Scoping review of outdoor and land-based prevention programs for Indigenous youth in the United States and Canada

Interventions taking place on the land are culturally well aligned for Native peoples, as they are often developed by the community and incorporate traditional knowledge, values, and practices. However, research on the effectiveness and characteristics of such programs is lacking. This scoping review examined outdoor and land-based prevention interventions for Indigenous adolescents ages 10–25 in […]

An exploratory pilot qualitative study that explores the influences on mental health and well-being in Indigenous youth and young adults

Background: Suicide is the second leading cause of death among American Indian (AI) adolescents and young adults in the 15- to 24-year-old age group and is the third leading cause of death in the 10- to 14-year-old age group. Methods: Key informant interviews were conducted with AI youth (n = 10) ages 12–18, and young AI […]

Unravelling suicide and related behaviours in Indigenous youth and young adults in the Canadian context

Suicide, rooted in antiquity, is now identified as a global dilemma, particularly impacting Indigenous peoples. The backdrop for this non-systematic focused review is the worldwide challenges faced by vulnerable Indigenous peoples with untenable poverty, degraded life-quality conditions, and suicidality, while the focus, as a specific case, is on the complexity of suicidality in Canadian Indigenous […]

Centering community strengths and resisting structural racism to prevent youth suicide: Learning from American Indian and Alaska Native communities

The persistence of extreme suicide disparities in American Indian and Alaska Native (AI/AN) youth signals a severe health inequity with distinct associations to a colonial experience of historical and on-going cultural, social, economic, and political oppression. To address this complex issue, we describe three AI/AN suicide prevention efforts that illustrate how strengths-based community interventions across […]

Risk and protective factors with Native American Indian and Alaska Native children who have a history of suicidal behavior

Suicide is a leading public health problem in the United States, and Native American Indians and Alaskan Native individuals are at an increased risk for suicide. This study sought to understand the demographic and clinical risk and  protective factors for young Native American Indians and Alaskan Native children who were hospitalized due to suicide ideation, […]

Adult caretaker engagement and school connectedness and association with substance use, indicators of emotional well-being and suicide risk, and experiences with violence among American Indian or Alaska Native high school students: Youth Risk Behavior Survey, United States, 2023

This report presents the most comprehensive, up-to-date data on substance use, indicators of emotional well-being and suicide risk, and experiences with violence among AI/AN high school students nationwide. The findings suggest the importance of engaged household adults and school connectedness in promoting emotional well-being and preventing substance use, suicide-related behavior, and experiences of violence among […]

A multi-level examination of impulsivity and links to suicide ideation among Native American youth

Background Despite preliminary evidence that links impulsivity to suicide risk among Native American youth, impulsivity has not been directly studied in relation to suicide ideation (SI) or behaviors in this population. We examined indexes of rapid-response impulsivity (RRI) across multiple levels of analysis (self-report, behavioral, neurobiological) and associations with SI among Native American youth ages […]

Cultural continuity, identity, and resilience among indigenous youth: Honoring the legacies of Michael Chandler and Christopher Lalonde

This essay is an introduction to the thematic issue of Transcultural Psychiatry in honor of the work of Michael Chandler and Christopher Lalonde, developmental psychologists who made essential contributions to the study of identity and wellness among Indigenous youth in Canada and internationally. We outline their major contributions and illustrate the ways their innovative theory and methods […]

Inuit youth health and wellbeing programming in Canada

Inuit youth face challenges in maintaining their wellbeing, stemming from continued impacts of colonisation. Recent work documented that urban centres, such as Winnipeg Canada, have large Inuit populations comprised of a high proportion of youth. However, youth lack culturally appropriate health and wellbeing services. This review aimed to scan peer-reviewed and grey literature on Inuit […]

Supporting Indigenous youth to live with continued resilience, meaning and hope

Indigenous Life Promotion and strengths-based approaches to mental wellness and suicide prevention are important strategies that promote sovereignty, holistic wellness, and healing at the individual, family, and community levels. As part of the Patient and Community Engagement Research (PaCER) program, our team facilitated three focus groups with Indigenous young people in Alberta to better understand […]

Youth suicide prevention programming among the Mississippi band of Choctaw Indians: Effects of the lifelines student curriculum

Suicide continues to be a leading cause of mortality for young people. Given persistent intersecting forms of disadvantage, Native American adolescents are especially vulnerable to mental health adversities and other suicide risk factors. The Mississippi Band of Choctaw Indians (MBCI) implemented the Choctaw Youth Resilience Initiative (CYRI), a five-year SAMHSA-funded project that began in 2019. […]

Understanding the purpose of life: 12 teachings for native youth

Each teaching offers positive messages and helps encourage the reader to a new way of life that brings meaning and purpose to everyday life. This book is not just for Native youth but can benefit people of any age group or ethnic background.

An environmental scan of mental health services for Indigenous youth in Canada

Background: There is an urgent need for culturally and contextually relevant mental health support for First Nations, Inuit and Métis youth. Objective: Our aim was to identify mental health and wellness services that are  currently available to Indigenous youth across Canada. Methodology: As a first step, we conducted a web-based environmental scan of services tailored […]

Centering community, Indigenous relationships, and ceremony through an Alaska Native Collaborative Hub to prevent suicide and promote youth wellbeing

The Alaska Native Collaborative Hub for Research on Resilience (ANCHRR) engages Indigenous leadership at all levels in a strength-based study to deepen our understanding of community level protective factors in Indigenous communities, which are the collective influences shaping individual wellbeing across time. Overall, ANCHRR aims to position Alaska Native Tribes, Tribal organizations, and community members […]

“Our spirit is like a fire”: Conceptualizing intersections of mental health, wellness, and spirituality with Indigenous youth leaders across Canada

Indigenous youth in Canada experience adverse health outcomes at disproportionate rates to their non-Indigenous peers. The impacts of colonial efforts maintain the dispossession of Indigenous peoples from land, language, community, culture, identity, and other socio-cultural resources necessary to promote wellbeing.  High rates of suicide among Indigenous youth in Canada, and its lasting impacts, speaks to […]

Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander youth suicide mortality and previous mental health, suicidality and service use in Queensland, Australia, from 2001 to 2021

Background The current study aimed to compare current suicide rates, trends, previous treatment, suicidality and mental health diagnoses for First Nations and non-Indigenous young people who died by suicide. Methods Age-specific suicide rates (ASSRs) were calculated per 100,000 persons/year using suicides aged 10–19 years in the Queensland Suicide Register. Rate Ratios (RRs) and 95 % CIs compared […]

Development of “CULTURE FORWARD: A strengths and culture-based tool to protect our native youth from suicide”

Objective: Indigenous knowledge and practices promote American Indian/Alaska Native (AI/AN; Native) communities’ health and well-being. Historical losses and continued oppression have resulted in disproportionately higher AI/AN youth suicide rates. This article describes the development of a new national resource guide titled “CULTURE FORWARD” for tribal leaders and stakeholders to support youth suicide prevention efforts through […]

Characteristics of substance use and self-injury among American Indian adolescents who have engaged in binge drinking

Binge drinking appears to be a risk factor, facilitator, and method of suicidal and non-suicidal self-injury for some American Indian (AI) youth. We examined characteristics, patterns, and motivations for binge use among AI adolescents (N = 69; 10-19 years-old) who recently engaged in binge drinking. The majority used alcohol alone (53.7%) or a combination of […]

Predicting suicidal ideation among Native American high schoolers in California

Suicide is the leading cause of non-accidental death for Native American young people ages 15-24 years old. Concerningly, suicide rates have continued to rise over the past decade despite a myriad of prevention efforts. This shortcoming has urged some scholars to (re)examine key theoretical constructs to better direct suicide prevention efforts in tribal communities. Using […]

Evaluating the effectiveness of suicide prevention gatekeeper trainings as part of an American Indian/Alaska Native youth suicide prevention program

According to the Centers for Disease Control suicide rates in 2022 for American Indian/Alaska Native youth are 2.5 times higher than the national average. An Urban Indian Health Organization’s response to this crisis was to provide community and State-wide Gatekeeper trainings between 2012 and 2019 to teach trainees (N = 810) to respond appropriately to youth at-risk of […]

A systematic review of evaluated suicide prevention programs targeting Indigenous youth

Background: Indigenous young people have significantly higher suicide rates than their non-indigenous counterparts. There is a need for culturally appropriate and effective suicide prevention programs for this demographic. Aims: This review assesses suicide prevention programs that have been evaluated for indigenous youth in Australia, Canada, New Zealand, and the United States. Method: The databases MEDLINE and PsycINFO were searched for […]

Suicide ideation and attempt in a community cohort of urban Aboriginal youth: A cross-sectional study

Background: There has been increasing attention over the last decade on the issue of indigenous youth suicide. A number of studies have documented the high prevalence of suicide behavior and mortality in Australia and internationally. However, no studies have focused on documenting the correlates of suicide behavior for indigenous youth in Australia. Aims: To examine the prevalence […]

Resilience to self-harm: A scoping review of protective factors that aid in recovery among marginalized young people

Background: Although a wide range of studies discuss prevalence and risk factors associated with self-harm, protective factors that are equally important are rarely explored. Moreover, much of our understanding of young individuals who engage in self-harm come from studies conducted in Western countries with very little emphasis on marginalized groups. Aim: This scoping review identifies […]