Objective: We examined the relative contribution of parental bipolar disorder (BPD) and psychiatric comorbidities (disruptive behavior disorders [DBD] and anxiety disorders) in predicting psychiatric symptoms and disorders in 2-5-year-old offspring. Methods: Participants were 60 families with a parent with BPD and 78 offspring and 70 comparison…

This study examines the association between the boarding protection/care service models offered by the General Directorate of Social Services and Child Protection Agency and the behavioral and emotional problems children and adolescents under protection or care. The relational scanning model guided the preparation of the study sample. The study's…

Background: Teenage youth with co-morbid intellectual disability (ID) and autism spectrum disorder (ASD) could be at higher risk for behavioral and social difficulties than youth with ID only. Methods: Youth aged 13 years were diagnosed with ID (n = 37), ID/ASD (n = 26), or typical development (TD, n = 98). Mothers and teachers completed measures…

Objective: To design and test a rapid assessment tool for predicting dysfunctional behavior of children who live in homes where their mother reports recent physical or sexual partner abuse. Methods: A cohort analysis was completed. 300 abused mothers accessing services for partner abuse were interviewed to determine risk factors for dysfunctional…

Wilderness therapy (WT) provides an alternative treatment modality for a number of mental health issues. It holds particular appeal for at-risk youth, a population that is often less responsive to traditional psychotherapeutic interventions. Anecdotal accounts on the effectiveness of WT often show positive outcomes. Still, some researchers have…

Background: Different dimensions of oppositional defiant disorder (ODD) have been found as valid predictors of further mental health problems and antisocial behaviors in youth. The present study aimed at testing the construct, concurrent, and predictive validity of ODD dimensions derived from parent- and self-report measures. Method: Confirmatory…

Among adolescents and adults, there appear to be at least four different personality traits that dispose individuals to rash or ill-advised action: sensation seeking, negative urgency, lack of planning, and lack of perseverance. The four are only moderately correlated and they appear to play different roles in dysfunction. It is important to…

Objective: The goal of this study was to determine continuities of a broad range of psychopathology from childhood into middle adulthood in a general population sample across a 24-year follow-up. Method: In 1983, parent ratings of children's problems were collected with the Child Behavior Checklist (CBCL) in a general population sample of 2,076…

Children with attention deficit/hyperactivity disorder (ADHD) are at heightened risk for maltreatment and later substance use disorders (SUDs). We investigated the relationship of childhood maltreatment and other risk factors to SUDs among adolescents diagnosed with ADHD in childhood. Eighty adolescents diagnosed with ADHD when they were 7 to 11…

Parental substance abuse is associated with adverse health and developmental outcomes for children. Existing research, however, has not fully explored the relative magnitude of the associations between maternal, paternal, and both parents' substance abuse and child outcomes, nor has it examined these associations in regard to substance abuse among…

We examined the immediate, short- and long-term effectiveness of the SNAP[TM] Under 12 Outreach Project (ORP)--a community-based program for children under the age of 12 at risk of having police contact. Sixteen pairs of children were matched on age, sex and severity of delinquency at admission, and randomly assigned to the ORP or to a control…

Logistic regression analyses were used to establish the most robust set of risk factors that would best predict borderline/clinical levels of problem behavior (i.e., a t score at or above 60 on the Child Behavior Checklist Total Problem scale) of kindergarten and first-grade children at risk for emotional and behavioral disorders. Results showed…