Factors That Put The Child’s Mental Health At Risk

 

The Risk And Resilience Model :

According to the Risk And Resilience Model (Pearce, 1993) there exist three categories of factors that put the child’s mental health at risk. These are as follows :

1. Factors relating to the child’s / young person’s environment
2. Factors relating to the child’s / young person’s family
3. Factors relating to the child / young person himself/herself

 

The List Of Risk Factors (Split Into The Three Categories Given Above) :

Let’s look at each of these three categories of factors in turn :

1. Factors relating to the child’s / young person’s environment :

These include the following :

• living in a violent community
• socioeconomic deprivation
• living in an environment in which one is discriminated against
• homelessness
• living in the environment as a refugee or asylum seeker
• disaster
• other significant, adverse life event

 

 2. Factors relating to the child’s / young person’s family :

• experiencing problems early in life relating to nurturing / attachment
• breakdown of the family/separation/divorce
• conflict within the family
• inconsistent / unclear discipline
• hostile and/or rejecting relationships
• physical, sexual, emotional abuse
• parental criminal behavior
• significant adult’s failure to adapt to the child’s changing developmental needs
• mental illness of parent/s
• death/bereavement/loss of family members and/or friends

 

  3. Factors relating to the child / young person himself/herself:

• low I.Q. / learning difficulties
• genetic influences
• temperamental difficulties
• communication difficulties
• specific developmental delay
• chronic physical illness
• gender identity conflict
• low self-esteem
• academic failure
• poor school attendance
• neurological disorder

Resilience: Factors That Help To Protect A Child / Young Person From Becoming Mentally Ill :

Pearce’s model also includes factors that help to protect a child / young person from becoming mentally ill which he refers to as RESILIENCE FACTORS; I list these below :

• social skills
• self-esteem
• familial compassion and warmth
• a stable family environment
• a skill or talent
• a social support system that encourages personal development and coping skills

 

RESOURCE:

DEVELOP POWERFUL RESILIENCE | SELF HYPNOSIS DOWNLOADS

SEE ALSO: 

TEN WAYS TO BUILD RESILIENCE

STEPS TO TRAUMA RECOVERY AND BUILDING RESILIENCE

 

David Hosier BSc Hons; MSc; PGDE(FAHE).