Well-Being in Adolescent Girls: From Theory to Interventions

This book equips school psychologists and other mental health professionals with a comprehensive understanding of mental health and well-being in adolescent girls.

The text places adolescent girls in a developmental and social-cultural context and outlines factors that can shape girls’ well-being including family, peers, and media. Chapters discuss trajectories that might result in mental distress and dysfunction in adolescent girls and identify pathways to their optimal development. Additionally, the book reviews the domains of well-being including physical health and habits, emotional well-being, healthy relationships, and identity and agency. Each chapter includes theory-informed and empirically supported interventions to help promote girls’ positive physical and socio-emotional development and culminates in a list of further recommended resources for the reader.

Well-Being in Adolescent Girls is a valuable resource for school psychologists, counsellors, and other mental health professionals working with adolescents along with those in graduate-level courses in school psychology and school counselling programs.

Key Features:

• Provides mental health professionals with a valuable resource to foster well-being in adolescent girls Reviews the domains of well-being in adolescent girls including physical health and habits, emotional well-being, healthy relationships, and identity, and lays out strategies and interventions aimed at fostering healthier ways of being in those domains Unlike existing books that do not offer a comprehensive conceptual framework for wellbeing, this book is based on the Nested Model of Well-being which integrates dimensions of wellbeing across several ecological contexts. The book places a strong emphasis on a socio-cultural context for adolescent girls’ lives and beliefs around girlhood

Table of Contents

"An excellent resource for mental health practitioners and anyone else interested in understanding and enhancing adolescent girls’ well-being. The balanced blend of contemporary research, theory, and practical interventions makes for a highly relevant book on a much-needed topic."
- John J. Murphy, PhD, author of Solution-Focused Counseling in Schools, professor of Psychology, University of Central Arkansas, AR

"The authors take the fluid, overwhelming, and often confusing period of adolescence and break it down into easy-to-understand and applicable domains. Not only do they provide comprehensive overviews of the unique challenges and opportunities for girls in this phase of life, but they also provide real world and practical strategies for educators, therapists, and parents to apply to maximize well-being. I recommend this book for anyone who works with or spends time with adolescent girls!"
- Rachel G. Lilly, PhD, psychologist, Geisinger Lewistown - Pediatric Psychology, Lewistown PA

"This book provides a refreshingly holistic approach to understanding health and wellness among adolescent girls in today’s society. I especially appreciate the authors’ careful consideration of the developmental and socio-cultural context in which girls are living in and how these factors impact well-being. The interventions outlined are thoughtful, evidence-based, and applicable across a wide range of educational and clinical settings. While adolescence can be a time of complex transitions and stress, I appreciate the authors outlining the inherent resilience in adolescent girls and focusing on promoting well-being from a preventative perspective as well as an intervention. This book is such a valuable resource in my clinical practice!"
- Toni P. Boos, PsyD, associate director of Child Program-Compass Health Center, Northbrook, IL

"Well-Being in Adolescent Girls: From Theory to Interventions provides not only theoretical frameworks and supporting research, but it also offers practical interventions to foster well-being in adolescent girls. This is the resource I was looking for and I recommend it for any mental health professional who is focusing on assisting our girls in finding their voice and cultivating their strengths."
- Virginia Gallup Larsen, PsyD, school psychologist, Loudoun County Public Schools, VA

"Now more than ever, adolescent mental health is rising to the forefront of today’s headlines. This book views adolescent girls’ health and well-being through a biopsychosocial lens and equips professionals across disciplines with practical recommendations to best meet the needs of today’s youth. The authors also adequately address the developmental complexities impacting adolescent girls and provide easy to understand theories to behaviors that equip readers with evidenced-based interventions that can be used across settings."
- Kelsie-Marie Offenwanger, PsyD, child and adolescent psychologist at Marshfield Clinic Health System, Marshfield, WI