How We Can Promote “Citizenship” in Communities

Mental Health

Issues

Mental Health

Good mental health is the goal of psychology as a field. Community Psychologists impact the field of psychology by promoting the ways in which social, community, and environmental factors impact psychological wellness as well as access to mental health care.

Impact of Community Violence on Youth

Posted in: Children, Youth and Families, Mental Health, Poverty and Socioeconomic Status
Community violence impacts all youth, not just youth who are directly exposed to the violence.

Preventing Future Crime by Addressing Childhood Sexual Abuse and Later Non-Consensual Sexual Experiences in a Community Context

Posted in: Criminal Justice, Mental Health
Published in: The Community Psychologist
Trauma history is linked with later criminal activity. Rehabilitation through the Justice System is limited when it does not address the sexual trauma history of inmates. More work needs to be done to address the cycle of sexual violence within the community.

Introducing Alternatives to Suicide: An Interview with Caroline Mazel-Carlton about a New Approach to Crisis

Posted in: Mental Health, Self Help
Published in: The Community Psychologist
Suicide is a highly stigmatized topic that many people fear talking about openly (and hearing about). Often, suicidal people are afraid to share their feelings due to the possibility of being blamed, or the potential for coercive consequences such as involuntary commitment (references below). Mutual support groups can help provide a space where people can speak more freely about this topic.

Early to Bed, More Organized to Rise? Preliminary Evidence Shows that an Earlier Bedtime may be Beneficial for Teens’ Cognitive Functioning

Posted in: Children, Youth and Families, Mental Health
Getting enough sleep is important for mood, physical functioning, and the brain’s ability to function. Teens with later bedtimes demonstrate lower overall executive functioning performance. Some aspects of executive functioning may be more sensitive to sleep than others.

Why Chatting with your Best Friend about how much Fun you had at the Party is Good for You and Your Community’s Health

Posted in: Mental Health | Tags: Research
Published in: American Journal of Community Psychology
How much people experience and share positive experiences varies day-to-day.and translating these experiences to resilient cognition differs person-to-person.

How Does Exposure to Violence During Adolescence Impact Future Orientation?

Posted in: Children, Youth and Families, Mental Health | Tags: Research
Published in: American Journal of Community Psychology
submitted by A. Simons-Rudolph Exposure to violence (ETV) is associated with poorer mental and physical health outcomes including mental distress, suicidal ideation, problematic behaviors, and substance abuse. Individuals with regular exposure to violence may be at higher risk of hopelessness and more likely to avoid consideration of the future in a positive way. Up to […]

Psychedelics in Recovery

Posted in: Mental Health, Self Help
Published in: The Community Psychologist
Kevin Franciotti introduces Psychedelics in Recovery (PIR), an addiction recovery mutual aid group where members use psychedelic substances as part of their recovery journeys.

What is Fat Activism? A Dialogue about Body Diversity and Weight Stigma – Lauren Munro

Posted in: Marginalized Groups, Mental Health | Tags: Podcasts
In this episode of RadioActive Lauren Munro, a Ph.D. student at Wilifrid Laurier University, explains what fat activism is and how the social movement challenges stigmas around fatness.

Natural Mentoring is Good for ALL Youth

Posted in: Children, Youth and Families, Mental Health | Tags: Research
Published in: American Journal of Community Psychology
Natural mentors can promote a sense of belonging and prosocial behavior in youth and may be more easily implementable than formalized mentorships.

How We Can Promote “Citizenship” in Communities

Posted in: Marginalized Groups, Mental Health, Public Policy | Tags: Research
Published in: American Journal of Community Psychology
If we return to the definition of citizenship as a sense of belonging to a group, we gain an understanding of “community” as more broad than simple geographical proximity, membership, or identification with a group.