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Latino youth represent more than one quarter of the overall public school population in the United States. For decades, Latinos have been found to perform significantly lower than their peers in standardized academic and some social and emotional measures. A unique subpopulation of this ethnic group, Latino Youth of Immigration (LYOI), has historically been underrepresented in the research literature, specifically, attempting to identify effective interventions that align with their unique social, emotional, and academic needs. In this chapter, we describe the unique sociocultural risk and protective factors for this population. In addition, we provide a brief synthesis of the extant literature on the sociocultural factors that researchers and practitioners need to address in partnership with the LYOI community when developing and implementing preventative programs. We emphasize the unique impact culturally responsive social and emotional learning (SEL) can have in this population. In addition, we provide models and examples on how school-based interventions can be implemented in a transformative manner for this vulnerable population, highlighting implications for researchers and practitioners to better collaborate with the LYOI community.

Several decades of mental health research in the UK repeatedly report that people of African-Caribbean origin are more likely than other ethnic minorities, including the White majority, to be diagnosed with schizophrenia and related psychoses. Race-based inequalities in mental healthcare persist despite numerous initiatives such as the UK’s ‘Delivering Race Equality’ policy, which sought to reduce the fear of mainstream services and promote more timely access to care. Community-level engagement with members of African-Caribbean communities highlighted the need to develop culturally relevant psychosocial treatments. Family Intervention (FI) is a ‘talking treatment’ with a strong evidence-base for clinical-effectiveness in the management of psychoses. Benefits of FI include improved self-care, problem-solving and coping for both service users and carers, reducing the risk of relapse and re-hospitalisation. Working collaboratively with African-Caribbeans as ‘experts-by-experience’ enabled co-production, implementation and evaluation of Culturally adapted Family Intervention (CaFI). Our findings suggests that a community frequently labelled ‘hard-to-reach’ can be highly motivated to engage in solutions-focussed research to improve engagement, experiences and outcomes in mental health. This underscores the UK’s Mental Health Task Force’s message that ‘new ways of working’ are required to reduce the inequalities faced by African-Caribbeans and other marginalised groups in accessing mental healthcare. Although conducted in the UK (a high-income multi-cultural country), co-production of more culturally appropriate psychosocial interventions may have wider implications in the global health context. Interventions like CaFI could, for example, contribute to reducing the 75% ‘mental health gap’ between High and Low-and-Middle-Income counties reported by the World Health Organization.

This chapter reviews the empirical evidence for Psychological First Aid (PFA) in the context and experience of the Southeast Asian (SEA) region. First, this chapter provides the definition and background of PFA and its core principles, to explain the basis for doing PFA as part of an integrated approach to disaster mental health. Second, the existing literature on the effectiveness of PFA is reviewed. Third, this chapter examines the application and adaptation of PFA in SEA. Implications and recommendations are provided at the end of the chapter.

Research suggests that African-Caribbeans are less likely than their white British counterparts to ask for mental health support (Cooper et al., 2013). This is despite research identifying that minority groups as a whole, when compared to the white majority, report higher levels of psychological distress and a marked lack of social support (Erens, Primatesta, & Prior, 2001). Those who do request support are less likely to receive antidepressants (British Fourth National Survey of Ethnic Minorities, 1994; Cooper et al., 2010) even when controlling for mental health symptom severity, with African-Caribbeans less likely to make use of medication for depression even when prescribed (Bhui, Christie, & Bhugra, 1995; Cooper et al., 2013). Studies reporting on reasons for black people being less likely to attend for mental health consultation with their GP suggest a variety of explanations why this may be, focussing both on the suspicion of what services may offer (Karlsen, Mazroo, McKenzie, Bhui, & Weich, 2005) and the concern of black clients that they may experience a racialised service with stigma (Marwaha & Livingstone, 2002). Different understandings and models of mental illness may also exist (Marwaha & Livingstone, 2002). Different perspectives and models of mental health may deter black people from making use of antidepressants even when prescribed. Despite a random control trial showing that African-Caribbean people significantly benefit from targeted therapy services (Afuwape et al., 2010), the government, despite a report by the Department of Health in 2003 admitting there was no national strategy or policy specifically targeting mental health of black people or their care and treatment has not yet built on evidence-based success. One important aspect recognised by the Department of Health (2003), was that of the need to develop a mental health workforce capable of providing efficacious mental health services to a multicultural population. Although there were good strategic objectives little appeared to exist in how to meet this important objective, particularly in the context of research showing that such service provision could show real benefit. The Department of Health Guidelines (2003) focussed on the need to change what it termed as ‘conventional practice’, but was not specific in what this might be, or even how this could improve services to ethnic minorities. There was discussion of cultural competencies without defining what these were or referencing publications where these would be identified. There was a rather vague suggestion that recent work had begun to occur, but no indication that this had been evaluated and shown to have value (Royal College of Psychiatrists, 2001). Neither British Association for Counselling and Psychotherapy nor British Psychological Society makes mention of the need for cultural competencies in organisational service delivery to ethnic minority clients. This chapter will describe, explore and debate the need for individual and organisational cultural competencies in delivering counselling and psychotherapy services to African-Caribbean people to improve service delivery and efficacious outcomes.

This paper aims to examine three recent papers on psychosis and social inclusion in relation to people of Black African and African Caribbean heritage in the UK and the USA.

A search was carried out for recent papers on psychosis and social inclusion in relation to people of Black African and African Caribbean heritage in the UK and the USA. I selected three papers addressing this theme from different angles.

The first paper extends previous findings (that psychosis can follow traumatic events) to Black Americans and includes the contribution of societal inequalities and racism. The second paper illustrates Black men’s experiences of mental health services for psychosis in the UK. It finds, not surprisingly, that a lack of listening combined with coercive use of medication reduces trust in services. The third paper offers hope in reporting collaborative work with people of Black African Caribbean heritage in the UK to culturally adapt family intervention for psychosis. The first and third papers both place importance on valuing people’s spiritual beliefs.

All three papers highlight the on-going need for increased equity and social inclusion in mental health services for people of Black African and African Caribbean heritage, in terms of recognising the role of childhood trauma and later stresses, addressing the potential harm of over-reliance on medication, offering therapy that is collaborative and culturally adapted and respecting valued spiritual beliefs.

Advances in disaster prevention and mitigation in Southeast Asia (SEA) have increasingly included plans for mental health and psychosocial support. However, substantial challenges remain, particularly in the areas of (a) disaster communication and preparedness, (b) institutionalized disaster education, (c) culturally adapted and evidence-based tools and interventions, (d) developing capacities and caring for disaster responders, and (e) enabling collective resilience. In addition, the impacts of poverty, lack of access to education, and other forms of marginalization result in less resources to prepare for hazardous event and increased vulnerability to environmental hazards for SEA countries. These issues highlight the need for SEA governments to address deeply rooted human development issues that put communities at risk and heighten vulnerabilities of SEA populations.

The purpose of this paper is to evaluate the effect of a community-based resilience intervention for Filipino displaced survivors of Super Typhoon Haiyan.

The researchers used a quasi-experimental and mixed-method design comparing a treatment group with a control group across three time periods: before, immediately after, and six months after the intervention.

Results showed significant improvements in survivors’ anxiety scores and resilience scores compared to those who did not undergo the program. However, although there was an increase in adaptive coping of participants immediately after the program, there was a reduction in adaptive coping behaviors for all groups six months after the program. Focus group discussions revealed this might be due to significant environmental challenges among displaced survivors.

A limitation of the study was the lack of randomization and a small sample size due to attrition.

The study highlights the positive effects of culturally adapted group interventions.

The results suggest the importance of a systemic approach to enabling the recovery of displaced survivors in developing countries.

This study provides evidence for a resilience intervention developed in a low-middle income country in Southeast Asia.

This paper aims to underline the importance of using a collaborative approach when designing and adapting a post diagnostic psychosocial intervention of cognitive stimulation therapy (CST) for people with intellectual disability and dementia.

As part of a service improvement, a manual of CST was adapted, for delivery in clinical practice. A qualitative co-production method allowed participants with a lived experience to provide regular feedback relating to the development of the adapted CST manual and intervention programme. This feedback was used to make continual development changes to the CST manual.

The study demonstrated co-production with those who provide care is valuable in adapting psychosocial therapies for people with an intellectual disability and dementia. Additional findings identified the need for carer education in ageing, dementia care and the physical health needs for older people with intellectual disability.

To the best of the authors’ knowledge, this is the first study that has used a co-production approach with families and carers in adapting a group therapy programme for people with an intellectual disability. This paper underlines the need for post diagnostic clinical interventions for people with dementia and those who provide care.

Social and emotional learning (SEL) is critical for students' social and academic success. Students' SEL is often contingent on their teachers' social and emotional competencies and capacities (SECC; Jennings & Greenberg, 2009; Chapter 5) and teacher preparation to facilitate SEL in classrooms (Schonert-Reichl, Kitil, & Hanson-Peterson, 2017). Concerningly, teacher training to facilitate SEL is frequently predicated on a color-evasive perspective that ignores the ways structural racism impacts the schooling experiences of racially minoritized students and associated academic and SEL outcomes (Jagers, Rivas-Drake, & Borowski, 2018; Jagers, Rivas-Drake, & Williams, 2019). In order to support SEL for students from racially minoritized communities, we assert that teachers' social and emotional competencies and capacities must incorporate a culturally responsive pedagogical approach that explicitly acknowledges and addresses issues of race and justice (Jagers et al., 2019; Ladson-Billings, 2014; Ladson-Billings & Tate, 1995). In this chapter we (1) provide an overview of culturally relevant pedagogy in relation to teacher social and emotional competencies and capacities; (2) outline existing models that support a culturally relevant approach to teacher social and emotional competencies and capacities; and (3) discuss future directions for education research, practice, and policy.

Mental health disparities exist among Black, Asian and Minority Ethnics (BAME) populations. This paper aims to provide an overview of mental health services designed for the BAME population in the UK, both established BAME communities and refugee/asylum-seekers.

A range of electronic databases were searched for peer-reviewed studies conducted within the past decade in the UK. Using the Arksey and O’Malley methodology, data were extracted, analysed and summarised.

A total of 13 papers were identified, mostly non-randomised community-based. Studies were very heterogeneous in terms of their sample and service provided. After the initial appraisal, the authors presented a narrative synthesis. Overall, all studies reported positive mental health outcomes and beneficial effects.

Because of the time limitations and quality of the papers, the authors only included peer-reviewed journal papers.

Mental health services provided for BAME people, both established and refugee/asylum-seekers are feasible and improve engagement with the services and mental health outcomes. Initiatives are required to facilitate the integration of these targeted services within mental health and community services for BAME in the UK.

This scoping review is a snapshot of the mental health services designed for BAME people in the UK, either established or refugee/asylum-seekers in the past 10 years and adds to the evidence-based knowledge from these studies.