Gender and Lower Economic Status Moderate the Relation between Positive Youth Development and Mental Health.

Adolescent mental health problems account for almost half of overall health problems globally with a risk to mental health in adulthood. Since most mental health problems begin in adolescence, this developmental period should be a focus of strengths-based approach and prevention. The most researched positive youth development framework shown to be associated with youth mental health is The Five C model which distinguishes five indicators: competence, character, confidence, caring, and connection.

The Importance of Family and School Protective Factors in Preventing the Risk Behaviors of Youth.

The aim of this study was to examine cross-sectional associations of protective factors within a family and school context with adolescent risk behaviors. The study was conducted among adolescents ( = 9682) from five cities in Croatia. Mean age of participants was 16.

Positive Youth Development in Croatia: School and Family Factors Associated With Mental Health of Croatian Adolescents.

Introduction: A framework for understanding the interrelationship of individual and environmental factors that influence adolescent health and well-being, as well as opportunities for policy-level interventions, is known as Positive Youth Development (PYD). The current study represents one of the largest studies of Croatian adolescents to date, and aimed to examine associations between school and family factors linked to PYD, and mental health outcomes experienced by Croatian youth.

Methods: A multi-site survey study was conducted among adolescents ( = 9,655) residing in the five most populous cities in Croatia, with the aim of examining cross-sectional associations of family and school factors with adolescent mental health.

PATHS in Croatia: A school-based randomised-controlled trial of a social and emotional learning curriculum.

This study represents the first rigorous evaluation of a social-emotional learning curriculum, PATHS (Promoting Alternative Thinking Strategies; Kusché & Greenberg, 1994), in elementary schools in Croatia. This study randomly assigned 29 schools to receive the universal preventive intervention or continue with usual practices. Within those schools, this study included 57 classrooms and 568 children.

Assessing the quality of mental health promotion and prevention in Croatia: the case of Istria.

While the availability of mental health promotion and prevention programs worldwide is growing, there is divergence in their level of effectiveness that has led to increasing interest in the development of 'effect management' strategies. Mental health promotion and prevention science and practice has a relatively young history in Croatia, but major investments towards its development have been made over the last decade. This paper reports on a research project that took place within the Istrian Region.