Validation of the Social Emotional Distress Survey–Brief in Adolescents with Intersecting Sexual and Gender Identities

Assessment · 2026-01-29

The Social Emotional Distress Survey-Secondary Brief (SEDS-Brief) is a five-item self-report scale widely used in school-based mental health screening to assess adolescents' internalizing distress. Little empirical evidence exists regarding its application among sexually and gender diverse (SGD) students. Using a sample of 460,542 U.S. adolescents (3.6% Native American, 21.2% Asian, 7.9% Black, 38.4% Hispanic, 2.7% Pacific Islander, 7.8% Others, 18.4% White, 47.2% Female, 52.3% Male), this study evaluated the psychometric properties of the SEDS-Brief across 17 SGD groups with intersecting sexual and gender identities. Results supported a unidimensional factor structure, strong internal consistency, and high validity across all groups. Measurement invariance testing indicated support for configural, partial metric, and partial scalar invariance. Item response theory analyses revealed that some items exhibited distinctive item difficulty and discrimination patterns across groups. Findings provide comprehensive psychometric evidence supporting the use of the SEDS-Brief among SGD adolescents and highlight directions to enhance its ability to capturing emotional distress.

Toward an Enhanced Understanding of the Dual-Factor Model of Mental Health

School Mental Health · 2025-11-07

Supporting children, families and schools: a community–university partnership to promote school readiness

School-University Partnerships · 2025-06-19 · 1 citations

Purpose This study examined trends in school readiness in the context of a community–university partnership (CUP) supported by funding from the local county through the Children and Families Commission. The study describes the influence of diverse community efforts on school readiness, focusing on the role of prekindergarten attendance in predicting children’s readiness for school. Design/methodology/approach Several community efforts to support school readiness were implemented over the years based on different strategic plan priorities. An evaluation framework was used to monitor community-wide trends in school readiness. Teachers at participating schools and school districts received annual training from the local university on using a universal school readiness screener, the Kindergarten Student Entrance Profile (KSEP) and rated all entering kindergarten students during the first three weeks of the school year. Trends were analyzed both before and after the COVID-19 pandemic. Findings Results revealed a trend toward improvement in overall school readiness over the years, despite a temporary decline during the pandemic. Prekindergarten attendance was significantly associated with students’ school readiness at kindergarten entry, even after controlling for child age. These findings were reported back to schools, the county government and funders, highlighting positive impacts of the CUP. Originality/value The findings underscore the importance of investing in prekindergarten programs as part of collaborative efforts to enhance educational outcomes, especially in response to challenges such as the COVID-19 pandemic. This study illustrates how strategic investments and collaborations can sustain and improve community wide school readiness outcomes over time.

Exploring Teacher Well-Being from the Perspectives of Public School Teachers: A Mixed Methods Analysis of Organizational and Individual Factors

DergiPark (Istanbul University) · 2025-03-22

Uniform Differential Item Functioning Across Gender, Grade Level and Racial Groups: A MIMIC Investigation of the Non-clinical Parent Ratings of the Pediatric Symptom Checklist-17

Journal of Psychopathology and Behavioral Assessment · 2025-01-28

Abstract The Pediatric Symptom Checklist-17 (PSC-17) is a screening instrument designed to measure children’s behavioral and emotional problems. This study investigated the factor structure of the PSC-17 and the uniform differential item functioning (DIF) of the PSC-17 item scores as a function of school children’s gender, grade level, and racial/ethnic groups. Parent ratings of 1,305 children from pre-K to Grade 1 were used. Confirmatory factor analysis (CFA) of the scale’s factor structure indicated that parent ratings of PSC-17 were composed of three subscales: Externalizing Problems, Internalizing Problems, and Attention Problems. A multiple indicators multiple causes (MIMIC) analysis results showed that four of the PSC-17 items exhibited statistically uniform DIF as a function of race/ethnicity but not as a function of gender or grade level. Uniform DIF had little impact on latent mean differences of Internalizing, Attention, and Externalizing Problems among gender, race/ethnicity, and grade-level groups. This study’s results implied that teachers or schools should be cautious with comparing racial/ethnic groups at the item level. However, they can compare children’s subscale scores across gender, race/ethnicity, and grade levels with parent ratings of the PSC-17.

Considerations for Equitable Social Emotional Learning in Schools

Contemporary School Psychology · 2025-07-04

Promoting Early School Success: Protective Factors and Parental Engagement as Pathways to Kindergarten Readiness

European Journal of Education · 2025-10-18 · 1 citations

ABSTRACT Kindergarten readiness is shaped by both family and school contexts, highlighting the importance of an ecological perspective on early learning. The current study examined whether parental engagement mediates the relationship between parents' protective factors (e.g., social support) and children's kindergarten readiness when controlling for parental education. Participants included 853 kindergarten students whose readiness was assessed using the Kindergarten Student Entrance Profile (KSEP). A mediation analysis using Hayes' PROCESS macro revealed that parents' protective factors were indirectly associated with kindergarten readiness. Protective factors predicted higher parental engagement, which in turn predicted higher readiness scores. These findings underscore parental engagement as a key pathway through which protective factors support children's early learning. Implications for school psychologists and educators include strengthening family–school partnerships and providing resources that promote both caregiver engagement and involvement in children's learning to foster equitable kindergarten readiness.

Culturally and Linguistically Responsive MTSS: Ethical and Actionable Strategies for Supporting Multilingual Learners in Multi‐Tiered Frameworks

Psychology in the Schools · 2025-05-08 · 1 citations

ABSTRACT This paper examines the ethical and legal considerations in providing services to multilingual learners (MLs) before special education evaluations, focusing on the decision‐making process within Multi‐Tiered System of Supports (MTSS). Legal mandates require districts to ensure MLs have equitable access to the general education curriculum and are provided with language support before special education assessment. However, school teams often face ethical and logistical challenges navigating MLs through MTSS, especially when employing a “one size fits all” approach. The unique needs of MLs may be overlooked, leading to misinterpretation of language differences as learning disabilities. Drawing on Armistead et al.'s (2011) problem‐solving model and the National Association of School Psychologists' ethical guidelines, practical and actionable recommendations are provided for adapting MTSS to meet MLs' needs and foster culturally and linguistically responsive MTSS. Clinical Trial Registration . Not applicable, as this study did not involve a clinical trial.

Adolescents’ Covitality Patterns: Relations with Student Demographic Characteristics and Proximal Academic and Mental Health Outcomes

School Mental Health · 2024-05-04 · 2 citations

Abstract Identifying and promoting students’ social-emotional strengths is essential in building their mental health. Covitality, representing the co-occurrence of psychological strengths, is a helpful framework for characterizing students’ well-being. This study used latent profile analysis to identify adolescents’ ( n = 11,217; 50.3% female, 37.8% male; grades 9 [33.7%], 10 [21.0%], 11 [28.9%], and 12 [16.5%]) covitality patterns across 12 social-emotional health domains. We investigated whether student demographic characteristics (i.e., sex, parent educational attainment, ethnic identification) were related to profile membership. We further examined profiles’ relations to students’ proximal academic and mental health outcomes, including self-reported grades, school connectedness, life satisfaction, and psychological distress. Four covitality profiles were identified— High, Moderate-High, Moderate-Low, and Low . Profile membership was statistically significantly related to students’ sex and socioeconomic circumstances but with small effect sizes. We identified consistent differences across covitality profiles on student self-reported proximal outcomes. Overall, students in profiles with higher covitality levels ( High and Moderate-High ) reported (a) higher grades, school connectedness, and life satisfaction and (b) less psychological distress, with students in the High profile reporting the most favorable outcomes. Assessing students’ strengths and providing interventions focused on building strengths across domains are recommended.

Assessment of Complete Social-Emotional Wellness: An International School Psychology Perspective

2024-01-01 · 2 citations