Our understanding of child, adolescent, and caregiver mental health (MH) problems during the coronavirus pandemic, and which interventions are needed, may be advanced by consumer input. 133 general population caregivers reported top MH problems and needs for themselves and their children ( M age = 8.21; SD = 4.94), using standardized and idiographic measures. We applied linear regression models to quantitative data and thematic analysis to qualitative data. Caregivers’ COVID-era depression and anxiety symptom means fell within the clinical range, as did their children’s MH symptoms. Caregiver-reported child and adolescent symptoms were positively associated with number of children in the home. Caregiver and caregiver-reported child and adolescent symptoms were more pronounced in regions with more lenient COVID-19 restrictions. Among the kinds of help most urgently needed, MH services were ranked #1 for caregivers and adolescents, #2 for 6–12 year-olds, and #3 for 1–5 year-olds. Top problems identified for each age group highlight pressing pandemic-related intervention targets. Electronic supplementary material The online version of this article (10.1007/s10578-020-01089-z) contains supplementary material, which is available to authorized users.

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Objective: Research suggests that decreases in negative cognitions coincide with symptom improvements over the course of cognitive therapy (CT) of depression, but the role cognitive change (CC) plays in reducing symptoms remains controversial. Method: A total of 126 adults (mean age = 31.7, SD = 13.35; 60% female; 83% Caucasian) participated in CT for depression. Patients completed the Beck Depression Inventory–II and the Immediate Cognitive Change Scale at each session. At intake evaluation, maladaptive personality traits (Personality Inventory for DSM–5, Brief Form) and interpersonal problems (Inventory of Interpersonal Problems, Short Version) were assessed via self-report, and social skills were assessed through patients’ evaluation of their performance following a series of behavioral role-plays (standardized interaction task). To rule out between-patient differences as potential confounds, our model disaggregated within- and between-patient components of CC and depression scores. Results: Within-patient CC significantly predicted within-patient change in depressive symptoms. This relation was moderated by patients’ evaluations of their social skills and patients’ level of interpersonal problems, with CC predicting symptoms more robustly for patients with fewer perceived social skills and for those with greater interpersonal problems. Maladaptive personality traits did not emerge as a moderator. Additional analyses showed the relation of CC and symptom change was particularly strong among those with social anxiety disorder and among those observers rated as having lower social skills. Conclusions: CC in CT sessions appears to foster subsequent depressive symptom reduction, especially among patients with lower levels of self-evaluated social skills and greater interpersonal problems.

Reports on remote psychotherapies for youth (e.g., technology-based treatment) suggest it is acceptable, feasible, and useful in overcoming logistical barriers to treatment. But how effective is remote care? To find out, PsycINFO and PubMed were searched from 1960 through 2020, supplemented by journal searches and reference trails, to identify randomized controlled trials of youth psychotherapy for anxiety (including obsessive–compulsive disorder and trauma), depression, attention-deficit/hyperactivity disorder (ADHD), or conduct problems, in which all therapeutic contact occurred remotely. Articles (N = 37) published from 1988 through 2020, reporting 43 treatment-control group comparisons, were identified. Robust variance estimation was used to account for effect size dependencies and to synthesize overall effects and test candidate moderators. Pooled effect size was .47 (95% confidence interval [CI: .26, .67], p < .001) at posttreatment, .44 (95% CI [.12, .76], p < .05) at follow-up—comparable to effects reported in meta-analyses of in-person youth psychotherapy. Effects were significantly (a) larger for remote psychotherapies supported by therapeutic provider contact (.64) than for those accessed by youths, with only logistical support (.22), (b) larger for treatments with phone contact (.65) than for those without (.25), (c) larger for treatment of anxiety (.62) and conduct problems (.78) than ADHD (–.03), and (d) smaller for therapies involving attention/working memory training (–.18) than for those without (.60). Among studies with therapeutic contact, effects were significantly larger when therapists facilitated skill-building (e.g., practicing exposures or problem solving [.68]) than when therapists did not (.18). These findings support the effectiveness of remote psychotherapies for youths, and they highlight moderators of treatment benefit that warrant attention in future research.

UC+ and the behavioral health intervention yielded similar benefits in reducing HRBs and depressive symptoms. Findings underscore the bidirectional links between depression and HRBs, supporting the importance of monitoring for HRBs and depression in PC to allow for effective intervention in both areas.