The University of Colorado Health Sciences Center (UCHSC) seeks support to continue the National Center for American Indian and Alaska Native Mental Health Research (NCAIANMHR) and thereby extend its efforts to advance the highest quality research and leadership in several areas of inquiry that are of critical importance to the mental health of this special population. The NCAIANMHR is pursuing a comprehensive research program and related research training opportunities that address a number of theoretical and programmatic issues in the assessment, epidemiology, acre, and prevention of serious psychological dysfunction and major mental illness among American Indians and Alaska Natives. Accordingly, the specific aims of the NCAIANMHR include; 1) Providing an administrative structure that promotes excellence in mental health research and research training appropriate for American Indian and Alaska Native communities. 2) Planning and carrying out an interdisciplinary, problem-oriented mental health research program of major scientific and programmatic importance for American Indians and Alaska Natives, with particular emphasis on: a) the performance characteristics of diagnostic and self-report measures for assessing series psychological dysfunction and major mental illness among children, adolescents, and adults; b) the prevalence and incidence of serious psychological dysfunction and major mental illness among children, adolescents, and adults in the population at large as well as within special human service settings;' c) gaining an understanding of service utilization among the Indian population at large and within service settings, as well as assessing the outcomes of mental health services provided to Indian people; and d) the development, adaptation, implementation, and evaluation of primary preventive intervention programs for Indian children and youth. 3) Structuring training as an integral part of the aforementioned mental health research program. 4) Disseminating the results of this work as a means of guiding the design, conduct, and interpretation of future mental health research in American Indian and Alaska Native communities. 5) Assisting individuals as well as organizations in planning and implementing mental health research and in maximizing its relevance for programmatic application in American Indian and Alaska Native communities. Thus, the NCAIANMHR will continue to enhance the small, but growing body of knowledge with respect to mental health and mental illness among American Indians and Alaska Natives. It also will continue to serve as an important catalyst for future research of both programmatic and theoretical significance.
Showing the most recent 10 out of 53 publications
