Psychology in the Schools invites manuscripts for a special issue on “Embedding Equity into School Mental Health Theory, Research and Practice.” This special issue will advance research on equity-informed school mental health programs, policies and services. Within this larger goal, the primary purpose of the proposed special issue is to illuminate how we can embed an equity lens into school mental health theory, measurement, and intervention.
Background & Rationale for Special Issue
One of the key goals of school mental health (i.e., the continuum of mental health promotion and intervention programs, policies and services offered in school settings, designed to promote the emotional, social, and behavioral well-being of all students; Doll, Natasi, Cornell, & Song, 2017; Weist & Murray, 2008) is to improve access to and quality of mental health services for all children and youth. However, important disparities remain within school mental health, precluding ‘all’ from receiving these services in equitable ways. In particular, historically marginalized and underrepresented children and youth face systemic barriers to accessing school mental health services. In addition, even when services are accessed, marginalized populations may receive lower quality or less culturally appropriate services. Further, research demonstrates both immediate and long-term negative outcomes as a result of inequities in school-based practices and policies.
While a sizable body of literature explores the impacts of inequities in the school setting, there is little research available on processes for explicitly embedding equity into school mental health research, theory and practice. This is critical to ensure that school mental health services do not replicate existing school-based disparities, and that school mental health services are equitably available to diverse children and youth. This special issue is designed to address this pressing gap in the literature.
Submission Guidelines
We encourage submissions that address the issue of embedding equity into school mental health across multiple tiers of support in the domains of: 1) theory; 2) measurement; or 3) intervention (including practice, programs and policy). Submissions that take an interdisciplinary approach are encouraged.
Authors interested in contributing a manuscript to this special issue are asked to submit a letter of intent by June 1, 2020. The letter of intent should include: (1) tentative title; (2) brief description of 500 words or less; (3) brief justification of how the proposed submission contributes to the aim of the special issue (including an indication of whether the submission would fall under theory, measurement or practice); and (4) author affiliations and contact information for the corresponding author. Manuscript formats for the special issue can include empirical papers, systematic reviews/meta-analysis, and theoretical papers. Brief reports will not be considered. For additional information on journal manuscripts and editorial policies, please see: https://onlinelibrary.wiley.
Letters of intent should be sent as PDF files to Deinera Exner-Cortens (deinera.exner2@ucalgary.ca), with the subject line: “Letter of Intent for PITS Special Issue.” Decisions on letters of intent will be sent by June 30th, 2020, and invited contributors will need to submit a manuscript by October 1st, 2020 to receive continued consideration for inclusion in the special issue. Manuscripts will be peer-reviewed in accordance with Psychology in the Schools standard guidelines and expectations. Questions concerning the letter of intent and/or special issue can be directed to the guest editors.