School-based mental health and behavioral programs for low-income, urban youth: A systematic and meta-analytic review

Clinical Psychology: Science and Practice

Volumn 18, Issue 4, 2011, Pages 372-390

  Farahmand, Farahnaz K ^a   Grant, Kathryn E ^a   Polo, Antonio J ^a   Duffy, Sophia N ^a  

^a DEPAUL UNIVERSITY   (United States)

Author keywords

Interventions; Low income; Mental health services; Schools; Urban; Youth

Indexed keywords

EID: 84055199780     PISSN: 09695893     EISSN: 14682850     Source Type: Journal    
DOI: 10.1111/j.1468-2850.2011.01265.x     Document Type: Review

References (77)

1. Studies that met eligibility criteria for this review.
2. Abel, M. H., & Sewell, J. (1999). Stress and burnout in rural and urban secondary school teachers. Journal of Educational Research, 92, 287-293.
3. Aber, J. L., Jones, S. M., Brown, J. L., Chaudry, N., & Samples, F. (1998). Resolving conflict creatively: Evaluating the developmental effects of a school-based violence prevention program in neighborhood and classroom contexts. Development and Psychopathology, 10, 187-213.
4. Abt Associates. (2001). National evaluation of family support programs: Volume B. Research studies: Final report. Cambridge, MA. Retrieved from
5. Achenbach, T. M. (1991). Manual for the Youth Self-Report and 1991 Profile. Burlington: University of Vermont Department of Psychiatry.
6. Anyon, J. (1995). Race, social class, and educational reform in an inner-city school. Teacher College Record, 97, 69-94.
7. Atkins, M., Frazier, S., Birman, D., Adil, J. A., Jackson, M., Graczyk, P., et al. (2006). School-based mental health services for children living in high poverty urban communities. Administration and Policy in Mental Health and Mental Health Services Research, 33, 146-159.
8. Bell, C. C., & Jenkins, E. (1994). Effects of child abuse and race. Journal of the National Medical Association, 86, 165-232.
9. Botvin, G. J., Griffin, K. W., Diaz, T., & Ilfill-Williams, M. (2001). Drug abuse prevention among minority adolescents: Posttest and one-year follow-up of school-based preventive intervention. Prevention Science, 2, 1-13.
10. Cardemil, E. V., Reivich, K. J., Beevers, C. G., Seligman, M. E. P., & James, J. (2007). The prevention of depressive symptoms in low-income, minority children: Two-year follow-up. Behaviour Research and Therapy, 45, 313-327.
11. Cardemil, E. V., Reivich, K. J., & Seligman, M. E. P. (2002). The prevention of depressive symptoms in low-income minority middle school students. Prevention and Treatment, 5: Article 8. Retrieved from.
12. Cassidy, E. F., & Stevenson, H. C. J. (2005). They wear the mask: Hypervulnerability and hypermasculine aggression among African American males in an urban remedial disciplinary school. Journal of Aggression, Maltreatment, and Trauma, 11, 53-74.
13. Cho, H., Hallfors, D. D., & Sanchez, V. (2005). Evaluation of a high school peer group intervention for at-risk youth. Journal of Abnormal Child Psychology, 33, 363-374.
14. Conger, R. D., Ge, X., Elder, G. H., Jr., Lorenz, F. O., & Simons, R. L. (1994). Economic stressors, coercive family process, and developmental problems of adolescents. Child Development, 65, 541-561.
15. Cooley-Quille, M., Boyd, R. C., Frantz, E., & Walsh, J. (2001). Emotional and behavioral impact of exposure to community violence in inner-city adolescents. Journal of Clinical Child Psychology, 30, 199-206.
16. Cooper, H. (2010). Research synthesis and meta-analysis: A step-by-step approach (4th ed.). Thousand Oaks, CA: Sage.
17. Dilworth, J., Mokrue, K., & Elias, M. (2002). The efficacy of a video-based teamwork-building series with urban elementary school students: A pilot investigation. Journal of School Psychology, 40, 329-346.
18. Dishion, T. J., McCord, J., & Poulin, F. (1999). When interventions harm: Peer groups and problem behavior. American Psychologist, 54, 755-764.
19. Dolan, L. J. (1992). Models for integrating human services into the school (Technical Report No. 30). Baltimore: Johns Hopkins University, Center for Research on Effective Schooling for Disadvantaged Students.
20. Durlak, J. A., & DuPre, E. P. (2008). Implementation matters: A review of research on influence of implementation on program outcomes and the factors affecting implementation. American Journal of Community Psychology, 41, 327-350.
21. Farmer, E. M. Z., Burns, B. J., Phillips, S. D., Angold, A., & Costello, E. J. (2003). Pathways into and through mental health services for children and adolescents. Psychiatric Services, 54, 60-66.
22. Farmer, E. M. Z., Stangl, D. K., Burns, B. J., Costello, E. J., & Angold, A. (1999). Use, persistence, and intensity: Patterns of care for children's mental health across one year. Community Mental Health Journal, 35, 31-46.
23. Garland, A. F., Lau, A. S., Yeh, M., McCabe, K., Hough, R. L., & Landsverk, J. (2005). Racial and ethnic differences in utilization of mental health services among high-risk youths. American Journal of Psychiatry, 162, 1336-1343.
24. Grant, K. E., Compas, B. E., Stuhlmacher, A., Thurm, A. E., McMahon, S., & Halpert, J. (2003). Stressors and child and adolescent psychopathology: Moving from markers to mechanisms of risk. Psychological Bulletin, 129, 447-466.
25. Grant, K. E., Katz, B. N., Thomas, K. J., O'Koon, J. H., Meza, C. M., DiPasquale, A. M., et al. (2004). Psychological symptoms affecting low-income urban youth. Journal of Adolescent Research, 19, 613-634.
26. Grant, K. E., Thomas, K. J., Carlson, G. C., Gipson, P. Y., Mance, G. A., Carter, J. S., et al. (2011). Specific processes linking economic stressors, exposure to community violence, and psychological symptoms affecting low-income urban youth. Manuscript submitted for publication.
27. Gutman, L., McLoyd, V. C., & Tokoyawa, T. (2005). Financial strain, neighborhood stress, parenting behaviors, and adolescent adjustment in urban African American families. Journal of Research on Adolescence, 15, 425-449.
28. Hedges, L. V. (1981). Distribution theory for Glass's estimator of effect size and related estimators. Journal of Educational Statistics, 6, 107-128.
29. Hedges, L. V., & Olkin, I. (1985). Statistical methods for meta-analysis. New York: Academic Press.
30. Hedges, L. V., & Vevea, J. L. (1998). Fixed and random-effects models in meta-analysis. Psychological Methods, 3, 486-504.
31. Henderson, P., Kelbey, T., & Engerbreston, K. (1992). Effects of a stress-control program on children's locus of control, self-concept, and coping behavior. The School Counselor, 40, 125-130.
32. Heydenberk, B. A., & Heydenberk, W. R. (2005). Increasing meta-cognitive competence through conflict resolution. Education and Urban Society, 37, 431-445.
33. Higgins, J. P. T., & Green, S. (2008). Cochrane handbook for systematic reviews of interventions. The Cochrane collaboration. Retrieved from
34. Higgins, J. P., & Thompson, S. G. (2002). Quantifying heterogeneity in a meta-analysis. Statistical Methods, 21, 1539-1558.
35. Horowitz, J. L., & Garber, J. (2006). The prevention of depressive symptoms in children and adolescents: A meta-analytic review. Journal of Consulting and Clinical Psychology, 74, 401-415.
36. Hostetler, M., & Fisher, K. (1997). Project C.A.R.E. substance abuse prevention program for high-risk youth: A longitudinal evaluation of program effectiveness. Journal of Community Psychology, 25, 397-419.
37. Institute of Medicine. (1994). Reducing risks for mental disorders: Frontiers for preventive intervention research. Washington, DC: National Academy Press.
38. Jagers, R. J., Morgan-Lopez, A. A., Howard, T. L., Browne, D. C., & Flay, B. R. (Aban Aya Coinvestigators). (2007). Mediators of the development and prevention of violent behavior. Prevention Science, 8, 171-179.
39. Kataoka, S. H., Stein, B. D., Jaycox, L. H., Wong, M., Escudero, P., Tu, W., et al. (2003). A school-based mental health program for traumatized Latino immigrant children. Journal of the American Academy of Child and Adolescent Psychiatry, 42, 311-318.
40. Kataoka, S. H., Zhang, L., & Wells, K. B. (2002). Unmet need for mental health care among US children: Variation by ethnicity and insurance status. American Journal of Psychiatry, 159, 1548-1555.
41. Kazdin, A. E., Holland, L., & Crowley, M. (1997). Family experience of barriers to treatment and premature termination from child therapy. Journal of Consulting and Clinical Psychology, 65, 453-463.
42. Kliewer, W., Parrish, K. A., Taylor, K. W., Jackson, K., Walker, J. M., & Shivy, V. A. (2006). Socialization of coping with community violence: Influences of caregiver coaching, modeling, and family context. Child Development, 77, 605-623.
43. Lipsey, M. W., & Wilson, D. B. (2001). Practical meta-analysis. Thousand Oaks, CA: Sage.
44. Mayers, H. A., Hager-Bundy, M., & Buckner, E. B. (2008). The Chances for Children Teen Parent-Infant Project: Results of a pilot intervention for teen mothers and their infants in inner city high schools. Infant Mental Health Journal, 29, 320-342.
45. McClowry, S., Snow, D. L., & Tamis-LeMonda, C. S. (2005). An evaluation of the effects of "INSIGHTS" on the behavior of inner city primary school children. Journal of Primary Prevention, 26, 567-583.
46. McDonald, L., Moberg, D. P., Brown, R., Rodriguez-Espiricueta, I., Flores, N. I., Burke, M. P., et al. (2006). After-school multifamily groups: A randomized controlled trial involving low-income, urban, Latino children. Children and Schools, 28, 25-36.
47. McHugh, R., Murray, H. W., & Barlow, D. H. (2009). Balancing fidelity and adaptation in the dissemination of empirically-supported treatments: The promise of transdiagnostic interventions. Behaviour Research and Therapy, 47, 946-953.
48. McMiller, W. P., & Weisz, J. R. (1996). Help-seeking preceding mental health clinic intake among African-American Latino, and Caucasian youths. Journal of the American Academy of Child & Adolescent Psychiatry, 35, 1086-1094.
49. Metropolitan Area Child Study Research Group. (2002). A cognitive-ecological approach to preventing aggression in urban settings: Initial outcomes for high-risk children. Journal of Consulting and Clinical Psychology, 70, 179-194.
50. Mufson, L., Dorta, K. P., Wickramaratne, P., Nomura, Y., Olfson, M., & Weissman, M. M. (2004). A randomized effectiveness trial of interpersonal psychotherapy for depressed adolescents. Archives of General Psychiatry, 61, 577-584.
51. Murray, C., & Malmgren, K. (2005). Implementing a teacher-student relationship program in a high-poverty urban school: Effects on social, emotional, and academic adjustment and lessons learned. Journal of School Psychology, 43, 137-152.
52. National Assembly on School-Based Health Care. (2007). School-based health centers national census school year 2004-05. Retrieved from:
53. Neil, A. L., & Christensen, H. (2009). Efficacy and effectiveness of school-based prevention and early intervention programs for anxiety. Clinical Psychology Review, 29, 208-215.
54. Park-Higgerson, H. K., Perumean-Chaney, S. E., Bartolucci, A. A., Grimley, D. M., & Singh, K. P. (2008). The evaluation of school-based violence prevention programs. A meta-analysis. Journal of School Health, 78(9), 465-479.
55. Paternite, C. E. (2005). School-based mental health programs and services: Overview and introduction to the special issue. Journal of Abnormal Child Psychology, 33, 657-663.
56. Payton, J., Weissberg, R. P., Durlak, J. A., Dymnicki, A. B., Taylor, R. D., Schellinger, K. B., et al. (2008). The positive impact of social and emotional learning for kindergarten to eighth-grade students: Findings from three scientific reviews. Chicago: Collaborative for Academic, Social, and Emotional Learning. Retrieved from
57. Raudenbush, S. W. (1994). Random effects models. In H. Cooper & L. V. Hedges (Eds.), The handbook of research synthesis (pp. 301-321). New York: Russell Sage Foundation.
58. Reddy, L. A., Newman, E., Thomas, C. A. D., & Chun, V. (2009). Effectiveness of school-based prevention and intervention programs for children and adolescents with emotional disturbances: A meta-analysis. Journal of School Psychology, 47, 77-99.
59. Reed, J. (2009). A novel application of the file drawer formula: Rejected study bias in meta-analysis. Psychological Reports, 105, 703-706.
60. Roberts, L., White, G., & Yeomans, P. (2004). Theory development and evaluation of project WIN: A violence reduction program for early adolescents. Journal of Early Adolescence, 24, 460-483.
61. Robinson, W. L., Harper, G. W., & Schoeny, M. E. (2003). Reducing substance use among African-American adolescents: Effectiveness of school-based health centers. Clinical Psychology: Science and Practice, 10, 431-504.
62. Rones, M., & Hoagwood, K. (2000). School-based mental health services: A research review. Clinical Child and Family Psychology Review, 3, 223-240.
63. Rosenthal, R. (1994). Parametric measures of effect size. In H. Cooper & L. V. Hedges (Eds.), The handbook of research synthesis (pp. 231-244). New York: Russell Sage Foundation.
64. Sinclair, M. F., Christenson, S. L., & Thurlow, M. L. (2005). Promoting school completion of urban secondary youth with emotional or behavioral disabilities. Exceptional Children, 71, 465-482.
65. Tolan, P., Gorman-Smith, D., & Henry, D. (2004). Supporting families in a high-risk setting: Proximal effects of the SAFEChildren prevention intervention. Journal of Consulting and Clinical Psychology, 72, 855-869.
66. Tukey, J. W. (1977). Exploratory data analysis. Reading, MA: Addison-Wesley.
67. U.S. Bureau of the Census. (2000) Urbanized area and urban cluster information census. Retrieved from
68. U.S. Bureau of the Census. (2011). Income, expenditures, poverty, & wealth. Washington, DC: Government Printing Office. Retrieved from
69. U.S. Department of Health and Human Services. (1999). Chapter 3: Children and mental health. In Mental health: A report of the surgeon general. Rockville, MD: U.S. Department of Health and Human Services, Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration, Center for Mental Health Services.
70. U.S. Department of Health and Human Services. (2001). Chapter 2: Culture counts: The influence of culture and society on mental health. In Mental health: Culture, race, and ethnicity-A supplement to mental health: A report of the surgeon general. Rockville, MD: U.S. Department of Health and Human Services, Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration, Center for Mental Health Services.
71. Walker, S. C., Kerns, S. E. U., Lyon, A. R., Bruns, E. J., & Cosgrove, T. J. (2010). Impact of school-based health center use on academic outcomes. Journal of Adolescent Health Care, 46, 251-257.
72. Weiss, B., Harris, V., Catron, T., & Han, S. (2003). Efficacy of the RECAP intervention program for children with concurrent internalizing and externalizing problems. Journal of Consulting and Clinical Psychology, 71, 364-374.
73. Weisz, J. R., Doss, A., & Hawley, K. M. (2005). Youth psychotherapy outcome research: A review and critique of the evidence base. Annual Review of Psychology, 56, 337-363.
74. Weisz, J., Weiss, B., Han, S., Granger, D., & Morton, T. (1995). Effects of psychotherapy with children and adolescents revisited: A meta-analysis of treatment outcome studies. Psychological Bulletin, 117, 450-468.
75. What Works Clearinghouse. (2008). Procedures and standards; Appendix C-Clustering correction of the statistical significance of effects estimated with mismatched analyses. Retrieved from
76. Wheeler, M. E., Keller, T. E., & DuBois, D. L. (2010). Review of three recent randomized trials of school-based mentoring. Social Policy Report, 24, 1-21.
77. Wilson, S. J., & Lipsey, M. W. (2007). School-based interventions for aggressive and disruptive behavior. Update of a meta-analysis. American Journal of Preventive Medicine, 33(2S), S130-S143.