Fostering resilience in children and young people early

Fostering resilience in children and young people: early learning from Headstart Dr Jessica Deighton

Overview • Some background on resilience and protective factors • An introduction to Headstart • Early findings • Next steps • A request for information

Child mental health: some background • In a class of 20 – Around 2 -3 will experience mental health problems • Well established risk factors – Individual factors • Sex, IQ, Self-esteem – Community Factors • Dangerous/unsafe neighbourhood • Bad relationship with neighbours – Family Factors • Harsh parenting • Abuse – Friendship Factors • Lack of friends • Being bullied

But… • Many young people go on to function well in the context of risk factors • What differentiates those who do well in adversity from those who struggle? • Can those who struggle in the context of risk be supported to achieve better outcomes • … resilience? ?

Resilience is… Michael Rutter ". . . the positive end of the distribution of developmental outcomes among individuals at high risk. " Anne Masten: ". . . the maintenance of positive adjustment under challenging life conditions. ” Dante Cicchetti: ". . . a two-dimensional characterization that encompasses aspects of children's negative life circumstances, and evidence of positive adaptation among these children, across one or more domains of functioning. " Jay Belsky …a misunderstanding of differential susceptibility Michael Ungar “resilience is both the capacity of individuals to navigate their way to the psychological, social, cultural, and physical resources that sustain their well-being, and their capacity individually and collectively to negotiate for these resources to be provided in culturally meaningful ways” Angie Hart: …beating the odd whilst changing the odds

Resilience is… Anne Masten: ". . . the maintenance of positive adjustment under challenging life conditions. ” • Resilience is not a ‘thing’ or a trait • It’s a relationship between an outcome and a particular context • Requires both presence of risk and a positive outcome with respect to functioning • Positive mental health in the absence of adverse circumstances is NOT resilience

Why is resilience important? • By study the range of internal characteristics and external factors that are associated with better outcomes for those at risk, we can begin to understand – The range of support required – The characteristics and internal resources that should be fostered • These internal and external factors are protective factors Risk factors Protective factors Child outcomes

Protective factors • By study the range of internal characteristics and external factors that are associated with better outcomes for those at risk, we can begin to understand – The range of support required – The characteristics and internal resources that should be fostered • These internal and external factors are protective factors Internal Characteristics Emotion regulation Problems solving Coping Self-management Protective factors External support Supportive relationships (parent-child relationships, peer, teacher-child) Supportive structures (community resources, school ethos/policies cohesive wider family network)

Protective factors • Protective factors are processes that alter the effects of adversity on outcomes • The presence of protective factors explain why some young people appear resilient while others do not • It’s a balancing act • Negative outcomes are more likely where the risk factors outweigh the protective factors • Resilience interventions focus on increasing the amount of protective factors in order to improve mental health and Risks well-being Protective factors

Schools as sites for intervention: Headstart • 12 partnerships – local authorities with public health, voluntary sector, youth justice etc. • Focus on: locally developed and owned cross-disciplinary and multi-layered Multiple interventions per partnership Incorporates schools and ‘out of school’ settings – Whole system change to best support young people – –

The Headstart Evaluation Information used to inform these questions: • Large scale school-based survey • Qualitative scoping study and in-depth case studies

The Headstart Evaluation Measures of outcome and mechanism Measure Example questions General well-being Me (How am I doing) The Child Outcome Rating Scale Family (How are things in my family) Mental Health Me and My School Resilience Student resilience survey I am unhappy I lose my temper I am calm I can work out my problems I know where to go for help when I have a problems Collected from just under 8, 000 children in just under 100 schools aged between 10 and 14 Also school data (e. g. , FSM, SEN, EAL) Analysis began with this self-report data…

Headstart: Early analysis Relationship between ‘protective factors’ and outcomes: external support Family connection -. 25 . 39 Emotional Difficulties -. 14 -. 06 Community connection -. 39 -. 04 School connection . 19 Behavioural Difficulties -. 11 NB cross sectional data

Headstart: Early analysis Relationship between ‘protective factors’ and outcomes: external support . 16 -. 04 Emotional Difficulties Engagement in community -. 37 . 00. 19 Engagement in home -. 36 Behavioural Difficulties NB cross sectional data

Headstart: Early analysis Self esteem Relationship between ‘protective factors’ and outcomes: internal characteristics -. 53 . 15 Emotional Difficulties -. 41 Empathy . 04 -. 36 -. 24 Goals and aspirations -. 11 -. 22 . 13 Behavioural Difficulties . 10 Problem solving NB cross sectional data

Findings • Based on cross sectional data: – Strongest relationships for emotional problems • • • Family connection Engagement in the home Self esteem Empathy Problem solving – Strongest relationships for behavioural problems • • Family connection Engagement in the home Self-esteem Goals and aspirations

What’s next for Headstart? • The next phase of implementation – Partnerships notified whether they continue for the next 6 years – Next stage of the evaluation • Evaluation – Analysis of baseline data including school information (risk factors) – Development of a common measurement framework – Some of this learning is being fed into other projects

Some final questions to school staff We are working with Public Health England to create guidance materials for schools regarding measuring positive well-being. 1. What measures for wellbeing and/or resilience do you use in your school? 2. How are these used? (How often, which year groups etc. ) 3. How is the information used? (e. g. , Ofsted, planning support etc. ) 4. How successful do you think their use has been/is in your school? 5. Would you recommend this model? Why/why not?