Background: It is vital to improve the mental health (MH) of young people in Hong Kong, where the suicide rate has nearly doubled among those aged 15-29 years since 2014. This multi-method evaluation aimed to assess Coolminds, which promoted MH literacy by engaging students, parents, and educators in secondary schools in Hong Kong. Methods:…

Background: In France, 3.2 million middle-school students have serious/persistent school difficulties and are re-engaged in adapted-general/vocational-education class (AGVEC), created to early re-engage them in school/professional projects. We assessed the AGVEC's benefits for school-behavior-health-related difficulties (SBHDs). Methods: This…

Background: School-based health centers (SBHCs) provide health care to vulnerable youth. The purpose of the study was to identify characteristics of youth who use SBHCs with the highest frequency to understand their health needs and receipt of health services. Methods: This study examined cross-sectional survey data from adolescents in 3 urban…

Objective: Prior research identified 4 distinct dating trajectories from 6th to 12th grade: "Low," "Increasing," "High Middle School," and "Frequent." The purpose of this study was to examine whether 10th graders in the "Low" dating group differed on emotional, interpersonal, and adaptive skills…

Background: Food insecurity (FI) is a significant predictor of feelings of isolation in children, as well as suicide ideation and depression. Using a census of public middle school-aged children, we seek to determine whether FI is associated with suicide ideation and feelings of hopelessness and how individual and school community factors can…

Background: Approximately 8.8% of US high school students attended private schools in 2015. Few studies have characterized health risk behaviors among these students or compared prevalence of behaviors between students in private and public schools using a contemporary, nationally representative sample. Methods: Pooled 2007-2017 national Youth…

Background: Poor mental health outcomes persist among adolescent youth. Secondary schools play a critical role in fostering positive mental health by implementing policies and practices grounded in evidence. The factors associated with implementation, however, are unclear. This study examines which school- and state-level factors are associated…

Background: Sexting, the sharing of sexually suggestive photos, may be a gateway behavior to early sexual activity and increase the likelihood of social ostracism. Methods: Youth Risk Behavior Survey (N = 6021) data from 2015 among Pennsylvania 9th-12th grade students were used to examine associations between consensual and nonconsensual sexting…

Background: Little research exists examining the impact of multiple minority identities, particularly sexual orientation, race/ethnicity, and sex on health-risk behaviors like mental health, substance use, violence, and sexual risk among high school students in the United States. In this study, we use a nationally representative dataset to examine…

Background: Schools across the nation are increasingly implementing suicide prevention programs that involve training school staff and connecting students and their families to appropriate services. However, little is known about how parents are engaged in such efforts. Methods: This qualitative study examined school staff perspectives on parent…

Background: Violence-exposed youth rarely receive mental health services, even though exposure increases risk for academic and psychosocial problems. This study examines the association between violence exposure and mental health service contact. The 4 forms of violence exposure were peer, family, sexual, and witnessing. Methods: Data are from…

Background: School-based bullying, a global challenge, negatively impacts the health and development of both victims and perpetrators. This study examined the relationship between bullying victimization and selected psychological variables among senior high school (SHS) students in Ghana, West Africa. Methods: This study utilized data from the…

Background: The purpose of this study is to compare the mental health risk profile and health utilization behaviors of adolescent school-based health center (SBHC) users and nonusers and discuss the role that SBHCs can play in addressing adolescent health needs. Methods: The sample included 4640 students in grades 9 and 11 who completed the…

Background: Suicide ranks as the third leading cause of death among youth aged 15-24 years. Schools provide ideal opportunities for suicide prevention efforts. However, research is needed to identify programs that effectively impact youth suicidal ideation and behavior. This study examined the immediate and 3-month effect of Surviving the Teens[R]…

Background: The aim of the present study was to examine the impact of professional preparation and class structure on health content delivery and time spent delivering content among required health education classes in the United States. Methods: Data from the classroom-level file of the 2006 School Health Policies and Programs Study were…