Peer-reviewed article
Centering Youth Voice in Psychiatric Residential Treatment Research: Lessons from the Families in Transition Study
Sophie Berger, Susan M. Breitenstein, Nathan P. Helsabeck, Kayla Herbell ·
Summary
Written by AI, not yet AICS's view · claude-sonnet-5-5This paper reports on how hard it was to include young people in psychiatric residential treatment in research. It draws on the Families in Transition Study, a randomized trial of a group parent training program for parents of youth in residential treatment. The youth component was treated as a feasibility study. Although 64 parents enrolled in the parent study, only five youth enrolled. The authors describe the barriers they met and the changes they made, and they compare parent and youth reports on shared measures in a descriptive way.
Key points
- 64 parents enrolled in the parent study, but only five youth enrolled in the youth component.
- Barriers included recruiting youth while they were living in residential treatment, parents' worries about the burden and emotional distress of taking part, and difficulties with remote data collection.
- Adaptations included recruiting after discharge, flexible scheduling, better communication with parents, and extensive safety protocols.
- Parent and youth reports differed on emotional and behavioral concerns and on how restrictive the placement was, though the sample was small.
- The authors stress collaboration, flexible procedures and new approaches to including youth voice in mental health research.
Limitations
Only five youth took part, so the comparison of parent and youth reports is descriptive and cannot be generalised. The abstract does not report outcomes of the parent training program itself.
Abstract
Abstract Psychiatric residential treatment (RT) is one of the most restrictive levels of care for youth with severe emotional and behavioral challenges. Despite the complex needs of youth involved in RT, their perspectives remain underrepresented in research, limiting knowledge regarding approaches for engaging this population in research. This paper describes findings from the Families in Transition (FIT) Study, a randomized controlled trial that evaluated a group-based behavioral parent training program for parents of youth in RT. The current study was conceptually framed as a feasibility study of engaging youth in RT research. Data were collected from parents and youth at baseline, 6 weeks, and 6 months using measures of emotional and behavioral functioning, placement restrictiveness, and mental health symptoms. Feasibility was assessed through recruitment, enrollment, and retention, as well as barriers encountered during youth engagement. Although 64 parents enrolled in the parent study, only five youth enrolled in the youth component. Review of recruitment records and study notes identified multiple barriers to youth participation, including challenges associated with recruiting youth while residing in RT, parent apprehension regarding participation burden and emotional distress, and difficulties related to remote data collection. Procedural adaptations included prioritizing post-discharge recruitment, flexible scheduling, enhanced communication with parents, and implementation of extensive safety protocols. As a secondary exploratory objective, parent and youth responses on shared measures were compared descriptively. Although based on a small sample, parent and youth reports differed in their perceptions of emotional and behavioral concerns and placement restrictiveness. Findings highlight the challenges of engaging youth in RT in research and underscore the importance of collaboration, flexible procedures, and innovative approaches to incorporating youth voice in mental health research.