The Early Experiences Matter Policy Guide includes an issue brief on social and emotional health. To access the complete toolkit, click here.

Baby Matters: A Gateway to State Policies and Initiatives is a searchable database that contains information on state policies and initiatives that impact infants, toddlers and their families. To search Baby Matters for information on social and emotional health, click here.

Hearing on Preventing Child Abuse and Improving Responses to Families in Crisis
Statement of Matthew Melmed, Executive Director, ZERO TO THREE
Submitted to the House Committee on Education and Labor, Subcommittee on Healthy Families and Communities
November 5, 2009

Deployment and Coming Home: The Realities for Infants and Toddlers in Military Families
This article details the challenges families face before, during, and after deployment, as well as policy recommendations that support infants and toddlers in military families.

National Infant and Early Childhood Mental Health Systems Summit
The second National Infant and Early Childhood Mental Health Systems Summit was held on October 11-13, 2007 in Milwaukee, Wisconsin. It was organized by the Wisconsin Alliance for Infant Mental Health and ZERO TO THREE, with assistance from the National Technical Assistance Center for Children’s Mental Health at Georgetown University. Sixteen states brought teams consisting of three to seven multi-disciplinary representatives in the public and private sectors and parents. The goal of the 2007 summit was for participants to learn new strategies to better support the social and emotional development of infants and young children within a comprehensive system. 

Click here to see the agenda and notes and power points from the sessions at the summit. 

Click here to read an overview of the summit and the recommendations that resulted.

Helping Young Children Succeed
Joint research and policy report developed by ZERO TO THREE and the National Conference of State Legislatures. Describes how state policymakers can support the healthy social-emotional development of young children from birth to age five. The brief defines early childhood social-emotional development; describes what can happen when children face emotional and behavioral problems; and outlines what actions can be taken at the state level to support healthy social-emotional development in babies and young children. 

Improving Maternal and Infant Mental Health: Focus on Maternal Depression
Joint policy brief of ZERO TO THREE and the National Center for Infant and Early Childhood Health Policy at UCLA

Building a Comprehensive System to Address Infant and Early Childhood Mental Health Disorders
Reviews the research on early childhood mental health and provides policy recommendations for the renewal of the Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration (SAMHSA) authorizing legislation.

Building System Capacity: Improving Infant and Early Childhood Mental Health In Philadelphia
Report documents two-year collaborative initiative in Philadelphia to build a comprehensive, coordinated infant and early childhood mental health service system. 

Secure Attachment
Ounce of Prevention Fund (2008)
Describes the importance of secure attachment in developing a strong social-emotional foundation and highlights the role that high-quality early childhood programs can play in supporting strong attachments in young children.