Profiles of Mental Health Competence and Difficulties as Predictors of Children’s Early Learning

Abstract

There is increasing acknowledgement of the importance of the early years of school in laying the foundations for children’s learning pathways, and interest in the role of mental health in promoting positive early learning experiences. Understanding child mental health requires consideration of both mental health competence and mental health difficulties. The aim of this paper was to determine how profiles of competence and difficulties relate to children’s early learning skills in their first year of school. Cross-sectional data from a population census was used to explore whether children’s mental health profile (the combination of competence and difficulties) predicted key domains of early..