well as those adopted from care. The ACA was designed for population and clinical research with these young people, and for use as a clinical assessment measure. The ACA's content was largely derived from the Assessment Checklist for Children (ACC). Fifteen ACC items were modified to better reflect adolescent difficulties, and 25 additional items were derived using a combination of inductive and deductive strategies. Item and factor analyses were carried out on scores from a 136-item research instrument, obtained for 230 young people residing in long-term care. These data were supplemented by ACC scores obtained for 142 adolescents residing in treatment foster care in Ontario, Canada. A robust 7-factor model was identified among a core of 73 clinical item scores, accounting for 51% of score variance. Four of the factors replicate ACC clinical scales (non-reciprocal interpersonal behaviour; sexual behaviour problems; food maintenance behaviour; and suicide discourse), and three are unique to the ACA (social instability/behavioural dysregulation; emotional dysregulation/distorted social cognition; and dissociation/trauma symptoms). The ACA also contains two empirically-derived low self-esteem scales (low confidence; negative self-image) that are shared with the ACC. Initial data indicate that the ACA has good content, construct and criterion-related validity, as well as high internal reliability. (Edited publisher abstract)
Resilience to bullying victimization: the role of individual, family and peer characteristics
- Authors:
- SAPOUNA Maria, WOLKE Dieter
- Journal article citation:
- Child Abuse and Neglect, 37(11), 2013, pp.997-1006.
- Publisher:
- Elsevier
Little research attention has been paid to bullied students who function better than expected and are therefore defined as “resilient”. The present longitudinal study aimed to identify individual, family and peer factors that predict fewer than expected levels of depression and delinquency following experiences of bullying victimisation. The sample consisted 3,136 adolescents. Self-report data were used to measure bullying victimisation at age 13 and 14 and depression and delinquency at age 14. We examined the effects of gender, self-esteem, social alienation, parental conflict, sibling victimisation and number of close friends on levels of emotional and behavioural resilience following bullying victimisation. The resilience measures were derived by regressing depression and delinquency scores at age 14 on levels of bullying victimisation at age 13 and 14, respectively. The adolescents who reported low depression despite frequently experiencing bullying tended to be male, had higher self-esteem, were feeling less socially alienated, were experiencing low levels of conflict with parents and were not victimised by siblings. On the other hand, the adolescents who reported low delinquency despite frequently experiencing bullying tended to be female, had higher self-esteem, were experiencing low levels of conflict with parents, were not victimised by siblings and had less close friends. Relationships with parents and siblings continue to play some role in promoting emotional and behavioural adjustment among victims of bullying and, therefore, interventions are more likely to be successful if they target both the psychosocial skills of adolescents and their relationships with their family. (Publisher abstract)
Associations among adverse childhood experiences, aggression, depression, and self-esteem in serious female juvenile offenders in Japan
- Authors:
- MATSUURA Naomi, HASIMOTO Toshiaki, TOICHI Motomi
- Journal article citation:
- Journal of Forensic Psychiatry and Psychology (The), 24(1), 2013, pp.111-127.
- Publisher:
- Taylor and Francis
Compared to the extent to which boys’ antisocial behaviour has been studied there is relatively little information about juvenile delinquent girls. It appears that female juvenile offenders are more likely to have a history of childhood abuse, emotional disturbances, mental health problems, and serious problems involving substance abuse. The aim of this study were threefold: to investigate the characteristics of self-esteem, aggressiveness, depressiveness, and adverse childhood experiences (ACEs); to examine the relationships of these characteristics between female inmates of a juvenile correctional facility and age- and gender-matched controls; and to propose an appropriate cause–effect relation model using structural equal modelling. A total of 81 female juveniles admitted to a female juvenile correctional facility in Japan (aged 15-18 years, mean age 17) and 285 age- and sex-matched comparisons completed a battery of questionnaires. In agreement with the literature many of the subjects had a low IQ and various criminalities (mean FIQ for the study group was 80). One third had committed drug related offences. There was clear evidence for strong relationship between ACEs, aggression, depression, and low self-esteem. In addition, path analysis by structural equation modelling showed a simple clear model diagram regarding self-esteem in the female juvenile offenders.