Supportive Relationships in Children and Adolescents Facing Political Violence and Mass Disasters

Friend Support and Internalizing Symptoms in Early Adolescence During COVID-19

The COVID-19 pandemic has impacted adolescents' psychosocial adjustment and social relationships across the world. This prospective longitudinal study examined whether internalizing problems during the pandemic could be predicted by precrisis friend support, and whether this effect was moderated by the time adolescents spent with their friends and COVID-19-related stress. 245 Dutch adolescents (M_age  = 11.60) participated before and during COVID-19. Higher pre-COVID-19 friend support predicted less (self-reported and parent-reported) internalizing problems during COVID-19, and this effect was not moderated by the time adolescents spent with friends or COVID-19-related stress. Friends may thus protect against developing internalizing symptoms in times of crisis. We also found the reverse effect: Internalizing problems before COVID-19 were predictive of friend support during COVID-19.

Disseminating evidence-based research on mental health and coping to adolescents facing adversity in Lebanon: a pilot of a psychoeducational comic book 'Somoud'

Background

Despite advances in the evidence base and scaling up of mental health and psychosocial interventions for children and adolescents affected by conflict and adversity, a theory-practice gap remains, with limited translation of research findings to affected communities.

Methods

In order to disseminate findings from a review on mental health and coping for children and adolescents, a psychoeducational comic book ‘Somoud’ was developed and piloted with adolescents and their caregivers in Lebanon, using a qualitative Grounded Theory approach.

Results

In total, 10 participants (5 adolescents, 5 parents), took part in the study. Using Thematic Content Analysis, 6 themes were identified; 1) psychoeducation versus misinterpretation, 2) balancing depth with accessibility, 3) aesthetic appeal, 4) contextual relevance and realism, 5) daily stressors, and 6) parental and social relationships.

Conclusions

The findings demonstrate the importance of cultural and contextual piloting of psychoeducational content, and the potential usefulness and accessibility of a comic book format to disseminate information to adolescents. Data from the pilot was used to inform the development of a new version of ‘Somoud’ for sharing with adolescents in Lebanon. Further research is required to establish the effectiveness of the psychoeducational book as a ‘self-help’ tool, and to further improve knowledge exchange between researchers and communities.