The association of attachment, mentalization and reflective functioning with mental health in gender diverse children and adolescents: A systematic review

Caldarera, Angela Maria; Vitiello, Benedetto; Turcich, Camilla; Bechis, Daniela; Baietto, Chiara

doi:10.1177/13591045221075527

Cited by 6 publications

(1 citation statement)

References 38 publications

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“…Strategies aimed at improving reflective functioning and attachment have the capacity to reduce parental stress ( Nijssens et al, 2018 ), which may subsequently improve the health of the caregiver-child dyad. Mentalization and reflective functioning appears to be particularly important in gender diverse children and adolescents ( Caldarera et al, 2022 ), which is significant considering roughly 15 % of the participants in this study identified with a non-binary gender. The BBR specifically addresses caregiver-child relations through attachment-based work that is highly encouraged.…”

Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 79%

Child sexual abuse survivors: Differential complex multimodal treatment outcomes for pre-COVID and COVID era cohorts

Reeson

Polzin²,

Pazderka

et al. 2022

Child Abuse & Neglect

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Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 79%

Child sexual abuse survivors: Differential complex multimodal treatment outcomes for pre-COVID and COVID era cohorts

Reeson

Polzin²,

Pazderka

et al. 2022

Child Abuse & Neglect

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Prevalence, severity and risk factors for mental disorders among sexual and gender minority young people: a systematic review of systematic reviews and meta-analyses

O’Shea,

Jenkins,

Nicholls

et al. 2024

Eur Child Adolesc Psychiatry

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Evidence suggests heightened prevalence and severity of mental disorders among sexual minority (SM) and gender minority (GM) young people. Several risk factors have been associated with these disparities. A systematic review of systematic reviews and meta-analysis was conducted to provide a comprehensive overview of the literature and to determine the field’s current position. MEDLINE, PsycInfo, Scopus and Web of Science were searched in March 2022 and updated January 2024. Eligibility criteria were systematic reviews or meta-analyses assessing contemporaneous prevalence, severity and/or risk factors of mental disorders among SM or GM young people aged 25 and under. 42 reviews were included, all of which were low quality. The prevalence of depression among SM was 26% (95% CI 21–32%), and among GM was 46% (95% CI 36–56%). Greater depression severity was found among SM compared to heterosexual young people, with a significant albeit small effect size (Hedges’ g = 0.38, 95% CI = 0.25 to 0.50); effect sizes were similar when separating by gender. GM also reported greater symptom severity compared to cisgender young people. Other mental disorders were more prevalent compared to those reported in the general population, and of greater severity compared to heterosexual/cisgender young people. Several proximal and distal risk factors were focused upon within the systematic reviews identified. Past systematic reviews consistently indicate a heightened risk of mental disorders among SM and GM young people. Services need to be aware of these disparities and adapt their care accordingly.

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Parental mentalization and children’s externalizing problems: A systematic review and meta-analysis

Nieto-Retuerto,

Torres-Gomez,

Alonso-Arbiol

2024

Dev Psychopathol

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Parental mentalization, as the ability to understand mental states (e.g., desires) behind their children’s actions, may play a relevant role in the prevention of future externalizing problems. We conducted a meta-analysis to examine the relationship between parental mentalization and children’s externalizing problems. Six electronic databases were searched for studies, published in English or Spanish, linking empirically those two variables. Participants included caregivers and children between 0 and 18 years. The filtering process yielded 42 studies with 52 effect sizes. Random-effect analysis revealed higher parental mentalization associated with fewer externalizing problems, with an effect size of r = −.19 (95% CI [−.25, −.13]). Due to high heterogeneity (I2 = 83.750), further analyses were conducted to explore factors affecting such association. Parenting experience and children’s developmental stage moderated the relationship, but approaches to operationalize mentalization (MM or PRF), sample type (clinical/at-risk vs. community), and reporting figure (primary caregiver vs. other informants) did not. The study highlights the significance of parental mentalization as a potential contributor to the prevention of externalizing behaviors among infants, children, and adolescents. Our findings may underscore practical implications for equipping caregivers with mentalization skills, helping them to answer appropriately to their children needs.

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The association of attachment, mentalization and reflective functioning with mental health in gender diverse children and adolescents: A systematic review

Cited by 6 publications

References 38 publications

Child sexual abuse survivors: Differential complex multimodal treatment outcomes for pre-COVID and COVID era cohorts

Child sexual abuse survivors: Differential complex multimodal treatment outcomes for pre-COVID and COVID era cohorts

Prevalence, severity and risk factors for mental disorders among sexual and gender minority young people: a systematic review of systematic reviews and meta-analyses

Parental mentalization and children’s externalizing problems: A systematic review and meta-analysis

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