Prevalence of emotional and behavioral problems among schoolchildren in Herat City, Afghanistan

Background

The prevalence of pediatric mental illnesses has been increasing in recent years, with a great potential to impact on individual's functionality and adaptation in adulthood.

Objective

This study aims to assess emotional and behavioral problems among schoolchildren in Herat City of Afghanistan.

Methods

This cross-sectional study was conducted on schoolchildren (grade 5‒10), between September and November 2021. Sociodemographic data was collected using a paper-based 14-item structured questionnaire. Data on emotional and behavioral problems was collected using the Strengths and Difficulties Questionnaire (SDQ) based on teachers’ and children's report. Statistical analyses were performed in IBM SPSS Statistics (version 27).

Results

A total of 418 students, including 190 (45.5%) males and 228 (54.5%) females with a mean age of 14.1 ± 1.7 (11‒< 18 ) years were included in the study. The prevalence of students’ self-reported total difficulties and prosocial problem were 5.7% and 1.2%, respectively. An insignificant difference was observed between mean total difficulties scores between students’ self-reported and teachers’ reported SDQ. Gender, grade, concern about shortage of food, and concern about losing house were significantly predicting students’ self-reported total difficulties scores.

Conclusion

This is the first study to report the prevalence of emotional and behavioral problems among schoolchildren in Herat City, Afghanistan. This, together with relevant global literature, highlight the need to address pediatric mental health, and provide services aimed at preventing, and treating children with these problems around the world.