The Role of Schools in Early Adolescents’ Mental Health: Findings From the MYRIAD Study

Abstract

Objective: Recent studies suggest mental health in youths is deteriorating. The current policy in the United Kingdom emphasizes the role of schools for mental health promotion and prevention, but little data exist on what aspects of schools influence mental health in pupils. This study explored school-level influences on the mental health of young people in a large school-based sample from the United Kingdom. Method: Baseline data from a large cluster randomized controlled trial collected between 2016 and 2018 from mainstream secondary schools selected to be representative in relation to their quality rating, size, deprivation, mixed or single-sex pupil population, and country were analyzed. Participants were pupils in their first or second year of secondary school. The study assessed whether school-level factors were associated with pupil mental health. Results: The study included 26,885 pupils (response rate ¼ 90%; age range, 11-14 years; 55% female) attending 85 schools in the United Kingdom. Schools accounted for 2.4% (95% CI: 2.0%-2.8%; p < .0001) of the variation in psychopathology, 1.6% (95% CI: 1.2%-2.1%; p < .0001) of depression, and 1.4% (95% CI: 1.0%-1.7%; p < .0001) of well-being. Schools in urban locations, with a higher percentage of free school meals and of White British, were associated with poorer pupil mental health. A more positive school climate was associated with better mental health. Conclusion: School-level variables, primarily related to contextual factors, characteristics of pupil population, and school climate, explain a small but significant amount of variability in mental health of young people. This information might be used to identify schools that are in need of more resources to support mental health of young people.

Universal Mindfulness Training in Schools for Adolescents: a Scoping Review and Conceptual Model of Moderators, Mediators, and Implementation Factors

“…The model proposes that the broader school context and the characteristics of the school community in which the SBMT is being implemented may moderate its effect on proximal and distal outcomes (Ford et al, 2021 ). There is a growing literature on the importance of the school context in facilitating or frustrating the implementation of evidence-based programmes in schools.…”

Research Review: The effect of school‐based suicide prevention on suicidal ideation and suicide attempts and the role of intervention and contextual factors among adolescents: a meta‐analysis and meta‐regression

“…Additionally, school characteristics (e.g., school type and school size) were under‐reported across included CRT studies. Considering that school‐level variables explained a small but significant amount of variability in youth mental health among 26,885 students (Ford et al., 2021), school‐level characteristics should be fully reported in studies that examine interventions aiming to reduce STBs. Although publication bias appears to not be an issue, the effectiveness of PSSP may be overestimated in the present meta‐analysis if nonsignificant SI and SA outcomes were not reported by studies evaluating interventions eligible for inclusion, which particularly may be an issue for interventions that target SA and SI with other health and well‐being outcomes.…”

Clinical research updates

“…Ford et al. (2021) conducted a cross‐sectional secondary analysis as part of a cluster randomized controlled trial evaluating whether school‐based mindfulness training improves the mental health of young people. The aim of this analysis was to explore whether school‐level factors are associated with pupils’ mental health.…”