Ecology of Child Behavioral Health: Prevention, Intervention, & Public Policy

SCH PY750 - Ecology of Child Behavioral Health: Prevention, Intervention, & Public Policy

Credits: 3

This course takes a broad ecological perspective in studying behavioral health needs and resources for children, families and their communities. Levels of analysis range from the micro- to the macro-, considering interactions from the biological and genetic through the cultural and societal. On a micro- level, this course provides an overview of evidence-based programs of prevention and intervention. On a macro-level, existing and proposed child-serving systems (such as educational, behavioral health and medical care, juvenile justice, child protection) which impact upon child behavioral health are described as are the public policies that create, fund and influence each system and their interactions. Risk categories to be covered include, but are not limited to: individual medical and developmental challenges, family loss and disruption, psychosocial adversity, socio-economic status, race, ethnicity, disaster and geographic disruption. Resiliency categories will be identified at parallel individual, family, community, and societal levels. Evidence-based and “best practices” programs that risks, assets, resilience, policy and positive youth development are both similar and different across gender, socioeconomic and ethnic and racial groups. Prerequisite(s): LS659.