Early detection of psychosocial problems among children aged 0 to 6 years

Summary:

Background

A large proportion of children suffer from psychosocial problems, these children are likely to experience difficulties in various aspects of their daily functioning. Preventive Child Healthcare (PCH) reaches almost all children and is therefore important for the early identification of psychosocial problems in children not yet receiving treatment. However, Child Health Professionals (CHPs) failed to identify psychosocial problems in about half the children.

Aim

The aim of this thesis is to assess the quality of early identification of psychosocial problems in children aged 0 to 6 years by CHPs, and the psychometric quality and added value of short screenings questionnaires in supporting this early identification.

Design

This thesis includes the data of four studies. These studies have very similar methodologies. In each study, parents completed the Child Behavior Checklist (CBCL) (in some studies also a short screening questionnaire) and returned it in a sealed envelope to the CHP. Next, the CHP assessed the child and reported whether a child had psychosocial problems.

Population

We analyzed data about 8440 children aged 5 to 6 years, obtained in three national studies. The response rates varied between 85 to 90.1% in these studies. In the fourth study we approached 6600 parents of children aged 6 to 45 months, and performed follow-up measurements among a part of them.