mental health

Publication

Beating the odds: Students at Detroit public schools are less depressed, anxious

Nov 11, 2024

The share of 8th-12th grade students reporting depression and anxiety symptoms fell below pre-pandemic levels in 2022-23 in the Detroit Public School Community District—which is the opposite of national trends.The most substantial improvements were...

Photo of two students comparing notes, smiling.

News

Youth Policy Lab celebrates growth and expansion in annual report

Aug 5, 2024

Since launching in 2016, The Youth Policy Lab (YPL) at the University of Michigan has helped community and government agencies make informed, impactful policy and program decisions. The most recent annual report shares remarkable growth and...

News

U-M experts explore ramifications of housing crisis on economy, emotional well-being and more

Jun 10, 2024

ANN ARBOR—The need for affordable and accessible housing is an issue that transcends political affiliation—even as it rises in significance to voters—and matters as much to our emotional and mental health as our financial well-being.Two University...

Illustration with a house and money symbols balanced on a scale

News

Survey shows how Detroiters’ mental health has changed since pandemic

May 30, 2024

Detroiters’ mental health-related symptoms have improved and largely stabilized since the peak of the COVID-19 pandemic, according to a University of Michigan report.While the negative impacts of the pandemic on people’s mental health are well...

Photo of building with sign that reads, "How are you really?"

State & Hill

Faculty Findings, spring 2024

Apr 24, 2024

Inclusive innovation—the idea of introducing technologies designed for and by the poor to boost economic growth in impoverished communities—often misses the real problems facing these communities and champions solutions that benefit entrepreneurs at...

Colorful illustration of many different women

Publication

Policing a neurodiverse world

Feb 20, 2024

When responding to calls related to mental health crises, police should work to change the environments where people with psychiatric disabilities live and work, rather than simply connecting them with medical intervention.Professor David Thacher, a...

State & Hill

Faculty news, fall 2023

Dec 12, 2023

Axelrod's adventures Robert Axelrod, William D. Hamilton Distinguished University Professor Emeritus, writes about the difficulties and rewards of interdisciplinary collaboration in his new autobiography, A Passion for Cooperation: Adventures...

Headshots of Axelrod, Cavaillé, Michelmore, Neggers, Ostfeld, Parthasarathy, Pilkauskas, Stange, Torres, and Weiss

Publication

Thacher on coercion in mental health treatment

Jun 26, 2023

The death of Jordan Neely on a subway car in New York in May remains in the news, as a former marine, Daniel Penny, has been indicted for the chokehold that killed him. In the background, details of Neely’s mental illness has reignited a debate...

News

Ford School expert shares thoughts on next steps after US report on social media's effects on youth

Jun 5, 2023

A Ford School public policy expert who has reviewed the U.S. surgeon general's advisory outlining social media's profound risks to children's mental health says policymakers will need a great deal more data before making any formal...

In the Media

Ali calls for school safety improvements

Mar 29, 2023 USA Today

Javed Ali, USA Today: "Every shooter seems to be driven by different factors. We need to raise the bar in terms of security to either deter people from thinking about conducting attacks or minimize the impacts of attacks when one does indeed occur....

Publication

Thacher examines the interaction of police and the mentally ill

Dec 19, 2022

In an essay for Vital City New York, Ford School professor David Thacher looks at the potential fall-out of Mayor Eric Adams’s recent order of forced psychiatric evaluation for people causing trouble on the streets and in the subway. He traces New...

Photo of patrons outside a New York City corner deli

Publication

Axinn publishes article investigating ties between trauma, social support, and mental health in Nepal

Oct 10, 2022

Can social infrastructure help reduce the burden of depression, especially in high-risk settings? A recent study by researchers from the University of Michigan and partners in Nepal, Mexico, and Boston says yes. Center for Global Health Equity...

Photo of a large open field with a person and farm animals, and with houses and buildings in the background

In the Media

Lantz weighs in on reformed California Medicaid program

Sep 23, 2022 Side Effects Public Media

California recently launched a reformed Medicaid program, adding dental benefits, changing how addiction and mental illness are addressed, and more. But, Paula Lantz, James B. Hudak Professor of Health Policy, is worried about claims that the new...

News

New study explores the negative effects of housing instability on mental health

Aug 31, 2022

The Great Recession may have affected Americans’ well-being in ways previously not well understood. A new study has found that people who experienced housing instability as a result of the economic downturn during the 2007-09 recession were...

News

U-M Youth Policy Lab and TRAILS to study effectiveness of student mental health programming

Aug 18, 2022

The University of Michigan’s Youth Policy Lab (YPL) and TRAILS (Transforming Research into Action to Improve the Lives of Students) have been awarded a $3.8 million grant by the U.S. Department of Education Institute of Education Sciences (IES). The...

Photo of a young child facing away from the camera and looking into a laptop computer screen, their arms held against their chest with their hands folded up below their ears

News

EPI faculty and affiliates receive nearly $10 million through four national education research (NCER) grants

Jul 13, 2022

Four research projects conducted by affiliates of the Education Policy Initiative (EPI) at the University of Michigan received a total of nearly $10 million in new grants from the Institute of Education Sciences (IES), U.S. Department of...

Headshots of Kevin Stange, Christina Weiland, Robin Jacob, and Daniel Kreisman

News

El-Sayed speaks to Sen. Stabenow about major mental health expansions in gun reform law

Jul 7, 2022

President Biden signed the Bipartisan Safer Communities Act into law on June 25—the first major gun reform bill in three decades. Towsley Foundation Policymaker in Residence Abdul El-Sayed explained it's also the biggest expansion of Medicaid since...

In the Media

Schwarz criticizes VA medical facility closing decision

May 1, 2022 Detroit News

The Department of Veterans Affairs is planning a phased closing of a VA medical facility which specializes in inpatient and residential mental health treatment in Kalamazoo. In an article in the Detroit News, Joe Schwarz, lecturer in public...

Publication

YPL study calls for mental health training and support of DPSCD staff

Mar 7, 2022

Schools are a promising setting for mental health services – they meet students where they are, surrounded by adults that they trust. Yet more research is needed to determine the most effective way to deliver those services within schools. In a...

Photo of a teacher and three young elementary school students around a classroom table

News

Hanson discusses education spending in Gov. Whitmer's budget proposal

Feb 11, 2022

With a predicted state surplus, Governor Whitmer is set to propose a plan that would give teachers bonuses, invest in mental health professionals, expand free preschool, and more. Jonathan Hanson, lecturer in statistics for public policy, weighed in...

In the Media

Alex Ralph reports on mental health providers navigating COVID in Cincinnati

Jun 29, 2021 Soapbox Cincinnati

Ford School writing instructor takes a look at the delivery of and coordination of care for some of Cincinnati's most vulnerable populations during the pandemic. Read his article in Soapbox...

News

Weiland and colleagues discuss findings of pre-existing inequalities, increased stress within early childhood education

Jun 22, 2021

The Education Policy Initiative (EPI) along with the Urban Institute and other early childhood experts, recently dug into the effects of the COVID-19 pandemic on early childhood development. Their report, "Historic Crisis, Historic Opportunity:...

Photo of young children and their teachers in a classroom. By Yan Krukov

In the Media

Davenport reflects on policing since George Floyd's death

Jun 22, 2021 Michigan Radio

One month ago, activists across the country recognized the one-year anniversary of George Floyd's killing, sparking discussion of what has changed in policing since then. While many ideas have been thrown around, like employing social workers to...

News

YPL report: Pre-COVID, more than half of Detroit students felt anxious or depressed, 1 in 4 considered suicide

Jun 10, 2021

Even before the COVID-19 pandemic, serious mental health concerns impacted a significant portion of students in Detroit public schools, a new report shows. More than half of student respondents in the Detroit Public Schools Community District had...

Sarah Burgard shares her concern on the mental health impact of the government shutdown

Jan 29, 2019

While the longest government shutdown in United States history has ended, many of the 800,000 furloughed federal government employees may have to continue to cope with the devastating effects of temporary unemployment. In her January 24, 2019...

Axinn examines ethnic differences in psychiatric disorders of South Asian populations

Jan 16, 2017

An article co-authored by Armani Hawes, William Axinn, and Dirgha Ghimire, "Ethnicity and Psychiatric Disorders," was published in the Annals of Psychiatry and Mental Health on June 16, 2016. Abstract: Psychiatric disorders are one of the...

Axinn study seeks to develop "culturally appropriate" and "clinically validated" questionnaire

Jan 16, 2017

William Axinn, Dirgha Ghimire, Heather Gatney, and Stephanie Chardoul are co-authors of a forthcoming article, "Preparing a Culturally Appropriate Translation of a Survey Questionnaire," for SAGE Research Methods Case Health. Abstract: In 1996...

Mind over matter

Mar 24, 2022, 4:30-6:00 pm EDT

Policy and public sector professionals talk about their experiences battling stigmas while sharing useful tips on how to navigate emotions and feelings in the professional world.

CFLP Blue Bag Lunches

Bringing the gig economy to healthcare: What telehealth means for mental health therapists

Mar 10, 2022, 12:00-1:00 pm EST

Bringing the gig economy to healthcare: Examining how telemental health care impacts therapists’ work practices

Policy Talks @ the Ford School

Trauma-informed policing: Improving mental health and public safety

Nov 15, 2021, 4:00-5:00 pm EST

By changing policy to help police departments deal with routine trauma, we can improve the conditions for the police and for policing in general.

Headshots of Jeff Carek, Alyshia Dyer (MPP '21), Leah Mills, and Daicia Price