Skip to main content

Advertisement

SpringerLink
Log in

Understanding Engagement in Mental Health Services for Preschool Children: An Analysis of Teacher, Clinician, and Parent Perspectives

  • Published:
Early Childhood Education Journal Aims and scope Submit manuscript

Abstract

The purpose of this study was to examine the experiences of mental health clinicians in providing services in the preschool setting. Clinicians provided services for 3 years in urban, northern New Jersey preschools, in order to expand access to mental health services for vulnerable children. At the conclusion of the three-year period, focus groups were conducted with clinicians and teachers, and interviews were conducted with parents to gain their perspectives on the approaches used. Data were coded for emergent themes and a number of themes developed around aspects of engagement, including engaging the community, teachers, other professionals, and parents in order to effectively provide the service to the target population. The data provide insight into techniques that may increase comfort levels for seeking and accepting treatment.

This is a preview of subscription content, log in via an institution to check access.

Access this article

Log in via an institution

Price excludes VAT (USA)
Tax calculation will be finalised during checkout.

Instant access to the full article PDF.

Institutional subscriptions

Similar content being viewed by others

References

  • Achenback, T. M., & Edelbrock, C. S. (1981). Behavioral problems and competencies reported by parents of normal and disturbed children age four through sixteen. Monographs of the Society for Research in Child Development, 46, 1–82.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Alkon, A., Ramler, M., & MacLennon, K. (2003). Evaluation of mental health consultation in child care centers. Early Childhood Education Journal, 31(2), 91–99.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Alkon, A., & Sokal-Gutierrez, K. (2002). Child care health consultation improves health knowledge and compliance. Pediatric Nursing, 28(1), 61–65.

    Google Scholar 

  • Ambert, A., Adler, P. A., Adler, P., & Detzner, D. F. (1995). Understanding and evaluating qualitative research. Journal of Marriage and Family, 57, 879–893.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Angold, A., Costello, E. J., Farmer, E. M. Z., Burns, B. J., & Erkanli, A. (1999). Impaired but undiagnosed. Journal of the American Academy of Child and Adolescent Psychiatry, 38, 129–137.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Bagdi, A., & Vacca, J. (2005). Supporting early childhood social-emotional well being: The building blocks for early learning and school success. Early Childhood Education Journal, 33(3), 145–150.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Baker, J. (2006). Contributions of teacher-child relationships to positive school adjustment during elementary school. Journal of School Psychology, 44, 211–229.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Berg, B. L. (2001). Qualitative research methods for the social sciences (4th ed.). Needham Heights, MA: Allyn and Bacon.

    Google Scholar 

  • Berkowitz, S. J. (2003). Children exposed to community violence: The rationale for early intervention. Clinical Child and Family Psychology Review, 6, 293–302.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Blair, K. A., Denham, S. A., Kochanoff, A., & Whipple, B. (2004). Playing it cool: Temperament, emotion regulation and social behavior in preschoolers. Journal of School Psychology, 42, 419–443.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Brown, C. M., Girio-Herrera, E. L., Sherman, S. N., Kahn, R. S., & Copeland, K. A. (2014). Pediatricians may address barriers inadequately when referring low income preschool-aged children to behavioral health services. Journal of Health Care for the Poor and Underserved, 25(1), 406–424.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Burns, B. J., Hoagwood, K., & Mrazek, P. J. (1999). Effective treatment for mental disorders in children and adolescents. Clinical Child and Family Psychology Review, 2(4), 199–254.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Cavanagh, S. E., & Huston, A. C. (2006). Family instability and children’s early problem behavior. Social Forces, 85, 551–581.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. (2013). Mental health surveillance among children—United States 2005–2011. MMWR, 62, 1–35.

    Google Scholar 

  • Costello, E. J., Messer, S. C., Bird, H. R., Cohen, P., & Reinherz, H. (1998). The prevalence of serious emotional disturbance: A re-analysis of community studies. Journal of Child and Family Studies, 7, 411–432.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Denham, S. A., Bassett, H., Mincic, M., Kalb, S., Way, E., Wyatt, T., & Segal, Y. (2012). Social-emotional learning profiles of preschoolers’ early school success: A person-centered approach. Learning and Individual Differences, 22, 178–189.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Denham, S. A., Blair, K. A., DeMulder, E., Levitas, J., Sawyer, K., Auerbach-Major, S., & Queenan, P. (2003). Preschool emotional competence: Pathway to social competence? Child Development, 74, 238–256.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Essex, M. J., Kraemer, H. C., Slattery, M. J., Burk, L. R., Boyce, W. T., Woodward, H. R., & Kupfer, D. J. (2009). Screening for childhood mental health problems: Outcomes and early identification. Journal of Child Psychology and Psychiatry, 50(5), 562–570.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Feil, E. G., Walker, H., Severson, H., & Ball, A. (2000). Proactive screening for emotional/behavioral concerns in Head Start preschools: Promising practices and challenges in applied research. Behavioral Disorders, 26, 13–25.

    Google Scholar 

  • Garner, P. W., & Waajid, B. (2008). The associations of emotion knowledge and teacher-child relationships to preschool children’s school-related developmental competence. Journal of Applied Developmental Psychology, 29, 89–100.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Gillanders, C., McKinney, M., & Ritchie, S. (2012). What kind of school would you like for your children? Exploring minority mother’s beliefs to promote home-school partnerships. Early Childhood Education Journal, 40, 285–294.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Glascoe, F. (2000). Early detection of developmental and behavioral problems. Pediatrics in Review, 21(8), 272–279.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Graziano, P. A., Reavis, R. D., Keane, S. P., & Calkins, S. D. (2007). The role of emotion regulation in children’s early academic success. Journal of School Psychology, 45, 3–19.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Green, B. L., Everhart, M., Gordon, L., & Gettman, M. G. (2006). Characteristics of effective mental health consultation in early childhood settings: Multilevel analysis of a national survey. Topics in Early Childhood Special Education, 26(3), 142–152.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Guralnick, M. J. (2000). Early childhood intervention: Evolution of a system. Focus on Autism and Other Developmental Disabilities, 15(2), 68–70.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Hemmeter, M. L., Ostrosky, M., & Fox, L. (2006). Social and emotional foundations for early learning: A conceptual model for intervention. School Psychology Review, 35(4), 583–601.

    Google Scholar 

  • Hojnoski, R. L., & Missall, K. N. (2006). Addressing school readiness: Expanding school psychology in early education. School Psychology Review, 35(4), 602–614.

    Google Scholar 

  • Jackson, A. P., Brooks-Gunn, J., Huang, C. C., & Glassman, M. (2000). Single mothers in low-wage jobs: Financial strain, parenting, and preschoolers’ outcomes. Child Development, 71, 1409–1423.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Lavigne, J. V., Arend, R., Rosenbaum, D., Binns, H. J., Christoffel, K. K., Burngs, A., & Smith, A. (1998). Mental health service use among young children receiving pediatric primary care. Journal of the American Academy of Child and Adolescent Psychiatry, 37, 1175–1183.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Lindsey, M. A., Brandt, N. E., Becker, K. D., Lee, B. R., Barth, R. P., Daleiden, E. L., & Chorpita, B. F. (2014). Identifying the common elements of treatment engagement interventions in children’s mental health services. Clinical Child and Family Psychology Review, 3, 283–298.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • McCabe, L. S., & Frede, E. C. (2007). Challenging behaviors and the role of preschool education. National Institute for Early Education Research. Preschool Policy Brief, December 2007, Issue 16.

  • McLoyd, V. C. (1998). Socioeconomic disadvantage and child development. American Psychologist, 53, 185–204.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Mendez, J. L., McDermott, P., & Fantuzzo, J. (2002). Identifying and promoting social competence with African American preschool children: Developmental and contextual considerations. Psychology in the Schools, 39(1), 111–123.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Qi, C. H., & Kaiser, A. P. (2003). Behavior problems of preschool children from low-income families: Review of the literature. Topics in Early Childhood Special Education, 23(4), 188–216.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Rubin, H. J., & Rubin, I. S. (1995). Qualitative interviewing: The art of hearing data. Thousand Oaks, CA: Sage Publications Inc.

    Google Scholar 

  • Strauss, A., & Corbin, J. (1998). Basics of qualitative research: Techniques and procedures for developing grounded theory (2nd ed.). Thousand Oaks, CA: Sage Publications.

    Google Scholar 

  • Strohschein, L. (2005). Parental divorce and child mental health trajectories. Journal of Marriage and Family, 67, 1286–1300.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Umberson, D., & Slaten, E. (2000). Gender and intergenerational relationships. In David H. Demo, Katherine R. Allen, & Mark A. Fine (Eds.), Handbook of family diversity (pp. 105–127). New York: Oxford University Press.

    Google Scholar 

  • U.S. Department of Health and Human Services. (1999). Mental Health: A report of the surgeon general. Washington, DC: Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration, Center for Mental Health Services, National Institutes of Health, National Institute of Mental Health.

Download references

Author information

Authors and Affiliations

  1. Rutgers The State University of New Jersey, New Brunswick, NJ, USA

    Julie Koivunen, Donna Van Alst, Kerrie Ocasio & Christine Allegra

Authors
  1. Julie Koivunen
    View author publications

    You can also search for this author in PubMed Google Scholar

  2. Donna Van Alst
    View author publications

    You can also search for this author in PubMed Google Scholar

  3. Kerrie Ocasio
    View author publications

    You can also search for this author in PubMed Google Scholar

  4. Christine Allegra
    View author publications

    You can also search for this author in PubMed Google Scholar

Corresponding author

Correspondence to Julie Koivunen.

Rights and permissions

Reprints and permissions

About this article

Check for updates. Verify currency and authenticity via CrossMark

Cite this article

Koivunen, J., Van Alst, D., Ocasio, K. et al. Understanding Engagement in Mental Health Services for Preschool Children: An Analysis of Teacher, Clinician, and Parent Perspectives. Early Childhood Educ J 45, 313–320 (2017). https://doi.org/10.1007/s10643-016-0799-5

Download citation

  • Published:

  • Issue Date:

  • DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/s10643-016-0799-5

Keywords

Search

Navigation