Mental Health Screening for Students with Disabilities: An Intersectional Examination of Universal Screening Data

Authors

• James Sinclair, University of Arkansas, FayettevilleFollow
• Eunji Kong, University of Oregon
• Katherine W. Bromley, University of Oregon
• W. Jamie Yang, University of Oregon
• Christen Knowles, University of Oregon
• Susan Stadelman, University of Oregon
• Geovanna Rodriguez, Special Educ & Clin Sci

Document Type

Article

Publication Date

12-2025

Keywords

Disability, High school, Universal screening

Abstract

Universal mental health screening is a pivotal aspect of comprehensive school mental health programming. However, even with a recent focus on implementing comprehensive and equitable screening practices, students with disabilities continue to be excluded. This study takes an intersectional approach to gain an understanding on which students with disabilities report elevated mental health concerns and what intersecting identities predict mental health risk. A total of 280 students from three high schools were screened across three timepoints. Results indicate that students with disabilities report elevated levels of mental health concerns. Students who also identify as lesbian, gay, bisexual, and queer reported experiencing higher levels of mental health concerns, while students who identified as non-cis-gender were also overrepresented in the elevated category for mental health concerns. Implications for universal screening practices that are inclusive of students with disabilities are discussed.

Comments

Web of Science

Springer

Citation

Sinclair, J., Kong, E., Bromley, K.W. et al. Mental Health Screening for Students with Disabilities: An Intersectional Examination of Universal Screening Data. School Mental Health 17, 1217–1228 (2025). https://doi.org/10.1007/s12310-025-09791-w

Creative Commons License

This work is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 International License.