Intergenerational trauma transmission through family psychosocial factors in adult children of Rwandan survivors of the 1994 genocide against the Tutsi.

Thirty years after the 1994 genocide against the Tutsi in Rwanda, children of survivors are being increasingly documented to be at higher risk compared to their peers for adverse mental health outcomes. However, no studies in Rwanda have empirically explored family psychosocial factors underlying this intergenerational transmission of trauma. We investigated family psychosocial factors that could underlie this transmission in 251 adult Rwandan children of survivors (mean age = 23.31, SD = 2.40; 50.2% female) who completed a cross-sectional online survey. For participants with survivor mothers (n = 187), we found that both offspring-reported maternal trauma exposure and maternal PTSD were indirectly associated with children's PTSD via maternal trauma communication (specifically, nonverbal and guilt-inducing communication), and that maternal PTSD was indirectly associated with children's PTSD, anxiety, and depression symptoms through family communication styles. For participants with survivor fathers (n = 170), we found that paternal PTSD symptoms were indirectly associated with children's anxiety and depression symptoms via paternal parenting styles (specifically, abusive and indifferent parenting). Although replication is needed in longitudinal research with parent-child dyads, these results reaffirm the importance of looking at mass trauma in a family context and suggest that intergenerational trauma interventions should focus on addressing family communication, trauma communication, and parenting.

A roadmap to equitable school mental health screening.

Youth in the United States are experiencing mental health concerns at alarming rates. Considering the nation's legacy of racism and growing recognition of the impact of social determinants of health on educational and mental health inequities, it is imperative to re-envision how we approach mental health screening in schools to center equity. A focus on mental health screening for the sole purpose of identifying individual at-risk students ignores key contextual considerations, is ineffective in addressing health and educational inequities, and has the potential to perpetuate oppressive practices in schools. Equity-focused mental health screening requires a shift from individual- and deficit-focused approaches to systems- and holistic-focused approaches that (a) identify strengths and stressors among individuals, groups, and communities; (b) dismantle structural forms of oppression; and (c) promote positive mental health outcomes for minoritized youth. Integrating recommendations from the educational equity literature and critical school mental health frameworks, this paper identifies core considerations for equitable school mental health screening and provides guiding principles for each phase of the screening process, from screening readiness to execution to follow up. To implement these recommendations and transform school-based mental health care, schools should (a) incorporate multiple perspectives; (b) prioritize student, family, and community voices; and (c) build collaborative partnerships to co-construct a vision for equitable school mental health.

Bullying types and roles in early adolescence: Latent classes of perpetrators and victims.

Although research has suggested that youth involved in bullying as victims, perpetrators, or both are at risk for negative outcomes, less work has investigated different patterns in how youth are involved in bullying with consideration for both the role (i.e., victimization and perpetration) as well as type of behaviors experienced (i.e., cyber, verbal, relational, and physical). Using Latent Class Analysis (LCA), the current study investigated patterns of bullying involvement with a sample of 799 middle school students. Results indicated that five classes of bully-involved youth emerged, including a (a) not involved class, (b) traditional bully victim class, (c) verbal bully-victim class, (d) traditional victim-only class, and (e) cyber bully-victim class. Notably, the bully-involved groups demonstrated significantly more internalizing, externalizing, and school related problems than youth not involved in bullying. Implications regarding identification of youth at risk for social and emotional challenges and intervention planning for bully involved youth are discussed.

Parent and peer social support compensation and internalizing problems in adolescence.

The general benefits of social support are well-documented; however, little is understood about the unique contributions of social support from specific sources, such as parents and peers. In addition, it is unknown whether social support from some sources might buffer against a lack of social support from another source for the outcome of internalizing problems. The current study investigated two research questions: (a) What is the association between social support from mothers, fathers, classmates, and close friends and internalizing problems for adolescent boys and girls? and (b) Can social support from one source (e.g., mothers) buffer against internalizing problems when social support from another source (e.g., fathers) may be lacking? Do these associations vary by gender? These research questions were examined with a sample of 364 middle school students (61.3% female). Students completed a series of self-report questionnaires assessing social support and internalizing symptoms. Multiple group structural equation models indicated that social support provided general benefits from all sources for early adolescent boys and girls. Regarding stress-buffering with low support as a stressor, no evidence was found for compensation between mothers and fathers. Mother support compensated for low classmate support for both boys and girls and father support compensated for low classmate support for boys. Classmate support compensated for low close friend support for boys. Implications in the context of the school environment for both boys and girls are discussed.

A meta-analytic review of the association between perceived social support and depression in childhood and adolescence.

This meta-analysis evaluated the relation between social support and depression in youth and compared the cumulative evidence for 2 theories that have been proposed to explain this association: the general benefits (GB; also known as main effects) and stress-buffering (SB) models. The study included 341 articles (19% unpublished) gathered through a search in PsycINFO, PsycARTICLES, ERIC, and ProQuest, and a hand search of 11 relevant journals. Using a random effects model, the overall effect size based on k = 341 studies and N = 273,149 participants was r = .26 (95% CI [.24, .28]), with robust support for the GB model and support for the SB model among medically ill youth. Stress-buffering analyses suggest that different stressful contexts may not allow youth to fully draw on the benefits of social support, and we propose value in seeking to better understand both stress-buffering (effects of social support are enhanced) and reverse stress-buffering (effects of social support are dampened) processes. Key findings regarding other moderators include a different pattern of effect sizes across various sources of support. In addition, gender differences were largely absent from this study, suggesting that social support may be a more critical resource for boys than is typically acknowledged. Results also demonstrated the importance of using instruments with adequate psychometric support, with careful consideration of methodological and conceptual issues. Building upon these collective findings, we provide recommendations for theory and practice, as well as recommendations for addressing limitations in the extant literature to guide future investigations. (PsycINFO Database Record

Examining the effects of adult and peer mediated goal setting and feedback interventions for writing: Two studies.

The current study investigated the effects of goal setting and performance feedback on Curriculum Based Measurement in Written Expression (CBM-WE). This two-study investigation examined the utility of the intervention using two different delivery mechanisms. In Study 1, fourth grade students (n=114) were provided both with (a) feedback from their teachers regarding their performance on CBM-WE probes and (b) new weekly goals or no feedback and goals, once a week for a ten-week intervention period. Study 2 examined the effects of this intervention with a sample of fifth grade students (n=106) when feedback and individual goals were provided by peers within their classrooms twice weekly over the course of eight weeks compared to a practice only control condition. Results in both studies indicated that students receiving the goal setting and feedback intervention performed significantly higher on production-dependent writing indices post-intervention than control groups (ES=.12-.28). Implications regarding the usefulness of goal setting and feedback utilizing CBM procedures are discussed.