Mental Health

At Child Trends, we believe mental health is more than the absence of mental health conditions. Mental well-being allows people to manage life stressors, fully realize their abilities, learn and work well, contribute to their communities, and thrive. Mental health can be influenced by a range of biological, intrapersonal, interpersonal, and societal circumstances. In the United States, mental health challenges and access to affordable and effective treatments are not evenly distributed: Black, Hispanic, Native American, LGBTQ+ (lesbian, gay, bisexual, transgender, and queer/questioning) youth, and youth with child welfare and/or juvenile justice involvement often experience greater challenges due to the effects of interpersonal and institutional discrimination.

Child Trends’ multidisciplinary team of researchers identifies ways to promote positive mental well-being for all children and youth while also working to better understand how experiences of institutional and individual discrimination increase the risk of poor mental health for marginalized communities. To accomplish this, our researchers analyze data about children and adolescents—and their families and the other adults who support them—to inform policymakers and practitioners across sectors, including child welfare, education, health care, juvenile justice, and social services. For example, our experts developed a National Agenda for Children’s Mental Health. We’ve also examined data from the CDC on access to supportive mental health services for LGBTQ students in secondary schools. Our researchers seek to identify programs and practices that public systems can implement to promote mental health and connect children, youth, and their families to needed care.

Our research has been referenced by national policymakers and advocacy organizations. For example, our National Agenda for Children’s Mental Health was cited in a joint memo from the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services’ Administration for Children and Families and the U.S. Department of Education on supporting the needs of young children and their caregivers. Our work was also cited in a consensus report from the National Academies on Fostering Healthy Mental, Emotional, and Behavioral Development in Children and Youth. Our research on the potential role for Medicaid in funding school-based health services was referenced by the Association of State and Territorial Health Officers on improving behavioral health through school-based strategies. Our researchers have also been featured in the media, including PBS News Hour, Teen Vogue, and District Administration.