Clinically Significant Trauma Symptoms and Behavioral Problems in a Community-based Sample of Children Exposed to Domestic Violence

In a commentary published previously, we communicated our concern regarding the plight of children who witness violence.1 Research suggests that children who witness violence suffer significant psychologic and behavioral problems that interfere with their ability to function in school, at home, and with peers. The primary focus of that commentary was children who witnessed community violence. Our ongoing clinical experience, heightened by media attention on domestic violence, including the O.J. Simpson case, leads us to revisit silent victims with a sole focus on those children who witness domestic violence. Domestic violence is a particularly devastating event for a child who, in the presence of danger, typically turns to a parent for protection and for whom there is no comfort or security if one parent is the perpetrator of violence, and the other is a terrified victim.

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Utility of a Computerised Cognitive Screen in MCI and Depression in an Older Population

Australian Journal of Rehabilitation Counselling ◽

10.1375/jrc.16.1.14 ◽

2010 ◽

Vol 16 (1) ◽

pp. 14-26 ◽

Cited By ~ 6

Author(s):

Rachell Kingsbury ◽

Nancy A. Pachana ◽

Michael Humphreys ◽

Gerry Tehan ◽

Gerard J.A. Byrne

Keyword(s):

Older Adults ◽

Cognitive Impairment ◽

Mild Cognitive Impairment ◽

Operating Characteristic ◽

Memory Loss ◽

Partial Support ◽

Community Based ◽

Symptoms Of Depression ◽

Clinically Significant ◽

Cognitive Screen

AbstractThe current study investigated the ability of CogniScreen to differentiate older adults with mild cognitive impairment (MCI) from those reporting symptoms of depression. Participants included 140 community-based adults (30 MCI, 15 self-rated depressed, and 95 typical older adults) aged 50–89 years. Intergroup comparisons performed using receiver operating characteristic (ROC) analyses suggest tasks within CogniScreen are sensitive to clinically significant memory loss. Data provided partial support for some CogniScreen tasks to also differentiate individuals with MCI from those who are depressed. Results suggest CogniScreen may be potentially useful in screening older adults for early cognitive decline.

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The association of neurofibromatosis and autism symptomatology is confounded by behavioral problems

10.1101/2019.12.20.19015420 ◽

2019 ◽

Author(s):

Hadley Morotti ◽

Sarah Mastel ◽

Kory Keller ◽

Rebecca A. Barnard ◽

Trevor Hall ◽

...

Keyword(s):

Adaptive Behavior ◽

Behavioral Problems ◽

Neurofibromatosis Type ◽

Social Responsiveness ◽

List Type ◽

Autism Symptoms ◽

Simons Simplex Collection ◽

Autism Symptomatology ◽

The Difference ◽

Clinically Significant

AbstractAimto evaluate if autism symptoms and diagnoses are raised in children with neurofibromatosis type 1 (NF1), to which levels, and to determine if co-occurring symptomatology accounts for this elevation.MethodWe interrogated our hospital electronic medical records. We collected parental reports of autism symptomatology, adaptive behavior, and co-occurring behavioral and emotional problems on a subsample of 45 children (9 years 2 months, 49% male). Age- and sex-matched controls with (N=180) or without ASD (N=180) were drawn from the Simons Simplex Collection and compared cross-sectionally to participants with NF1.ResultsDiagnoses of ADHD (8.8%), not of ASD (2.1%), were raised among 968 children with NF1 identified through electronic search. Mean Social Responsiveness Score (55.9) was below the cut-off of 60 for significant autism symptoms. Participants with NF1 had significantly more autism and behavioral symptoms than typically developing (TD) controls, and significantly less than controls with autism, with one exception: ADHD symptom levels were similar to those of autistic controls. When emotional, ADHD, and communication scores were covaried, the difference between participants with NF1 and TD controls disappeared almost entirely.InterpretationOur results do not support an association between NF1 and autism, both at the symptom and disorder levels.What this paper addsDiagnoses of ADHD, not of ASD, were raised among children with NF1.Increases in autism symptoms did not reach clinically significant thresholds.Co-occurring ADHD symptoms accounted for increased autism questionnaire scores.Adaptive behavior in NF1 participants showed normal socialization but lower communication proficiency.

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Do children from community-based parent training programs have clinically significant behavior problems?

Journal of Community Psychology ◽

10.1002/1520-6629(199301)21:1<56::aid-jcop2290210107>3.0.co;2-n ◽

1993 ◽

Vol 21 (1) ◽

pp. 56-63 ◽

Cited By ~ 7

Author(s):

Patrick C. Friman ◽

Stephen H. Soper ◽

Ronald W. Thompson ◽

Daniel L. Daly

Keyword(s):

Behavior Problems ◽

Parent Training ◽

Training Programs ◽

Community Based ◽

Parent Training Programs ◽

Clinically Significant

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Risk and resilience during COVID-19: A new study in the Zigler paradigm of developmental science

Development and Psychopathology ◽

10.1017/s0954579420001388 ◽

2020 ◽

pp. 1-16

Author(s):

Suniya S. Luthar ◽

Ashley M. Ebbert ◽

Nina L. Kumar

Keyword(s):

Mental Health ◽

High Stress ◽

Well Being ◽

Lessons Learned ◽

Risk And Resilience ◽

Community Based ◽

Science And Policy ◽

Mixed Methods Approach ◽

Clinically Significant ◽

Home And School

Abstract When children are exposed to serious life adversities, Ed Zigler believed that developmental scientists must expediently strive to illuminate the most critical directions for beneficial interventions. In this paper, we present a new study on risk and resilience on adolescents during COVID-19, bookended – in introductory and concluding discussions – by descriptions of programmatic work anchored in lessons learned from Zigler. The new study was conducted during the first two months of the pandemic, using a mixed-methods approach with a sample of over 2,000 students across five high schools. Overall, rates of clinically significant symptoms were generally lower as compared to norms documented in 2019. Multivariate regressions showed that the most robust, unique associations with teens’ distress were with feelings of stress around parents and support received from them. Open ended responses to three questions highlighted concerns about schoolwork and college, but equally, emphasized worries about families’ well-being, and positive outreach from school adults. The findings have recurred across subsequent school assessments, and strongly resonate with contemporary perspectives on resilience in science and policy. If serious distress is to be averted among youth under high stress, interventions must attend not just to the children's mental health but that of salient caregiving adults at home and school. The article concludes with some specific recommendations for community-based initiatives to address mental health through continued uncertainties of the pandemic.

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