ABSTRACT
BACKGROUND: Although young persons with severe and complex emotional and behavioural problems are often referred to the outpatient unit of the mental health service, little information is available about whether these problems increase over the years. This information is urgently needed in order to ensure that the mental health service provides adequate care. AIM: To obtain more insight into any increase in young persons' emotional and behavioural problems that may occur over a period of six years following referral to an outpatient unit of the mental health service. METHOD: The nature, severity and complexity of the emotional and behavioural problems of 123 young persons (1999) and of 149 young persons (2005) at the time of the referral - as rated by their parents on the basis of the Child Behavior Checklist (CBCL) - were assessed; the young persons' records were also checked for background characteristics. RESULTS: Compared to 1999, the year 2005 saw a slight decrease in the severity of the problems existing at referral; social problems also declined significantly compared to 1999. Problems identified in the 2005 group often seemed less complex than in 1999. The severity of delinquent behaviour as measured on the Delinquent Behaviour Scale seems to have risen in the 12 to 18 age group in 2005, whereas the severity declined in the 4 to 11-year olds. CONCLUSION: Emotional and behavioural problems as reported by the parents at the time their children were referred to the mental health service do not increase.
Subject(s)
Ambulatory Care/standards , Behavioral Symptoms/epidemiology , Community Mental Health Services/standards , Mental Disorders/epidemiology , Outpatients/psychology , Adolescent , Behavioral Symptoms/pathology , Child , Child Psychiatry/methods , Child Psychiatry/standards , Child, Preschool , Female , Humans , Male , Mental Disorders/pathology , Netherlands/epidemiology , Severity of Illness IndexABSTRACT
The personality profiles for youths with Prader-Willi, fragile-X, or Williams syndrome were compared to three matched groups attending regular schools. Using the California Child Q-Set (CCQ), both of the parents of the 39 children with Prader-Willi syndrome, 32 boys with fragile-X syndrome, 28 children with Williams syndrome, and children in the comparison groups provided independent personality descriptions in terms of the Big Five personality factors of Extraversion, Agreeableness, Conscientiousness, Emotional Stability, and Openness, along with Motor Activity and Irritability. Specific personality phenotypes for each of the three syndrome groups were found to be differentially related to parental behaviours (i.e. control and anger) and family contexts (i.e. experienced family stress, marital conflict, and parental consistency).
Subject(s)
Family Relations , Fragile X Syndrome/diagnosis , Parenting/psychology , Personality Disorders/diagnosis , Prader-Willi Syndrome/diagnosis , Social Environment , Williams Syndrome/diagnosis , Adolescent , Adult , Child , Child Behavior Disorders/diagnosis , Child Behavior Disorders/genetics , Child Behavior Disorders/psychology , Child, Preschool , Female , Fragile X Syndrome/genetics , Fragile X Syndrome/psychology , Humans , Male , Personality Disorders/genetics , Personality Disorders/psychology , Personality Inventory , Phenotype , Prader-Willi Syndrome/genetics , Prader-Willi Syndrome/psychology , Q-Sort , Risk Factors , Williams Syndrome/genetics , Williams Syndrome/psychologyABSTRACT
OBJECTIVE: Compare behavioral and emotional problems of children and adolescents with Prader-Willi Syndrome (PWS) and clients consulting mental health centers (MHC) and related behavioral and emotional problems to the children's personality in the PWS group. METHODS: Participants were 39 children with PWS and 585 matched MHC clients. Child Behavior Checklist (CBCL) syndromes were related to the Big-Five personality factors measured with the California Child Q-sort (CCQ). RESULTS: Mean CBCL Total Problems scores were not different for the PWS and MHC groups, but differences were found for several of the CBCL subscales. Patterns of correlations among CBCL scales were similar in both groups, although coefficients were generally higher in the PWS group, indicating higher comorbidity or co-absence of CBCL syndromes in children and adolescents with PWS. Personality profiles were specific for internalizing and Externalizing problems of children and adolescents with PWS.
