Search

Research

Risk factors for non-communicable diseases (NCDs, cardiovascular diseases, cancers, chronic respiratory diseases, diabetes, and mental disorders) arise in adolescence but are mostly framed as relevant to health in adulthood; little is known about the relationship between co-occurring NCD risks and mental wellbeing in young people.

Research

Irritability is a transdiagnostic indicator of child and adolescent internalizing and externalizing problems that is measurable from early life. The objective of this systematic review was to determine the strength of the association between irritability measured from 0 to 5 years and later internalizing and externalizing problems, to identify mediators and moderators of these relationships, and to explore whether the strength of the association varied according to irritability operationalization.

News & Events

With the school year now well underway, it’s not uncommon for kids to start feeling the stress of assignments, homework and extracurricular activities.

Research

One of the most traumatic injuries a child can experience is a severe burn. Despite improvements in medical treatments which have led to better physical outcomes and reduced mortality rates for paediatric burns patients, the psychological impact associated with experiencing such a traumatic injury has mostly been overlooked. This is concerning given the high incidence of psychopathology amongst paediatric burn survivors. 

Research

Meaningful involvement of young People with Lived Experience (PWLE) in co-designing youth mental health interventions has been much emphasized globally. However, there is a scarcity of evidence on involving PWLE of mental health problems in designing, implementing and evaluating mental health interventions, especially in Low- and Middle-Income Countries.

Research

Social disconnectedness and isolation are risk factors for poor mental health. Community-based friendship group interventions have been designed to increase an individual's social capital and consequently their mental wellbeing. Structured and unstructured friendship groups reflect two distinct approaches to friendship group interventions.

Research

The physical health comorbidities and premature mortality experienced by people with mental illness has led to an increase in exercise services embedded as part of standard care in hospital-based mental health services. Despite the increase in access to exercise services for people experiencing mental illness, there is currently a lack of guidelines on the assessment and triage of patients into exercise therapy.

Research

The transition to parenthood is a high-risk period for many parents and is an important period for child development. Research has identified that parental mental health, reflective functioning (capacity to consider mental states of oneself and others) and coparenting (capacity to work together well as a parenting team) may be particularly significant predictors of later child outcomes, however these factors have seldom been considered together.

Research

Family carers of youth recovering from early psychosis experience significant stress; however, access to effective family interventions is poor. Digital interventions provide a promising solution.

Research

Positive maternal mental health during the perinatal period contributes to general well-being and positive emotional bonds with the child, encouraging an optimal developmental trajectory. Online interventions to enhance maternal well-being and develop coping skills, such as meditation-based interventions, can be a low-cost way to improve mother and child outcomes.