Clinical child psychology and psychiatry最新文献

The present study examines insecure attachment styles in female adolescents, who are at risk for developing eating disorders. A second goal was to investigate whether attachment styles differentiate between high risk for anorexia and high risk for bulimia. A total of 150 adolescents were divided into four risk groups: High risk for anorexia, high risk for bulimia, medium risk and control group. The attachment styles were assessed using the Experience in Close Relationships Scale and the Relationship Questionnaire. Anxiety Attachment, but not Avoidance Attachment, was found to characterize those adolescents who are at risk for ED (AN + BN), and especially for those at high-risk for BN. The present results do not support the notion of an avoidance of emotional intimacy, characterizing the avoidant attachment style of those presenting with AN. Preoccupied Attachment style was found to characterize high-risk for BN, but not high-risk for AN, while the Insecure, Fearful, and Dismissing Attachment types did not differentiate between these two high-risk groups. This study highlights the dominant attachment style in adolescents at high risk for developing ED: The Anxiety Attachment style for AN and BN, and the Preoccupied Attachment style for BN but not for AN.

Aims: Secondary trauma is recognised as one of the negative effects for professionals working with people that have experienced trauma. Research has demonstrated secondary trauma in foster carers but little research has explored trauma symptoms within adoptive parents, facing the emotional impact of parenting a child with adverse early experiences. This study aimed to document the rates of primary and secondary trauma symptoms in adoptive parents. It further explores the association between the extent of current behavioural and emotional challenges and the extent of the child's pre-adoption adverse experiences in predicting parental trauma responses.

Method: 190 adoptive parents completed an online survey including self-report measures of primary and secondary trauma.

Results: Almost one fifth of adoptive parents exhibited primary trauma scores of clinical concern; with 10% reaching the threshold for a probable diagnosis of PTSD. Participants also reported significantly higher levels of secondary trauma and burnout, and significantly lower levels of compassion satisfaction than population norms. The current behavioural and emotional challenges, including child-to-parent violence, predicted higher trauma scores more so than the extent of their child's past adverse experiences.

Conclusions: The findings have clinical implications for identifying trauma symptoms within adoptive parents and wider implications for how we understand secondary and primary trauma. They further highlight the importance of firstly addressing current child behaviour, including child-to-parent violence when treating trauma symptoms. Limitations of this study and recommendations for further research are discussed.

Few studies have examined how the personal characteristics of students, together with factors from their local social environments and communities, affect students living in generally high levels of social disruption. We examined the influence that personal characteristics as well as factors from the local social environments and communities may have on Colombian students' levels of depressive symptoms shortly after the end of the of armed conflict. Data were collected from 710 students attending the fifth grade in a random sample of elementary schools in the province of Sucre in Colombia. Information was gathered on the students' ages and gender as well as characteristics of their parents, school factors, and community factors. A five-level hierarchical regression model was used to determine the extent to which all these variables predicted depression scores, as measured by the Adolescent Depression Rating Scale. While personal, parental, school and community factors were all found to predict depression scores, the category, parental factors had the most impact. That was followed by school factors, community factors and finally personal characteristics. Multiple social and environmental factors were associated with the level of depression experienced by Colombian students.

Background: Online self-assessments are becoming more popular. They can serve as a screening tool for specific conditions or assess mental health more broadly but often lack in depth evaluation.

Methods: This study presents preliminary data from an online self-assessment tool for young people within the age range of 12-30 years (Link: redcap.hmri.org.au/surveys/?s = MK7RCELJ79). It covers key symptoms of mood and psychotic disorders and risk factors, such as eating issues, substance use, suicidality, and deliberate self-harming behaviours. Participants self-assessed their level of functioning, access to ongoing interventions, and satisfaction with the help received. Based on the severity of mental health problems and the level of risk, different recommendations of how to seek help were provided.

Results: Out of 303, 114 participants gave permission to analyse their data. A high-risk profile was defined by anxiety symptoms, panic attacks, suicidal ideation, and urges to self-harm. These individuals were more likely to report psychotic or depression symptoms, recreational substance use and low day-to-day functioning. Ongoing treatment and the satisfaction with it were not determined by the severity of symptoms.

Conclusions: These preliminary results suggest that the online self-assessment tool reaches the intended young audience, particularly those with some degree of mental health problems.

The 48-item Healthy Habits Questionnaire (HHQ-48) was developed to (1) monitor positive changes in family lifestyles following engagement in the Parents Plus Healthy Families (PP-HF) parent training programme and (2) be utilised as a standalone measure in clinical settings to identify and track problematic influential behaviours amongst families of children in weight-management services. This study aimed to develop and validate a brief version of the HHQ-48. The scale was administered to a cross-sectional community sample (n = 480), and on two occasions to a control sample (n = 50) and an experimental sample (n = 40) from a randomised controlled trial (RCT) of the PP-HF programme to assess test-retest reliability and sensitivity to change respectively. Exploratory and confirmatory factor analysis showed that a 23-item, 4-factor version of the HHQ (i.e., the HHQ-23) best fit the data. The scale and factor subscales had good internal consistency and test-retest reliability. They also had good concurrent and construct validity shown by significant correlations with another scale that assessed lifestyle issues, and scales that assessed parenting satisfaction, family functioning, and children's strengths and difficulties. The HHQ-23 was sensitive to change following parents completing the PP-HF programme. The HHQ-23 may, therefore, be used to monitor positive changes in family lifestyles following engagement in the PP-HF parent training programme. The HHQ-23 also shows promising potential as a standalone screening measure or as part of a larger battery of screening assessments in paediatric weight-management services.

Raising your child with attention deficit hyperactivity disorder (ADHD) in Jordan is a challenge due to the prevailing behavioral concerns, low availability of specialized care, and generalized feelings of social stigma. This phenomenological study involved twelve Jordanian parents of children aged 4-14 years, all diagnosed with ADHD according to DSM-IV-TR criteria. Participants were recruited through purposive sampling, and semi-structured interviews were conducted. Thematic analysis revealed three key themes: "The Journey through ADHD," in which parents recognized the abnormalities of their children, reported suffering during the diagnosis, and described a wide range of uncertainty regarding the diagnosis and treatments. The second theme was "Disease as part of life," where parents reported the impact on family dynamics and social life. The third theme was "Caregiving burden," reflecting physical and emotional exhaustion and financial burden. Jordanian parents caring for children with ADHD face several challenges, including physical, emotional, economic, and social challenges and limited access to specialized services. Identifying their unique needs and challenges is essential in supporting them, providing appropriate services and resources, and developing policies and guidelines for culturally competent quality services.

Background: Multiple complex developmental disorder (MCDD) manifests as early-onset impairment across different domains. Although it could appear as a transitional condition between autism and childhood-onset schizophrenia, interest in MCDD has progressively waned. This study attempts to discern MCDD current relevance to avoid "throwing the baby out with the bathwater" too fast.

Methods: All available studies published up to January 2024 were retrieved and evaluated following on the PRISMA guidelines for systematic reviews using the term "multiple complex developmental disorder" or "MCDD", without any filter for study design nor year of publication.

Results: Only 16 studies were included and analyzed. Overall, a variable heterogeneity was observed in terms of country of investigation, study design, and clinical groups. Most of the included studies explored the construct of MCDD in developmental age, comparing MCDD mostly with autistic patients, and observing how the former group had higher levels of paranoia, illusions, and psychotic thoughts, whereas the latter showed more frequently difficulties in social interactions and stereotypical behaviors.

Conclusion: Overall, these results showed how progressive changes in diagnostic criteria over time led MCDD to be abandoned as nosographic construct, leaving perhaps a diagnostic void between autism and psychotic disorders that needs to be further studied. A systematic review on the Multiple Complex Developmental Disorder (MCDD): a forgotten diagnosis between autism and schizophrenia.

The assessment of anxiety symptoms in children and adolescents requires a valid and reliable single instrument able to detect various anxiety symptoms early and systematically collect data from other informant such as parents. The present study aimed to test the one-factor structure of the SCAS-P-8 and to examine its psychometric properties and invariance across sex and age in an Italian sample of 769 parents of children and adolescents aged 3-18 years (50.8% females). Confirmatory factor analysis confirmed the one-factor structure of the SCAS-P-8, which showed good reliability and invariance by sex and age. When examining mean differences by sex and age, results showed that female schoolchildren had higher anxiety scores than males and other age groups. A strong correlation with emotional problems demonstrated convergent validity, while discriminant validity resulted from the weak correlations with externalizing symptoms and relationship problems with peers. Overall, findings support the SCAS-P-8 as a valid brief instrument to assess anxiety symptoms in children and adolescents for clinical and research purposes and demonstrate its invariance across sex and age.