The association between social capital and mental health and behavioural problems in children and adolescents: an integrative systematic review

Mcpherson, Kerri E, Kerr, Susan, Mcgee, Elizabeth, Morgan, Antony, Cheater, Francine M, Mclean, Jennifer and Egan, James (2014) The association between social capital and mental health and behavioural problems in children and adolescents: an integrative systematic review. BMC Psychology, 2 (1). ISSN 2050-7283

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Abstract

Background Mental health is an important component of overall health and wellbeing and crucial for a happy and meaningful life. The prevalence of mental health problems amongst children and adolescent is high; with estimates suggesting 10-20% suffer from mental health problems at any given time. These mental health problems include internalising (e.g. depression and social anxiety) and externalising behavioural problems (e.g. aggression and anti-social behaviour). Although social capital has been shown to be associated with mental health/behavioural problems in young people, attempts to consolidate the evidence in the form of a review have been limited. This integrative systematic review identified and synthesised international research findings on the role and impact of family and community social capital on mental health/behavioural problems in children and adolescents to provide a consolidated evidence base to inform future research and policy development. Methods Nine electronic databases were searched for relevant studies and this was followed by hand searching. Identified literature was screened using review-specific inclusion/exclusion criteria, the data were extracted from the included studies and study quality was assessed. Heterogeneity in study design and outcomes precluded meta-analysis/meta-synthesis, the results are therefore presented in narrative form. Results After screening, 55 studies were retained. The majority were cross-sectional surveys and were conducted in North America (n = 33); seven were conducted in the UK. Samples ranged in size from 29 to 98,340. The synthesised results demonstrate that family and community social capital are associated with mental health/behavioural problems in children and adolescents. Positive parent–child relations, extended family support, social support networks, religiosity, neighbourhood and school quality appear to be particularly important. Conclusions To date, this is the most comprehensive review of the evidence on the relationships that exist between social capital and mental health/behavioural problems in children and adolescents. It suggests that social capital generated and mobilised at the family and community level can influence mental health/problem behaviour outcomes in young people. In addition, it highlights key gaps in knowledge where future research could further illuminate the mechanisms through which social capital works to influence health and wellbeing and thus inform policy development.

Item Type:	Article
Additional Information:	© McPherson et al.; licensee BioMed Central Ltd. 2014 This article is published under license to BioMed Central Ltd. This is an Open Access article distributed under the terms of the Creative Commons Attribution License (http://​creativecommons.​org/​licenses/​by/​2.​0), which permits unrestricted use, distribution, and reproduction in any medium, provided the original work is properly credited.
Uncontrolled Keywords:	sdg 3 - good health and well-being ,/dk/atira/pure/sustainabledevelopmentgoals/good_health_and_well_being
Faculty \ School:
UEA Research Groups:	Faculty of Medicine and Health Sciences > Research Groups > Community and Family Health (former - to 2017)
Depositing User:	Pure Connector
Date Deposited:	25 Jul 2014 15:46
Last Modified:	12 Sep 2022 00:15
URI:	https://ueaeprints.uea.ac.uk/id/eprint/48844
DOI:	10.1186/2050-7283-2-7

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