Helping Young People in Foster Care Cope and Find Mental Health Support
Pilot Testing an Intervention to Enhance Coping and Increase Mental Health Help-seeking Among Transition-Age Youth in Foster Care
This project is testing a new group program to help young people leaving foster care manage stress and feel more comfortable asking for mental health help.
Quick facts
| Grant type | NIH-funded research |
|---|---|
| Study type | NIH-funded research |
| Funding institution | Portland State University NIH-funded |
| Lab location | 1 site (Portland, United States) |
| Project ID | NIH-11086025 on NIH RePORTER |
What this research studies
Young people transitioning out of foster care often face many challenges, including difficulties coping with stress and finding mental health support. This project aims to offer a new group program called Stronger Youth Networks and Coping (SYNC) to help these young individuals. SYNC will teach skills to better understand and handle stress, choose helpful coping strategies, and encourage seeking both informal and professional mental health support. The program is designed to be delivered by existing service providers, making it easier for young people to access.
Who could benefit from this research
Good fit: Ideal candidates are young people transitioning from the foster care system who may be at risk for mental health challenges and could benefit from improved coping and help-seeking skills.
Not a fit: Patients who are not in the foster care system or are not in the transition-age youth group would likely not be eligible for this specific program.
Why it matters
Potential benefit: If successful, this program could help young people in foster care develop stronger coping skills and be more likely to get the mental health support they need as they transition to independence.
How similar studies have performed: This project adapts an existing evidence-based coping curriculum for foster youth, building on established methods while introducing a novel program design for this specific population.
Where this research is happening
Portland, United States
- Portland State University — Portland, United States (Active)
Researchers
- Principal investigator: Blakeslee, Jennifer — Portland State University
- Study coordinator: Blakeslee, Jennifer
About this research
- This is an active NIH-funded research project — typically early-stage science, not a clinical trial accepting patient enrollment.
- Some NIH-funded labs run parallel clinical studies or seek volunteers for related work. To check, contact the principal investigator or institution listed above.
- For full project details, budget, and progress reports, visit the official NIH RePORTER page below.