Rebecca Anthony
Post-Doctoral Research Associate, DECIPHer
- anthonyre@cardiff.ac.uk
- +44 29208 79876
- sbarc|spark, Maindy Road, Cathays, Cardiff, CF24 4HQ
Overview
My current role within DECIPHer (Centre for Development, Evaluation, Complexity and Implementation in Public Health Improvement) at Cardiff University involves conducting public health improvement research within the fields of child and adolescent development, mental health, social care and education. I support the development of peer-reviewed publications and government reports using data generated by the School Health Research Network (SHRN). My research interests are in the area of improving outcomes for children and young people, with a focus on those who have experienced care.
Biography
2014 - 2018 PhD titled ‘Parent-child relationship and mental wellbeing among adoptive families’ - Cardiff University, School of Psychology
2013 - 2014 MSc Social Sciences Research Methods (Distinction) – Cardiff University, School of Social Sciences
2009 - 2012 PgDip Therapeutic Counselling – University of South Wales, Newport.
2002 - 2005 BSc Psychology hons (2.1) – University of Plymouth
Honours and awards
2022 Winner of the Incubator for Mental Health Research Award for research in underserved areas
2019 Haydn Ellis Prize for best PhD, Cardiff University
2018 ‘Best presentation’ Cardiff University Speaking of Science
2017 ‘Best poster’ Cardiff University, School of Psychology Postgraduate Conference
2015 ‘Best Student Project’ National Social Services Conference
Academic positions
2008 – 2013 Research Officer/Trial Manager – Swansea University, School of Medicine
RCT evaluation of the Family Links Nurturing Programme (FLNP) across four South Wales sites.
2008 - 2008 Research Associate, University of East Anglia,
Extensive qualitative evaluation of the Common Assessment Framework (CAF) in Wales.
2006 – 2007 Communities Research Support Officer – Caerphilly County Borough Council
Research with deprived communities, including survey design, collation of statistics and focus group methods.
2005 – 2006 Research Assistant, Dartington Social Research Unit
Experience on a wide range of quantitative research projects aimed at improving outcomes for children.
Speaking engagements
KEY ORAL PRESENTATIONS
2021 Triumph Network Early Career Research forum - Patterns of adversity and post-traumatic stress among children adopted from care
2021 EUSARF, Virtual - Patterns of adversity and post-traumatic stress among children adopted from care
2018 EUSARF, Porto - ACEs in a sample of UK children adopted from care: the moderating role of adoptive parental warmth
2018 ISPCAN, Prague - The prevalence of Adverse Childhood Experiences in a sample of children adopted from care
2017 Speaking of Science, Cardiff – The mental wellbeing of adoptive parents
2016 Child and Adolescent Psychopathology, London - Indicators of adversity and child mental health in an adopted sample
Committees and reviewing
Journal reviewer, Child Abuse & Neglect
Journal reviewer, British Journal of Social Work
Advisory group, Adoption UK
Publications
2024
- Lowthian, E. et al. 2024. Receipt of social services intervention in childhood, educational attainment and emergency hospital admissions: longitudinal analyses of national administrative health, social care, and education data in Wales, UK. BMC Public Health 24, article number: 2912. (10.1186/s12889-024-20204-6)
- Moore, G., Donaldson, C., Querghi, S., Hawkins, J., Anthony, R., Angel, L. and Morgan, K. 2024. School and family level socioeconomic status, school connectedness and health and wellbeing among 9-11 year olds: cross sectional analysis of the Student Health and Wellbeing Survey in Wales. Child Indicators Research (10.1007/s12187-024-10179-6)
- Hewitt, G., MacDonald, S., Evans, R., Rees, A., Brown, R., Anthony, R. and Jones, S. 2024. Challenges and opportunities for social work practice in mental health and wellbeing support for care-experienced children and young people in schools and colleges in Wales. Presented at: 13th European Conference for Social Work, Vilnius, Lithuania, 17-19 April 2024.
- Lowthian, E., Fee, G., Wakeham, C., Clegg, Z., Crick, T. and Anthony, R. 2024. Identifying protective and risk behavior patterns of online communication in young people. Journal of Adolescence 96(2), pp. 235-250. (10.1002/jad.12270)
- Anthony, R., Haslam, Z., Morgan, K., Evans, R. and Willis, S. 2024. Mental health and wellbeing related social support for care-experienced children and young people: A Scoping Review protocol of type, source and quality.. [Online]. OSF. (https://doi.org/10.17605/OSF.IO/2U7BZ) Available at: https://osf.io/2u7bz/
- Anthony, R. 2024. Emotional problems in young people were rising rapidly even before the pandemic. The Conversation
2023
- Roberts, L. M., Wood, S., Corliss, C. and Anthony, R. 2023. Exploring online experiences, cyberbullying and wellbeing for young people looked after in Wales: An analysis of the school health research network 2017/18 survey. Developmental Child Welfare 5(4), pp. 204-222. (10.1177/25161032231204967)
- Anthony, R. et al. 2023. Trends in adolescent emotional problems in Wales between 2013 and 2019: the contribution of peer relationships. Journal of Child Psychology and Psychiatry (10.1111/jcpp.13924)
- Anthony, R. et al. 2023. Adversity profiles of children receiving care and support from social services: A Latent-class analysis of school-aged children in Wales. Child: Care, Health and Development 49(5), pp. 889-897. (10.1111/cch.13097)
- Macdonald, S., Hewitt, G., Evans, R., Rees, A., Brown, R., Anthony, R. and Jones, S. 2023. Wellbeing and mental health support in schools and colleges for care experienced children and young people: a mixed-methods study of delivering and receiving support. Presented at: BERA Conference 2023, Aston University, Birmingham, 12-14 September 2023.
- Armitage, J. M. et al. 2023. Cross-cohort change in parent-reported emotional problem trajectories across childhood and adolescence in the UK. The Lancet Psychiatry 10(7), pp. 509-517. (10.1016/S2215-0366(23)00175-X)
- Anthony, R., Young, H., Hewitt, G., Sloan, L., Moore, G., Murphy, S. and Cook, S. 2023. Young people’s online communication and its association with mental wellbeing: Results from the 2019 Student Health and Wellbeing Survey. Child and Adolescent Mental Health 28(1), pp. 4-11. (10.1111/camh.12610)
- Paine, A. L., van Goozen, S. H. M., Burley, D. T., Anthony, R. and Shelton, K. H. 2023. Facial emotion recognition in adopted children. European Child and Adolescent Psychiatry 32, pp. 87-99. (10.1007/s00787-021-01829-z)
- Macdonald, S., Hewitt, G., Evans, R., Rees, A., Brown, R., Anthony, R. and Jones, S. 2023. Mental health and wellbeing support in schools and further education colleges for care-experienced children and young people. Presented at: EuSARF - 'Equity and Social Justice in Child, Youth and Family Welfare', University of Sussex, 12-15 September 2023.
2022
- Anthony, R., Paine, A., Westlake, M., Lowthian, E. and Shelton, K. 2022. Patterns of adversity and post-traumatic stress among children adopted from care. Child Abuse and Neglect 130(P2), article number: 104795. (10.1016/j.chiabu.2020.104795)
- Moore, G. et al. 2022. Mental health and life satisfaction among 10–11-year-olds in Wales, before and one year after onset of the COVID-19 pandemic. BMC Public Health 22, article number: 379. (10.1186/s12889-022-12752-6)
- Anthony, R., Moore, G., Page, N., Hewitt, G., Murphy, S. and Melendez-Torres, G. 2022. Measurement invariance of the short Warwick-Edinburgh mental wellbeing scale and latent mean differences (SWEMWBS) in young people by current care status. Quality of Life Research 31, pp. 205-213. (10.1007/s11136-021-02896-0)
2021
- Paine, A. L., Perra, O., Anthony, R. and Shelton, K. H. 2021. Charting the trajectories of adopted children’s emotional and behavioral problems: The impact of early adversity and post-adoptive parental warmth. Development and Psychopathology 33(3), pp. 922-936. (10.1017/S0954579420000231)
- Lowthian, E. et al. 2021. Adverse childhood experiences and child mental health: an electronic birth cohort study. BMC Medicine 19, article number: 172. (10.1186/s12916-021-02045-x)
- Paine, A. L., Fahey, K., Anthony, R. E. and Shelton, K. H. 2021. Early adversity predicts adoptees’ enduring emotional and behavioral problems in childhood. European Child and Adolescent Psychiatry 30, pp. 721-732. (10.1007/s00787-020-01553-0)
- Anthony, R., Young, H. and Long, S. J. 2021. Early pregnancy risk and missed opportunities to plan for parenthood. In: Roberts, L. ed. The Children of Looked After Children: Outcomes, Experiences and Ensuring Meaningful Support to Young Parents In and Leaving Care. Bristol: Policy Press, pp. 15-40.
- Couturiaux, D., Young, H., Anthony, R., Page, N., Lowthian, E., Melendez, G. and Moore, G. 2021. Risk behaviours associated with dating and relationship violence among 11–16 year olds in Wales: results from the 2019 student health and wellbeing survey. International Journal of Environmental Research and Public Health 18(3), article number: 1192. (10.3390/ijerph18031192)
- Paine, A. L., Burley, D., Anthony, R., van Goozen, S. and Shelton, K. 2021. The neurocognitive profiles of children adopted from care and their emotional and behavioral problems at home and school. Child Neuropsychology 27(1), pp. 17-36. (10.1080/09297049.2020.1776241)
2020
- Moore, G. F., Anthony, R. E., Hawkins, J., Van Godwin, J., Murphy, S., Hewitt, G. and Melendez-Torres, G. 2020. Socioeconomic status, mental wellbeing and transition to secondary school: analysis of the School Health Research Network/Health Behaviour in School-aged Children survey in Wales. British Educational Research Journal 46(5), pp. 1111-1130. (10.1002/berj.3616)
- Melendez-Torres, G., Anthony, R., Hewitt, G., Murphy, S. and Moore, G. 2020. Prevalence of gambling behaviours and their associations with socioemotional harm among 11 to 16 year olds in Wales: findings from the School Health Research Network survey. European Journal of Public Health 30(3), pp. 432-438. (10.1093/eurpub/ckz176)
2019
- Anthony, R. E., Paine, A. L. and Shelton, K. H. 2019. Depression and anxiety symptoms of british adoptive parents: a prospective four-wave longitudinal study. International Journal of Environmental Research and Public Health 16(24), pp. -., article number: 5153. (10.3390/ijerph16245153)
- Anthony, R. E., Paine, A. L. and Shelton, K. H. 2019. Adverse childhood experiences of children adopted from care: The importance of adoptive parental warmth for future child adjustment. International Journal of Environmental Research and Public Health 16(12), article number: 2212. (10.3390/ijerph16122212)
- Hewitt, G., Anthony, R., Moore, G., Melendez-Torres, G. and Murphy, S. 2019. Student health and wellbeing in Wales: Report of the 2017/18 Health Behaviour in School-aged Children Survey and School Health Research Network Student Health and Wellbeing Survey. Project Report. [Online]. Cardiff: Cardiff University. Available at: http://www.shrn.org.uk/wp-content/uploads/2019/05/SHRN-HBSC-NR_31.05.2019.pdf
- Melendez-Torres, G. et al. 2019. Measurement invariance properties and external construct validity of the Short Warwick-Edinburgh Mental Wellbeing Scale in a large national sample of secondary school students in Wales. Health and Quality of Life Outcomes 17, article number: 139. (10.1186/s12955-019-1204-z)
2018
- Anthony, R. E. 2018. Parent-child relationship quality and psychological wellbeing among adoptive families. PhD Thesis, Cardiff University.
2017
- Snooks, H. A. et al. 2017. Paramedic assessment of older adults after falls, including community care referral pathway: cluster randomized trial. Annals of Emergency Medicine 70(4), pp. 495-505.e28. (10.1016/j.annemergmed.2017.01.006)
- Snooks, H. A. et al. 2017. Support and Assessment for Fall Emergency Referrals (SAFER) 2: a cluster randomised trial and systematic review of clinical effectiveness and cost-effectiveness of new protocols for emergency ambulance paramedics to assess older people following a fall with referral to community-based care when appropriate. Health Technology Assessment 21(13) (10.3310/hta21130)
2016
- Anthony, R., Meakings, S., Doughty, J., Ottaway, H., Holland, S. and Shelton, K. H. 2016. Factors affecting adoption in Wales: Predictors of variation in time between entry to care and adoptive placement. Children and Youth Services Review 60, pp. 184-190. (10.1016/j.childyouth.2016.06.010)
2013
- Simkiss, D. E. et al. 2013. Effectiveness and cost-effectiveness of a universal parenting skills programme in deprived communities: multicentre randomised controlled trial. BMJ Open 3(8) (10.1136/bmjopen-2013-002851)
- Snooks, H. A., Kingston, M. R., Anthony, R. E. and Russell, I. T. 2013. New models of emergency prehospital care that avoid unnecessary conveyance to emergency department: translation of research evidence into practice?. The Scientific World Journal 2013, article number: 182102. (10.1155/2013/182102)
2012
- Snooks, H. et al. 2012. Support and assessment for fall emergency referrals (SAFER 2) research protocol: cluster randomised trial of the clinical and cost effectiveness of new protocols for emergency ambulance paramedics to assess and refer to appropriate community-based care. BMJ Open 2(6), article number: e002169. (10.1136/bmjopen-2012-002169)
2011
- Stewart-Brown, S., Anthony, R., Wilson, L., Winstanley, S., Stallard, N. and Snooks, H. 2011. Should randomised controlled trials be the “gold standard” for research on preventive interventions for children?. Journal of Children's Services 6(4), pp. 228-235. (10.1108/17466661111190929)
2010
- Simkiss, D. E. et al. 2010. Measuring the impact and costs of a universal group based parenting programme: protocol and implementation of a trial. BMC Public Health 10, article number: 364. (10.1186/1471-2458-10-364)
I am particularly interested in the relationship between aspects of family functioning and children’s psychological well-being. My PhD utilized data from the Wales Adoption Cohort Study, focusing on the experiences and of families following an adoptive placement.
Supervision
Adoption
Care-experienced children and young people
