The Nurture Network: Promoting Young People's Mental Health in a Digital World

促进更好地了解儿童的日常生活如何受到他们周围的数字世界的影响，以及他们因此如何体验家庭、同龄人和学校生活，是促进儿童和青少年积极心理健康和发展的重大挑战和机遇。从历史上看，研究人员强调支持性父母和积极的学校经历（包括同伴关系）的作用是对儿童心理健康的主要社会环境影响，大多数干预措施针对家庭和学校的影响，旨在纠正儿童和青少年不良的心理健康结果。人们日益认识到，数字环境构成了这些影响儿童心理健康的传统社会化机构的新层面或共同点。然而，在为家长、教师以及与家庭和学校合作的专业机构提供新知识方面进展甚微，这些新知识既能利用潜在优势，又能保护儿童免受数字世界带来的重大风险。我们如何为家长、教师、从业者、政策制定者和青年自己提供信息、支持和资源，在当代（和未来）数字时代促进积极的心理健康？解决这一核心挑战是我们多学科电子培育网络的主要目标。虽然近年来在强调和了解不良心理健康和心理健康障碍的遗传和生物学基础方面取得了重大进展，但人们认识到，儿童所经历和与之互动的社会环境仍然对其积极和消极的心理健康轨迹产生重大影响（即使考虑到遗传因素）。社会环境对儿童心理健康影响的三个主要领域主导了这一领域过去的研究和实践。首先，家庭社会化过程，特别是养育子女的做法被认为对儿童的心理健康有实质性影响。其次，同伴影响是影响儿童心理健康的重要因素。第三，学校因素被认为是对儿童心理健康和发展的进一步影响。越来越多的人认识到，数字环境是一个既影响传统的儿童社会化机构，又能直接影响儿童的因素。决策者最近非常重视有精神健康问题的儿童和青年的患病率和支助需求。数字环境及其对儿童福祉、心理健康和发展可能产生的积极和消极影响也得到了大量研究、政策和媒体的关注。在这个政策平台的基础上，我们网络的主要目标是：(1)探索数字环境如何改变儿童体验和与家庭、学校和同伴影响互动的方式，以及这些变化对儿童心理健康意味着什么；(2)确定我们如何在与家庭合作时识别和区分数字风险和机会；学校和专业机构制定干预方案，以改善儿童和青少年的心理健康结果，(3)确定我们如何有效地纳入和传播这一新知识，以采用当前和未来的实践模式，设计和开发旨在促进青少年心理健康和减少消极心理健康轨迹的数字平台和干预措施。该网络将采用协作的跨部门方法，通过直接让学术、慈善、行业、政策和一线受益者（如家庭、父母、学校、教师、儿童和青年）参与，促进产生影响。

Promoting improved understanding of how children's daily lives are influenced by the digital world that now surrounds them and how they experience family, peer and school life as a result represents a substantial challenge and opportunity relative to facilitating positive mental health and development for children and young people. Historically, researchers have emphasised the role of supportive parenting and positive school experiences (including peer relationships) as primary social environmental influences on children's mental health, with most interventions targeting family and school-based influences aimed at remediating poor mental health outcomes for children and young people. It is increasingly recognised that the digital environment constitutes a new dimension or common denominator to these traditional agencies of socialisation influence on children's mental health. Yet, little progress has been made in equipping parents, teachers and the professional agencies that work with families and schools with new knowledge that harnesses potential strengths while offering protection from substantial risks posed to children by the digital world. How do we equip parents, teachers, practitioners, policy makers and youth themselves with information, support and resources that promotes positive mental health in a contemporary (and future) digital age? Addressing this core challenge represents the primary objective of our multi-disciplinary e-Nurture network. While significant advances have been made in relation to highlighting and understanding the genetic and biological underpinnings of poor mental health and mental health disorders in recent years, it is recognised that the social environments children experience and interact with remain a substantial influence on their positive and negative mental health trajectories (even when genetic factors are considered). Three primary areas of social environmental influence on children's mental health have dominated past research and practice in this area. First, family socialisation processes, specifically parenting practices are recognised as a substantive influence on children's mental health. Second, peer influences are noted as an important influence on children's mental health. Third, school-based factors are recognised as a further influence on children's mental health and development. Increasingly, the digital environment is recognised as a factor that both infuses traditional agencies of socialisation for children and that can influence children directly. Policy makers have recently directed significant attention to the prevalence rates and support needs among children and young people who experience mental health problems. The digital environment and its potential for positive and negative influences on children's well-being, mental health and development has also received substantial research, policy and media attention. Building on this policy platform, the primary objectives of our network are to (1) explore how the digital environment has changed the ways in which children experience and interact with family, school and peer-based influences and what these changes mean for children's mental health, (2) identify how we can recognise and disentangle digital risks from opportunities when working with families, schools and professional agencies in developing intervention programmes to improve mental health outcomes for children and young people, and (3) identify how we effectively incorporate and disseminate this new knowledge to engage present and future practice models and the design and development of digital platforms and interventions aimed at promoting mental health and reducing negative mental health trajectories for young people. The network will engage a collaborative, cross sectoral approach to facilitating impacts by directly engaging academic, charity, industry, policy and front-line beneficiaries (e.g. families, parents, schools, teachers, children and young people).