Speaker
Description
Background: the mental health of young people is a global concern, with approximately 1 in 6 five-to sixteen-year-olds reporting mental health difficulties. Universal school-based (USB) social-emotional learning (SEL) interventions are an effective public health strategy for promotion and prevention. However, universal programs target all individuals with the same content, regardless of level of difficulties or risk, neglecting the wide heterogeneity within the population. Although there is increased focus on differential effectiveness, results from subgroup analyses within USB SEL trials are mixed. There is no clear understanding of how intervention effectiveness, and potential harm, varies across a population. This PhD project aims to address this problem.
Methods: first, using qualitative methods, teachers’ beliefs about the differential effectiveness of a USB SEL intervention were explored. Data from semi-structured interviews were analysed using thematic framework analysis. This informed the focus of a systematic scoping review of the methodologies of USB SEL trials investigating differential effects for subgroups.
Results: the framework analysis indicated that teachers believe some children benefit more and less than others. Teachers’ beliefs about groups may influence their perceptions of need and implementation quality. The scoping review identified that research focuses on differential impact between boys and girls, and children with SEND are a neglected group. Further, subgroup analyses are not always conducted in a credible or useful way: less than 10% of studies preregistered subgroup analyses, trials are often underpowered, many do not provide a theoretical rationale for their analyses, and some employ within-group rather than between-group comparisons.
Discussion: greater consideration of neuro- and cultural-diversity is needed when designing and implementing USB SEL interventions, to allow youth from all backgrounds the opportunity to benefit. Preplanning of subgroup analyses before trial recruitment to ensure adequate sample sizes, consistent reporting of student characteristics, and more credible analyses are needed.
| Conflict of interest | No conflict of interest |
|---|
