'Mind the Kids': an ACAMH podcast

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In this interview, Dr. Jane Gilmour talks to Professor Michael Kaess and Professor Dennis Ougrin, who describe self-harm as self-injury or self-poisoning, irrespective of suicidal intent, encompassing both non-suicidal self-injury and suicide attempts. 
They highlight that the lifetime prevalence of self-harm is approximately 20% among young people. They outline that initial assessment should include evaluation of risk, development of a safety plan, and a therapeutic component focused on understanding the nature of self-harm, instilling hope, and linking young people with follow-up treatment. 
They discuss evidence-based approaches to intervention, noting that Dialectical Behaviour Therapy should be offered to young people with severe self-harm. They also consider preventative approaches, including school-based interventions such as the Youth Aware of Mental Health programme, which may reduce self-harm in young people.
Learning Objectives
A. To define self-harm
B. To understand the prevalence and risk factors
C. To critically evaluate treatment evidence-base
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Can behaviour be understood without understanding the violence that surrounds it?
This episode of the Mind the Kids podcast features Susan Swingler, a researcher at the University of Oxford's Department of Social Policy and Intervention, who recently completed a PhD in social intervention and policy evaluation. Her research focuses on how young people respond to chronic stress and violence exposure in low- and middle-income country contexts, and how this shapes mental health and behavioural development through adolescence.
Hosted by Mark Tebbs, the conversation explores a landmark near two-decade longitudinal study built on data from the Thula Sana birth cohort in Khayelitsha, South Africa, conducted with colleagues Qing Han, Alexis E. Cullen, Stefani du Toit, Sarah Skeen, Jane Barlow, and Mark Tomlinson.
The discussion centres on adolescent conduct problems — persistent patterns of aggression and rule-breaking that place young people at higher risk of anti-social behaviour and poorer mental health. Susan explains why violence exposure between the ages of 12 and 14 is best understood in context rather than as an individual failing, and outlines how the study tracked adolescents from early into late adolescence using both self-report and caregiver-report measures across a community shaped by decades of structural disadvantage.
Drawing on one of the longest-running adolescent cohort studies in a high-adversity setting, Susan shares the study's central finding: violence exposure in early adolescence predicted higher conduct problems both at the time and four years later in late adolescence, even after accounting for broader socioeconomic hardship — while the reverse pathway, from conduct problems to later violence exposure, was not statistically significant. The conversation also explores exploratory sex differences in these pathways, the extraordinary effort required to retain 70% of the original cohort across 20 years, and what genuinely contextually grounded violence prevention could look like using the WHO's INSPIRE framework.
This conversation is essential listening for clinicians, researchers, educators, and policymakers interested in child and adolescent mental health, developmental psychopathology, and violence prevention in low-resource settings. It offers both rigorous longitudinal evidence and a clear message: adolescence is not too late for intervention, and understanding the context around a young person's behaviour is key to changing it.
Read the JCPP paper 'Longitudinal associations between violence exposure and adolescent conduct problems in a high-adversity, South African setting'
Susan Swingler, Qing Han, Alexis E. Cullen, Stefani du Toit, Sarah Skeen, Jane Barlow, Mark Tomlinson
First published: 11 February 2026
https://doi.org/10.1111/jcpp.70132

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In this episode of Inside the Teen Brain, Takako Yeung explores how neuroscience can inform everyday teaching practice. Drawing on more than twenty years of experience driving systemic change in education, Takako discusses how the adolescent brain's heightened sensitivity to social and emotional cues makes the student–teacher relationship a powerful lever for both wellbeing and academic attainment.
In conversation with Dr Jane Gilmour, Takako reflects on what it means to truly value and believe in each young person, and how that belief shapes the way teachers respond, set expectations, and support students through the ups and downs of adolescence. Her insights offer a thoughtful look at how small shifts in practice can make a lasting difference.
Learning Objectives
A. To understand how the adolescent brain's heightened sensitivity to social and emotional cues shapes learning and influences academic attainment.
B. To explore how strong student–teacher relationships can be built and used to support young people's wellbeing, motivation, and engagement.
C. To consider practical strategies for setting appropriately high expectations and supporting students through challenges without fuelling stress or perfectionism.
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Can the cycle of violence that passes from one generation to the next be broken?
This episode of the Mind the Kids podcast features Dr. Laura Gorla, a postdoctoral fellow at the Center for Child and Family Policy at Duke University. Originally from Italy and now based in the United States, Dr. Gorla's research focuses on parenting, parent-child relationships, and child and adolescent mental health from early childhood through late adolescence.
Hosted by Mark Tebbs, the conversation explores a landmark three-generation study built on data from the Fast Track intervention, conducted with colleagues Dr. Rotenberg, Dr. Godwin, and the Conduct Problems Prevention Research Group, alongside Fast Track principal investigators Dr. Jennifer Lansford and Dr. Kenneth Dodge.
The discussion centres on early emerging conduct problems — persistent patterns of aggressive and disobedient behaviour that place children at higher risk of anti-social behaviour, criminal involvement, and mental health difficulties later in life. Dr. Gorla explains the theory of intergenerational transmission of violence, describing how cycles of harm can pass from one generation to the next, and outlines how this study uniquely tracked three generations — grandparents, parents, and children — using prospective rather than retrospective data, a rare advance in this field of research.
Drawing on Fast Track, one of the most influential randomised controlled trials in developmental psychology, Dr. Gorla shares the study's central finding: intimate partner violence in the first generation predicted parent-child violence in the second generation, which in turn led to poorer mental health in the third generation — but only within the control group. Crucially, this negative chain was disrupted among families who received the Fast Track intervention, offering compelling evidence that early, multi-component prevention can break cycles of violence across generations.
This conversation is essential listening for clinicians, researchers, educators, and policymakers interested in child and adolescent mental health, early intervention, and violence prevention. It offers both rigorous longitudinal evidence and a genuinely hopeful message: outcomes for children are not predetermined by family history, and investment in early intervention protects not just today's children, but generations to come.
Read the JCPP paper 'The randomized controlled trial Fast Track multilevel intervention for children with early-emerging conduct problems breaks intergenerational transmission of violence across three generations'
Laura Gorla, W. Andrew Rothenberg, Jennifer Godwin, Conduct Problems Prevention Research Group
First published: 11 February 2026
https://doi.org/10.1111/jcpp.70133
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Dr. Jane Gilmour returns with Inside the Teen Brain. In this episode Jane talks to Dr. Victoria Pile about depression.
This talk explores the presentation, recognition, and psychological intervention for depression in adolescence, a developmental period marked by heightened vulnerability and significant opportunity for intervention. Depression commonly emerges during adolescence and is associated with substantial long-term consequences, including social and academic impairment. 
Despite its prevalence and impact, the majority of young people with depression do not receive timely or effective support. The talk highlights how adolescent depression is often under-recognised, perhaps due to its overlap with developmental changes and its heterogeneous clinical presentation. 
Recent work that highlights central symptoms of depression is discussed. Current treatment approaches are described and evidence explored that suggests many established interventions show only modest efficacy, and a substantial proportion of young people do not respond. In response, emerging approaches are discussed that aim to improve both access and effectiveness. These include school-based delivery models and the co-development of treatments with young people. 
Finally, the talk considers a shift toward targeting specific symptoms and psychological mechanisms, such as self-compassion, sleep, and emotional mental imagery. Novel interventions are presented as promising avenues for improving outcomes. Overall, the talk suggests a more developmentally informed, accessible, and mechanism-focused approach to addressing adolescent depression.
Learning Objectives

To understand the presentation and challenges of recognising adolescent depression.

To appreciate the effectiveness and limitations of current psychological interventions for adolescent depression

To explore emerging, developmentally informed approaches to intervention

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