Parnes Lab
The mission of the Parnes Lab is to promote the health and well-being of young people in their natural and digital environments. Our work is grounded in the idea that children have the right to live and develop in clean, healthy environments and to participate in decisions that affect their present and future. We use creative approaches to link research to practice and policy, drawing on multiple methodologies including participatory action research, implementation science, and mixed methods. Following the Next Generation Coalition’s Framework for “Empowering Youth Engagement”, we work to center youth voices in change-making processes and facilitate collaborative intergenerational relationships built on accountability and trust.
Climate change, social media, and youth psychosocial resilience
Using youth participatory action research, this work explores how social media can be leveraged as tool to promote the mental health and resilience of young people who experience the first and worst consequences of climate change.
Source of Support: National Institutes of Health
Role: Principal Investigator
Creating a collaborative partnership to address the youth mental health impacts of climate change
This project aims to create a strong partnership between Seattle Children’s Research Institute and Climate Action Families, a nonprofit intergenerational climate justice group in Seattle WA, to combine research, community engagement and youth empowerment to address climate change while supporting the mental health and well-being of young people.
Source of Support: Seattle Children’s Research Institute
Role: Co-Principal Investigator
The impact of climate change education on students’ mental health
This study investigates the impacts of climate change education on middle and high students’ climate anxiety, hope and action, as well as teacher perspectives on the feasibility and acceptability of implementing climate change curriculum in the classroom.
Source of Support: The Spencer Foundation
Role: Co-Principal Investigator
Therapeutic gaming for hospitalized pediatric patients
This work aims to build a program of research to examine the effects of Seattle Children’s Therapeutic Gaming Program on pediatric patient coping, mental health, and treatment adherence during hospitalization.
Source of Support: Child’s Play
Role: Principal Investigator
McKenna Parnes, PhD
Dr. Parnes is an investigator in the Treuman Katz Center for Pediatric Bioethics and Palliative Care at Seattle Children's Research Institute and Acting Assistant Professor in the Division of Bioethics & Palliative Care, Department of Pediatrics, University of Washington School of Medicine. She holds a PhD in Clinical Psychology from Suffolk University and Masters of Science in Education in Counseling and Mental Health from the University of Pennsylvania. Her research focuses on the intersections between child and adolescent mental health and climate change, with consideration of the ethical responsibility society holds in protecting and promoting the health and well-being of younger and future generations amid the climate crisis. She is particularly interested in how digital tools and social media can be leveraged to reduce disparities among youth who experience the greatest climate-related health burdens.