"[Book title] provides researchers and clinicians with a clear understanding of the developmental, clinical, and socio-cultural features of mental health unique to young adults, and how this developmental period influences clinical assessment and treatment."--Book jacket.

The years between 18 and 29 have become an extended period of development between adolescence and middle adulthood; young adulthood is a time of many new personal, social, and cultural pressures. Risk-taking behaviors, including substance use, typically peak during this time period in part due to neurobiological development, identity exploration, and social interactions, and most major psychiatric disorders develop during young adulthood. Young Adult Mental Health will provide researchers and clinicians in the United States and elsewhere with a clear understanding of the developmental, clinical, and socio-cultural features of mental health unique to young adults, and how this developmental period influences critical assessment and treatment. Bringing together leading experts from psychology and psychiatry, the book surveys how major developmental milestones such as marriage and childrearing influence mental health and well-being among young adults, and the ways in which psychiatric disorders may present differently in this age group. It also reviews the conceptual and assessment challenges, phenomenology, and appropriate pharmacological and behavioral treatments of the many psychiatric difficulties faced by young adults. Finally, the book examines current research on mental health issues in young adults and reviews the strengths of the evidence, providing mental health professionals with a thorough grasp of mental health issues that will allow them to talk intelligently with young adults and to make well-informed assessment and treatment decisions based on the unique needs of this age group. Young Adult Mental Health is an essential resource for psychiatrists and psychologists who treat young adults. It will also be useful to researchers in various areas of mental health, and to scientists who are interested in issues of age and development.

Young adulthood - ages approximately 18 to 26 - is a critical period of development with long-lasting implications for a person's economic security, health and well-being. Young adults are key contributors to the nation's workforce and military services and, since many are parents, to the healthy development of the next generation. Although 'millennials' have received attention in the popular media in recent years, young adults are too rarely treated as a distinct population in policy, programs, and research. Instead, they are often grouped with adolescents or, more often, with all adults. Currently, the nation is experiencing economic restructuring, widening inequality, a rapidly rising ratio of older adults, and an increasingly diverse population. The possible transformative effects of these features make focus on young adults especially important. A systematic approach to understanding and responding to the unique circumstances and needs of today's young adults can help to pave the way to a more productive and equitable tomorrow for young adults in particular and our society at large. Investing in The Health and Well-Being of Young Adults describes what is meant by the term young adulthood, who young adults are, what they are doing, and what they need. This study recommends actions that nonprofit programs and federal, state, and local agencies can take to help young adults make a successful transition from adolescence to adulthood. According to this report, young adults should be considered as a separate group from adolescents and older adults. Investing in The Health and Well-Being of Young Adults makes the case that increased efforts to improve high school and college graduate rates and education and workforce development systems that are more closely tied to high-demand economic sectors will help this age group achieve greater opportunity and success. The report also discusses the health status of young adults and makes recommendations to develop evidence-based practices for young adults for medical and behavioral health, including preventions. What happens during the young adult years has profound implications for the rest of the life course, and the stability and progress of society at large depends on how any cohort of young adults fares as a whole. Investing in The Health and Well-Being of Young Adults will provide a roadmap to improving outcomes for this age group as they transition from adolescence to adulthood.

This book highlights the field of youth mental health and why it is a specialty distinct from both child and adolescent and adult mental health. Youth Mental Health: Approaches to Emerging Mental Ill-Health in Young People examines issues such as mental health literacy, e-Health, family, psychological, vocational and pharmacological interventions. The authors also discuss issues that are particularly pertinent to young people, such as suicidality, substance abuse, gender identity and sexuality, attention deficit disorder and eating disorders. Taking a preventative focus, this book presents evidence for youth mental health as an important and growing field, makes the case for the reform of existing service structures to better serve this group and outlines the latest specialised approaches to treatment. Drawing on the knowledge and expertise of leading thinkers in youth mental health, this book is instrumental for mental health professionals who wish to design new specialised mental health systems for young people.

This book explores how mental illness is portrayed in 21st-century young adult fiction and how selected works can help teachers, librarians, and mental health professionals to more effectively address the needs of students combating mental illness. It offers extensive analysis of contemporary young adult fiction featuring youth with mental illness to help school and youth services librarians make informed collection development and readers' advisory decisions; examines the symptoms and warning signs of mental illness in adolescents in addition to how various disorders are diagnosed and treated; offers strategies for teachers and librarians to integrate quality texts into middle and high school curricula and into community initiatives aimed at confronting the stigma associated with mental illness; follows a standardized chapter format that makes it easy for readers to learn about the books and the mental illnesses they highlight; [and] provides an extended list of resources at the end of each chapter that includes additional young adult fiction and nonfiction as well as adult fiction texts.

The years between 18 and 29 have become an extended period of development between adolescence and middle adulthood; young adulthood is a time of many new personal, social, and cultural pressures. Risk-taking behaviors, including substance use, typically peak during this time period in part due to neurobiological development, identity exploration, and social interactions, and most major psychiatric disorders develop during young adulthood. Young Adult Mental Health will provide researchers and clinicians in the United States and elsewhere with a clear understanding of the developmental, clinical, and socio-cultural features of mental health unique to young adults, and how this developmental period influences critical assessment and treatment. Bringing together leading experts from psychology and psychiatry, the book surveys how major developmental milestones such as marriage and childrearing influence mental health and well-being among young adults, and the ways in which psychiatric disorders may present differently in this age group. It also reviews the conceptual and assessment challenges, phenomenology, and appropriate pharmacological and behavioral treatments of the many psychiatric difficulties faced by young adults. Finally, the book examines current research on mental health issues in young adults and reviews the strengths of the evidence, providing mental health professionals with a thorough grasp of mental health issues that will allow them to talk intelligently with young adults and to make well-informed assessment and treatment decisions based on the unique needs of this age group. Young Adult Mental Health is an essential resource for psychiatrists and psychologists who treat young adults. It will also be useful to researchers in various areas of mental health, and to scientists who are interested in issues of age and development.

What happens to homeless and runaway adolescents when they become adults? This is the first study that follows homeless youth into young adulthood and reviews the mental health consequences of runaway episodes and street life. The adolescents were interviewed every three months for three years from their mid teens to their early twenties. The study documents the psychological consequences associated with becoming adults when missing the critical developmental tasks of adolescence. The authors report high levels of psychological problems associated with victimization prior to and after running away. These victimization experiences shape the behaviors of these young people, affecting their relationships with others and their chances of conventional adjustment. Across time, the more successful their adaptation to street life and the street economy, the more barriers to conventional adult life emerge. The distress, including self-mutilation and suicidal behaviors, among this population is examined, as well as the impact street life has on future relationships, education, and employment. Nutritional and health problems are also explored, along with the social and economic impact of this population on society. As such, the book provides insight about why the current prevention and treatment programs are failing in an effort to help policy makers modify approaches to adolescent runaways. Intended as a supplementary text for undergraduate and/or graduate courses on homelessness, high risk youth, social deviance, adolescence and/or emerging adulthood taught in departments of psychology, human development, sociology, social work, and public health, this compelling book will also appeal to anyone who works with homeless adolescents.