Educational Outcomes Associated With School Behavioral Health Interventions: A Review of the Literature

Abstract

Background: There is an unmet need for behavioral health support and services among children and adolescents, which school behavioral health has the potential to address. Existing reviews and meta-analyses document the behavioral health benefits of school behavioral health programs and frameworks, but few summaries of the academic benefits of such programs exist. We provide exemplars of the academic benefits of school behavioral health programs and frameworks.

Methods: A literature review identified school behavioral health-related articles and reports. Articles for inclusion were restricted to those that were school-based programs and frameworks in the United States that included an empirical evaluation of intervention academic-related outcomes.

Results: Findings from 36 primary research, review, and meta-analysis articles from the past 17 years show the benefits of school behavioral health clinical interventions and targeted interventions on a range of academic outcomes for adolescents.

Conclusion: Our findings are consistent with reports documenting health benefits of school behavioral health frameworks and programs and can facilitate further efforts to support school behavioral health for a range of stakeholders interested in the benefits of school behavioral health programs and frameworks on academic outcomes.

Keywords: academic outcomes; literature review; mental health; prevention; treatment.