Depressive symptoms and academic self-image in adolescence.

The aim of this paper was to specifically analyse the relationship between the different components of academic self-image, defined as the way adolescents represent themselves as students, and self-reported depressive symptoms, assessed with the Children's Depression Inventory (CDI), in a non-clinical sample of 298 adolescents. We considered both adolescents' beliefs about their own cognitive functioning in academic performance and beliefs about their emotional attitude in achievement situations. Our data indicate that the pattern of correlation between emotional beliefs about schooling and learning are significantly related to CDI scores, but this correlation is not evident for the cognitive beliefs. This pattern of correlation is affected by actual school functioning, because correlation between CDI and beliefs is much more significant in subjects without school failure. Differences between gender in CDI scores, beliefs about schooling and learning, and pattern of correlation are considered. These results can enable to focus supporting psychological interventions on more specific targets.

[Description of two cases of Munchausen syndrome by proxy]. / Descrizione di due casi di sindrome di Munchausen per procura.

The Munchausen syndrome by proxy, or Polle syndrome can be considered as a form of child abuse in which parents falsify or even produce a real pathology in their children submitting them to frequent hospitalizations and pointless medical examinations. The authors discuss two cases and emphasize the importance of an early identification of these cases to avoid psychical impairments that inevitably stem from this "new" form of child abuse.