School environment and mental health in early adolescence - a longitudinal study in Sweden (KUPOL) (original) (raw)

Psychosocial School Conditions and Mental Wellbeing Among Mid-adolescents: Findings From the 2017/18 Swedish HBSC Study

International Journal of Public Health

Objectives: To investigate mid-adolescent boys’ and girls’ experiences of school demands, teacher support, and classmate support, and explore the associations of these factors with mental wellbeing.Methods: Data were derived from the Swedish Health Behaviour in School-aged Children (HBSC) study of 2017/18, with information collected among 1,418 students in grade 9 (∼15–16 years). School demands, teacher support, and classmate support were measured by indices based on three items each. Mental wellbeing was measured by the Short Warwick-Edinburgh Mental Wellbeing Scale (SWEMWBS). Linear regression analyses were performed.Results: Higher demands were associated with lower mental wellbeing. Conversely, mental wellbeing increased with greater teacher support and classmate support. Interactions between demands and the support variables showed that at the lowest levels of teacher and of classmate support, mental wellbeing was low and not associated with school demands. With increasing leve...

Patterns of Poor Health among Junior and Senior High School Students in Sweden

Health behavior and policy review, 2017

M ost young people in Sweden are generally in good physical health. However, reports have begun to appear of declining health among children. In the last decade, a growing number of children and youth, especially girls, have been reporting psychological complaints. 1-3 The subjective component of health is important as "health is a state of complete physical, mental and social well-being and not merely the absence of disease or infirmity." 4 Compared to other Nordic countries, self-reported psychosomatic problems are more frequent among young people in Sweden even though self-reported poor mental health also has increased in Finland and Norway. 5 These reports must be taken seriously. Somatic symptoms in adolescence may predict severe adult mental health disorders. 6 Research that examines associations between health and external influences 2,7-9 establishes that health is related to socioeconomic factors, 10 among other things, but research about health in relation to socioeconomic factors among young people is limited and shows partly different results. 11-14 There seems to be a "socio-economic health equaliza-tion" mechanism at work in youth, which means that the association between socioeconomic factors and health that can be seen among children and adults is reduced during adolescence. 7,14,15 Studies also show different associations between socioeconomic factors and self-rated health for girls and for boys. 14,15 Other studies show associations between health and family and school-related factors. For example, register-based studies found associations between school failure and health constraints among children. 16,17 The school situation is of great importance for students' health. It involves school performance, peer relationships, teacher competence and student-teacher relationships, and more. Previous studies have found that high performance in school is linked to positive self-image, whereas lack of academic success is linked to anxiety and depression. 18 Bullying and a bad climate in class/school is associated with poor health. 19-21 Moreover, self-rated health also has been linked to family structure and family relations, with somewhat disparate results for boys and girls. 5,8,22

Associations between school-related factors and depressive symptoms among children: A comparative study, Finland and Norway

School Psychology International, 2013

This study compares school-related associations in depressive symptoms among children aged between 9–13 years from four schools in Finland and Norway. A total of 523 pupils participated in the cross-sectional survey. The connections between depressive symptoms and school factors were analysed using hierarchical regression analyses. School variables were self-perceived peer victimization, teacher and peer social support, school performance, and teachers’ reports on competence in core subjects; these variables explain 30% of the variance of the children’s depressive symptoms in Norway and 26% in Finland beyond that afforded by differences in the background characteristics and protective factors in the family. A trend was found in the Norwegian data which showed that poor relationships at school are connected more strongly with depressive symptoms than poor school performance, but the Finnish data did not confirm this. The results support the importance of taking various school factors...

THE INFLUENCE OF FAMILY, SCHOOL, AND THE ENVIRONMENT ON MENTAL HEALTH OF STUDENTS

Like adult disorders, most student adolescent psychiatric problems are now regarded as multifactorially determined; both genetic and environmental factors play a role in their development. This article provides an overview of so me of the key environme ntal elements in that equation. The focus here is on the more general issues that arise when considering the effect of environmental influences on the onset or persistence of psychopathology in students during their early ages. Key w ords: Nature and nurture, Risk variables and risk mechanisms , Multiple stressors, Mental Health

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

Journal of the American Academy of Child & Adolescent Psychiatry

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.

School Environment and Adolescent Depressive Symptoms: A Multilevel Longitudinal Study

PEDIATRICS, 2013

WHAT'S KNOWN ON THIS SUBJECT: Research indicates that adolescents who perceive their school to have a positive socioeducational environment are at reduced risk of developing depressive symptoms. However, there is limited evidence that school environments can influence adolescent emotional health independently from individual perceptions.

Depressive symptoms in adolescent pupils are heavily influenced by the school they go to. A study of 10th grade pupils in Oslo, Norway

The European Journal of Public Health, 2006

Background: A school is generally acknowledged to be a key setting for promoting pupils' health and well-being. Methods: Data from a cross-sectional questionnaire study conducted with all 10th grade pupils in 46 public schools. Depressive symptoms was defined by a positive score on Hopkin's Symptom Check List-10 (HSCL-10). Two composite variables expressing risk were established: (i) presence of negative factors (PNF), consisting of self-reported pressure to succeed, sexual violation, and exposure to bullying and violence; and (ii) absence of positive factors (APF), comprising respondents' self-reported physical activity, educational aspirations, and family's valuing their opinions. Results: Out of 7505 pupils, complete data were obtained for 6207. The prevalence of symptoms of depression varied greatly among different schools (boys, from 0 to 19%; girls, from 3.3 to 39%). The PNF varied from 12.3 to 45.5% for boys, and from 4.2 to 38.8% for girls. Corresponding figures for APF were 2.4-23.1% for boys and 4.3-37.5% for girls. Among boys, we found significant associations between PNF and symptoms of depression, odds ratio (95% CI) 4.5 (3.5-5.8), and between APF and depressive symptoms, 3.1 (2.3-4.1). For girls, corresponding odds ratios were 3.5 (2.9-4.2) and 2.1 (1.7-2.6), respectively. Conclusions: The proportion of pupils with depressive symptoms varies greatly among Oslo public schools. This variation is associated with features of the pupils' social context.

Trends in perceived school stress among adolescents in five Nordic countries 2002-2014

Nordisk välfärdsforskning | Nordic Welfare Research, 2019

Associations between school-related stress and poor health, risk behaviours and low well-being are well documented. The aim of this paper was to estimate trends of perceived school stress experienced by boys and girls of different ages in the Nordic countries, and to describe trends in school stress between the Nordic countries. Nordic data from the Health Behaviour in School-aged Children study (HBSC) between 2002 and 2014 were used. The participants were aged 11–16 years. School stress was measured by a single item; “How pressured do you feel by schoolwork?” The participants answering “some” or “a lot” were categorised as reporting school stress. Sweden, Norway and Denmark had lower prevalence of school stress compared to Finland and Iceland. There was an increase in Iceland, Finland and Denmark, whereas adolescents from Sweden showed a decreasing trend. In Norway, the level was stable. Boys showed a marginal decline in school stress whereas girls showed an increase, and school stress increased by age for the whole period. It is a challenge for the public education systems in the Nordic countries to develop policies and practices that provide children with the necessary tools to achieve knowledge and skill, and at the same minimise stress in school.