Pathways to improved adolescent mental health via an economic and gender equality intervention with conflict affected families

项目摘要/摘要 在刚果民主共和国，家庭经历了20多年的暴力， 流离失所和政治不稳定导致教育和经济有限的赤贫 机遇。儿童贫困和受到创伤的情况普遍存在，尤其集中在冲突中-- 受影响地区和农村地区。童年经历多种逆境会导致终生精神不佳。 健康。在刚果(金)农村，我们发现父母自我报告心理健康状况不佳，并受到伤害或实施 亲密伴侣暴力(IPV)对青少年的心理健康有显著的负面影响， 对男孩和女孩的影响是不同的。男性权威和女性地位存在的深层意识形态 在家庭中导致了性别规范，限制了机会，但对精神影响的关注有限 健康。这项研究提供了一个独特的机会，可以与久经考验的刚果合作伙伴一起检查 和两种已证实的结构性干预措施的协同效应；1)青年领导的兔的复原力(RFR) 经济赋权方案；和2)Indashyikirwa(IK)，一个基于夫妇/父母的性别平等 青少年心理健康方案。使用三组随机对照试验(RFR Only，Only，RFR+IK)，我们检验了干预和 RFR和IK改善青少年心理健康的途径。我们将检验两个假设：1) RFR+IK和RFR Only家庭的青少年将报告通过以下方式在心理健康方面有更大的改善 自我效能感、学校出勤率、食品安全和同伴关系的改善途径 仅使用IK的家庭中的青少年；以及2)RFR+IK和仅使用IK的家庭中的青少年将报告 通过改善父母关系质量和权力分享来改善心理健康， 与之相比，减少了对IPV的暴露，改善了父母的心理健康，支持了性别平等规范 对仅限RFR家庭的青少年。干预效果的不同路径将通过以下方式进行检验 青春期性别。鉴于近五分之一的儿童生活在冲突中，其重要性不可低估-- 世界各地的受影响地区--面临着终身精神健康状况不佳、受教育机会不平等的问题 和经济机会。

Project Summary/Abstract In the Democratic Republic of Congo, families have experienced more than two decades of violence, displacement and political instability resulting in extreme poverty with limited educational and economic opportunities. Child poverty and exposure to trauma is widespread and particularly concentrated in conflict- affected and rural areas. Childhood exposure to multiple adversities can lead to a lifetime of poor mental health. In rural DRC, we found parent’s self-report of poor mental health and victimization or perpetration of intimate partner violence (IPV) had a significant negative impact on their young adolescents’ mental health, with different impacts for boys and girls. The underlying ideologies of male authority and women’s place being in the home has led to gender norms that restrict opportunities with limited attention to effects on mental health. The study provides a unique opportunity with a proven Congolese partner to examine the combined and synergistic effects of two proven structural interventions; 1) Rabbits for Resilience (RFR), youth-led economic empowerment program; and 2) Indashyikirwa (IK), a couples/parents-based gender equality program on adolescent mental health. Using a clustered randomized controlled trial with three groups (RFR only, IK only, RFR + IK), we examine the combined and synergistic effects of the interventions and the pathways through which RFR and IK improves adolescent mental health. We will test two hypotheses: 1) Adolescents in the RFR + IK and RFR only households will report greater improvement in mental health via pathway of improved self-efficacy, school attendance, food security and peer relationships compared to adolescents in IK only households; and 2) Adolescents in RFR + IK and IK only households will report greater improvement in mental health via the pathway of improved parent relationship quality and power sharing, reduced exposure to IPV, improved parental mental health and support of gender equitable norms compared to adolescents in RFR only households. Differences in pathways of the intervention effect will be examine by sex of adolescent. The significance cannot be underestimated given nearly 1 in 5 children live in conflict- affected areas, worldwide - and are facing a lifetime of poor mental health with inequitable access to education and economic opportunities.