Psychological Sciences

Aims: Our aim was to examine changes in distress symptoms and parenting dimensions among parents in child psychiatry services (clinic parents)(n= 102). Parents were followed from referral and admission to 3-month and 12-month follow-ups of “treatment-as-usual” at inpatient family clinics. These measurements were compared with a sample of community parent (n= 439) standards.

Abstract Developed a measure of perceived disability-related stress, the Parents of Children with Disabilities Inventory (PCDI). A content analysis of concerns expressed by mothers identified four primary domains: Medical and Legal Concerns, Concerns for the Child, Concerns for the Family, and Concerns for the Self. Item analysis performed on an initial item pool administered to 48 mothers recruited from area spina bifida and cerebral palsy clinics identified 40 items for further investigation.

Abstract Background: During the recent decade, a number of studies have begun to address Quality of Life (QoL) in children and adolescents with mental health problems in general population and clinical samples. Only about half of the studies utilized both self and parent proxy report of child QoL. Generally children with mental health problems have reported lower QoL compared to healthy children.

Abstract The purpose of this study was to evaluate the invariance of predictive relations across early-adolescent sex and ethnic groups regarding parenting factors and externalizing and internalizing problems and victimization. Data (n= 598; 54% female) from a triethnic (Hispanic, non-Hispanic white, and non-Hispanic black) probability sample of fifth graders collected from three sites (Birmingham, AL, Houston, TX, and Los Angeles, CA) were used in the analyses.

The Editors of the Journal of Pediatric Psychology (JPP) attempt to group papers to be published into themes when appropriate. At this time there was an opportunity to collect papers authored by colleagues from countries outside North America. As Editor, Annette La Greca saw this as an opportunity to address international developments in pediatric psychology and invited me to introduce this special section.

Background During adolescence diabetes creates a juncture of very complex disease management demands with developmental needs, including the striving of adolescents for greater autonomy. Parents' concerns and fears about the teen's diabetes self-management abilities during this time can heighten parental attachment behaviour and affect the parents' ability to support autonomy development necessary for effective self-care.

Abstract 1. On the basis of the multivariate conceptual model proposed by JL Wallander et al (1989), perceptions of hope and social support were hypothesized to serve as resilience factors against distress in mothers of children with chronic physical conditions. Relationships among these variables were tested. Ss were 111 mothers of 5 to 18-yr-old children who had cerebral palsy, spina bifida, or insulin-dependent diabetes mellitus.

Background and Objectives: Maternal reports of child behavior are often the sole criterion by which childhood psychiatric disorders are diagnosed and treated, even though maternal distress or psychopathology may influence the accuracy of these reports. This study examines the effect of maternal depression and the impact of its treatment on reported behavior in the depressed women's children.

As stated in the overview to this section, a chronic physical condition interferes in daily life essentially for the duration of greater than 3 months in a year or causes hospitalization for more than 1 month in a year (Pless & Pinkerton, 1975). This category includes chronic diseases, such as diabetes and asthma, and physical impairments, such as spina bifida and cerebral palsy.

Abstract There is increasing interest in measuring quality of life (QL) in children and adolescents, but this interest has developed without careful attention given numerous important issues. Consequently, there is much diversity and confusion in this measurement area. We discuss at a conceptual level herein how to construe and define QL, approach its measurement, and the implications of for whom this is done.

A fundamental problem in providing mandated early intervention services for young children at risk for disabilities is defining, identifying, and prioritizing at-risk children. Research studies using various methodologies, including longitudinal, have been employed to resolve such issues. While these studies have provided important findings, major and costly disadvantages impact their utility.

Abstract Background: The Parental Bonding Instrument, present self-report version,(PBI-PCh) includes three scales, Warmth, Protectiveness and Authoritarianism, which describe three dimensions of current parenting. The purposes of this study were to (1) evaluate the true and observed stability of these parenting dimensions related to older children,(2) explore the distribution of individual-level change across nine months and (3) test potential parental predictors of parenting instability.

Children, including adolescents, with intellectual disability (ID) are at higher risk than children without ID for developing psychopathology, a term we use to subsume similar terms such as mental illness or health problems, psychiatric or behavior disorders, and behavior and emotional problems. Psychopathology in children with ID is also more likely to go unrecognized and untreated.

PURPOSE: To provide an overview of a multisite, long-term study that focuses on risk and protective factors, health behaviors (eg, dietary practices, physical inactivity, tobacco use, and violent activity), and health outcomes (eg, diabetes, obesity, and sexually transmitted diseases) for a fifth-grade cohort to be followed biennially from ages 10 to 20 years.

Background This randomized controlled trial aims to evaluate the effects of an early developmental intervention program on the development of young children in low-and low-middle-income countries who are at risk for neurodevelopmental disability because of birth asphyxia. A group of children without perinatal complications are evaluated in the same protocol to compare the effects of early developmental intervention in healthy infants in the same communities.

Background: Distress-driven symptoms are prevalent among older primary care patients and account for a large percentage of office visits and increased medical costs. An experimental written self-disclosure protoco) has been shown to reduce symptoms and use of health care services in healthy adults. Written self-disclosure as a method for reducing symptoms has not been evaluated in the primary care setting.

We conducted a randomized clinical trial of a 3-session written self-disclosure intervention for patients with cystic fibrosis (CF). Patients (n= 39) who were at least 15 years of age and diagnosed with CF participated in the intervention. Participants in the intervention arm were asked to write in the health care setting about an important emotionally distressing issue of personal significance for a 20-min period of time and two additional 20-min writing episodes at the patient's home, which were prompted by telephone calls.

The prevalence and severity of obesity in children have increased dramatically in the past 20 years. As defined with cutpoints from the International Obesity Task Force (1) for the sex-and age-specific distributions of BMI, classifications applied to children are “not overweight”(BMI< 85th percentile),“overweight”(85th≤ BMI< 95th percentile), and “obese”(BMI≥ 95th percentile).

Background This study examined risk factors for the development of psychopathology in children with intellectual disability (ID) in the developmental, biological, family and social-ecological domains. Methods A population sample of 968 children, aged 6–18, enrolled in special schools in the Netherlands for educable and trainable ID were assessed at Time 1. A random 58% were re-contacted about 1 year later, resulting in a sample of 474 at Time 2. Results Psychopathology was highly consistent over 1 year.