ArticleIndian journal of psychiatry2026
Perspectives of Anganwadi workers on early childhood mental health: A qualitative study from rural Karnataka and hilly Uttarakhand.
Article in Indian journal of psychiatry, 2026. The graph could read no effect estimate from its abstract, so it casts no vote on the map. Not yet cited in PubMed.
What it found
Each row is one number read from the abstract, on the scale the paper reported it, with its interval. Left of the dashed line favours the treatment, right favours the comparator. Under each row is the sentence it came from. New to these charts? A ten-minute tutorial.
The abstract states no effect estimate the extractor could read, or names no intervention and outcome on the map, so this paper lights no cell and moves no belief. It is still indexed, cited and linked below.
The trial behind it
Trials whose registry record cites this paper, or whose number appears in the abstract. A trial that started after this paper was published is citing it as background, not reporting it.
Neither the registry nor the abstract names a trial number. If this is a trial report, that itself is worth knowing.
Who cites it
0 citing papers in PubMed.
No citing paper in PubMed yet.
Corrections and comments
PubMed lists nothing against this paper. Absence here is not a guarantee, only a check that was made.
Authors and funding
6 authors.
Funding
No grant is acknowledged in the PubMed record.
Abstract
Background: Anganwadi workers (AWWs) are central to India's integrated child development services (ICDS) and play an important role in early childhood care and development (ECCD). However, limited evidence exists regarding how AWWs understand and respond to early childhood mental health concerns across diverse rural settings. This study explored AWWs' perspectives on early childhood mental health, including barriers, existing practices, and training needs. Methods: A qualitative descriptive design informed by Sandelowski's approach was employed. Five focus group discussions (FGDs) were conducted with 35 AWWs from Belur taluk, Karnataka ( Results: Five interrelated themes emerged: understanding child mental health; community participation and parenting practices; innovations and training needs; operational challenges affecting psychosocial engagement; and delivery of nutrition and health services within community contexts. AWWs demonstrated strong motivation and contextual understanding of children's developmental and emotional needs; however, recognition of less visible emotional and regulatory concerns remained limited. Parenting stress, migration, economic hardship, administrative workload, geographical barriers, and limited referral pathways constrained early identification and psychosocial engagement. Participants expressed a preference for practical, skills-based training and simple referral guidance integrated within routine ICDS activities. Conclusion: AWWs occupy an important position within rural early childhood care systems. The findings suggest that practical, context-responsive training and clearer referral pathways may strengthen the early identification and support of children with developmental and emotional concerns in rural settings.
Indexed as
Identifiers
What OpenQuestion holds
Registered trials
Read under generation 80e0d062 · epoch 390. Bibliography from PubMed, PubMed Central and OpenAlex; grants from NIH RePORTER; trial links from ClinicalTrials.gov; estimates, votes and beliefs from the OpenQuestion graph.