Journal of community psychology最新文献

Community sports teams are low-threshold arenas for involvement in physical activities with the potential to promote recovery among persons with experiences of mental health or substance use problems. This study focuses on a community sports team, Psykiatrialliansen (PA), based in Bergen, Norway, to explore how participation may relate to sense of engagement in everyday activities, social inclusion, and life satisfaction. A cross-sectional study was conducted among a sample of members of PA (N = 57), with questions related to participation in activities, as well as measures of sense of engagement, social inclusion, and life satisfaction. In addition to descriptive statistics, the associations between sense of engagement, social inclusion, and life satisfaction were explored. Study participants reported being involved in a range of physical activities. Common self-reported benefits related to mental health, physical health, friendships, and leisure. Sense of engagement, social inclusion, and life satisfaction were significantly positively associated. The results indicate that participation in community sports may be linked with connectedness, belonging, and well-being.

This study examines how domestic violence victims can effectively disclose their experiences in online support groups to receive meaningful support, and how community members can provide that support. Analyzing 3455 posts and 55,787 replies from Chinese domestic violence support groups using BERT model, it classifies support types and explores the relationship between disclosure topics, emotional expression, and support types through structural topic modeling and logistic regression. Findings suggest that verbal-violence disclosures receive more emotional support, and expressions of sadness and positive emotions foster empathy. The research provides practical insights for online domestic violence interventions by demonstrating how disclosure topics and emotional expressions influence social support dynamics in Chinese online communities, thereby extending understanding of domestic violence discourse beyond a Western context.

To examine whether parent–child communication, measured separately for mothers and fathers, directly influences the coping strategies (active, distraction, and problem-focused) used by early adolescents, and whether this association was mediated by sibling support. Parent–child relationship has been found to influence the coping strategies that children use. Additionally, according to Family Systems theory, sibling relationships are an integral part of children's positive development. Therefore, it is possible that sibling support mediates the association between parent–child communication and children's coping strategies. Data for this project were taken from a large-scale longitudinal study and were collected from N = 1561 adolescents (M_age = 12.75). Results suggested that parent–adolescent communication had a significant direct impact on all three coping strategies. Furthermore, sibling support partially mediated the relationship between parent–adolescent communication and all three coping strategies. Along with parents, siblings are also a source of socialization for adolescents and have implications for their development.

Although extensive research has supported the impact of parental socioeconomic status (SES) on adolescents' depression, the mechanisms underlying this process remain unclear. Social capital, the set of normative resources derived from social integration (including social trust, reciprocity, and social networks), is intergenerationally transmissible and has a significant influence on adolescent development. As such, we explored whether parent–child social capital similarity mediates the effects of family SES on depressive symptoms in adolescents (i.e., family SES → parental social capital → adolescent social capital → adolescents' depressive symptoms) across various indicators of SES. Data from the 2020 China Family Panel Studies survey spanning 2,671 adolescents (aged 10–18) and their parents were analyzed using the actor-partner interdependence mediation model. Results showed that the impact of family SES on adolescents' depressive symptoms was mediated by the social capital similarity between mothers and adolescents (maternal social capital → adolescent social capital), but not by the social capital similarity between fathers and adolescents. Overall, we found evidence supporting the said mediation mechanism of parent–child similarity in social beliefs (i.e., social capital) in mothers, but not fathers. The current findings suggest that mother–child similarity in social beliefs could serve as a potential explanatory mechanism and possible intervening target for depression during adolescence. Moreover, the findings have vital implications in that they could inform the development of targeted interventions to mitigate SES-related mental health disparities among the youth population, thus improving quality of life.

Professional development (PD) to help teachers learn to use curriculum materials can be effective in aiding fidelity of implementation and supporting student learning. PD may be particularly necessary for curricula focused on students' ethnic-racial identities, given educators' potential discomfort and limited formal training focused on strategies for discussing race/ethnicity in class. The Equipping Educators for Equity through Ethnic-Racial Identity (E⁴) PD prepares educators to implement an eight-lesson ethnic-racial identity curriculum with high school students. We tested whether fidelity of implementation of the ethnic-racial identity curriculum varied by two training modalities: in-person versus remote. Teachers' (N = 14) fidelity of implementation across 55 classrooms was assessed via 440 observations. Teachers' fidelity regarding curriculum adherence was high (76%) and did not vary significantly by training modality. Remote and in-person training resulted in similar fidelity of implementation, suggesting remote trainings may enable scaling up without sacrificing impact.

This study examined college students' perceptions about whether volunteering as a youth mentor impacts their experience of flourishing. The aim was to examine how specific experiences in the mentoring program (e.g., relationships with staff and peers, belonging to an organization, and skill development) may lead to flourishing. This study was conducted using a phenomenological study design and was guided by the broaden-and-build theory of positive emotions. Participants (N = 9) were recruited on a midwestern campus from a voluntary program where college students mentor youth in an after-school setting. Aspects of the mentoring experience that contribute to college students' experience of flourishing and opportunities for growth were examined.

Offering evidence-based parenting interventions to caregivers virtually has the potential to increase the reach and public health impact of interventions. As virtual adaptations to evidence-based interventions increase, attention must be paid to implementation fidelity, as high fidelity is associated with better program outcomes. This study examined implementation fidelity of a virtual adaptation of the family-based Guiding Good Choices program delivered to 292 families in primary care in three large healthcare systems during the COVID-19 pandemic. Attendance, dosage, adherence, quality of delivery, and participant engagement were examined quantitatively and qualitatively using interventionist and observer surveys, attendance records, and focus groups with interventionists. Interventionists and observers reported high levels of dosage, adherence, quality of delivery, and participant engagement, but attendance was lower than anticipated. Results suggest that delivering parenting programs virtually in primary care with high fidelity is feasible, but retaining participants may remain challenging in this modality, particularly during a global pandemic.

Rates of postpartum depression have been higher than typical during the COVID-19 pandemic. This study examines the persistence of depressive symptoms at 12–30 months postpartum and the role of perceived access to social support in depression outcomes. In total, 242 individuals who gave birth in the United States during the COVID-19 pandemic responded to an online survey that assessed depressive symptoms and supports in the postpartum period. A subset of 12 participants completed semi-structured interviews. Over 35% of respondents reported symptoms consistent with clinical depression at 12–30 months postpartum. Lower household income, COVID-related worries during pregnancy, experiences of intimate partner violence, and lack of perceived access to informal supports were predictors of depressive symptoms. Qualitative findings contextualize and highlight the role of supports in postpartum wellbeing. This study adds to the growing research about persistent postpartum depression and highlights the necessity of informal and formal supports in the postpartum period.