Session: Cross-Cultural Approaches to Intervention Research: Supporting Children across the Globe (Society for Social Work and Research 29th Annual Conference)

Global socioeconomic and demographic transitions have increasingly put children at risk of adversities such as parental migration, family separation, and institutionalization, all of which can lead to adverse psychosocial outcomes. Although 90% of children aged 0-17 reside in low- and middle-income countries (LMICs) in non-Western regions, the majority of evidence-based interventions are developed in Western and predominantly English-speaking countries. There is a pressing need to identify evidence-based interventions that are relevant and effective for low-resource global contexts. Intervention research is crucial for evaluating the effectiveness of programs and strategies aimed at supporting vulnerable children, laying a foundation for scaling up successful strategies and adapting to broader contexts, thereby extending their impact.

This symposium aims to address the current gap in intervention research by introducing four innovative studies conducted in diverse global contexts. The topics of focus include school-based mental health preventative programs for rural Chinese children across different regions, family-based emotional regulation interventions for recently migrated children and parents in Hong Kong, and community-based mental health prevention for de-institutionalized Children in the three largest cities of Azerbaijan. The uniqueness of this symposium lies in several key areas:

1) Diversity of Research Designs: The studies employ a broad spectrum of research methodologies, including quasi-experimental designs, traditional randomized controlled trials (RCTs), cluster RCTs with random sampling, and fractional factorial designs utilizing the cutting-edge Multiphase Optimization Strategy (MOST). This variety allows for a nuanced discussion on the selection of research designs appropriate for different global contexts;

2) Varied Intervention Settings: The interventions were implemented across multiple settings including families, schools, communities, and at the economic/policy level. This wide range provides valuable insights into micro, mezzo, and macro social work practices, demonstrating the potential of intervention strategies across different systemic levels;

3) Cultural Appropriateness of Interventions: Each study explores various approaches to enhance cultural relevance and sensitivity, addressing the specific needs of children and practitioners, including social workers. Approaches vary from culturally grounded methodologies to modifications of existing interventions with culturally-specific adaptations;

4) Reverse Innovation: The symposium contributes uniquely to reverse innovation by facilitating the transfer of knowledge from non-Western contexts back to broader global audiences. This is critical as practices and insights from non-Western countries can be invaluable in enhancing intervention strategies in resource-limited settings globally.

This symposium is designed to support social work researchers and practitioners with a global focus by enhancing their engagement with intervention research across diverse contexts. Its primary aim is to develop capacity and insight on how to support the most vulnerable children through the cross-cultural dissemination of specialized toolkits, comprehensive knowledge, and both research and practical experiences. This will not only enhance global social work practices but also specifically address the disparities between high-resource and low-resource settings' intervention research efforts. By providing these resources, the symposium seeks to equip social work researchers and professionals with the necessary tools to implement effective and culturally-appropriate interventions worldwide.