Exploring School Mental Health Collaboration in an Urban Community: A Social Capital Perspective

Collaboration between community mental health professionals and school professionals involves sharing knowledge and resources to accomplish more than could be achieved by practicing in isolation. Despite its role in school mental health (SMH), there is little research evidence that collaboration is associated with improved outcomes. This qualitative study used focus group methodology to explore collaboration among 26 mental health and school professionals. The constant comparative method was used to analyze focus group data. Central categories that emerged from the analysis included the importance of integrating professionals from collaborating agencies into the school community, communication between school professionals and community providers, and the perceived positive contributions of SMH collaboration for engaging families in schools. Study findings are interpreted from a social capital perspective and implications for SMH practice and research are offered. © 2011 Springer Science + Business Media, LLC.