Life stress, family support and adolescent disturbance

The Mental Health of Refugee Children and Their Cultural Development

A large proportion of Indochinese refugees are children. This article suggests that uprooted children may experience powerful grief, not only in response to personal loss of loved ones, but also to loss of their culture. It is further postulated that personal bereavement and cultural bereavement are complementary, which can be an important factor in a refugee child's adjustment. These children are vulnerable to “disrupted development time” and so earlier losses of family and culture can seed problems which can emerge after resettlement.

A Pattern Analysis of Adolescent Abusive Behavior toward Parents

Police case reports of formal complaints about adolescent aggression toward their parents were analyzed to answer questions about identity of complainant, gender relationships in patterns of parental abuse, age trends in assaultive behavior, reasons for adolescent-parent disputes that precipitate violence, types of violence expressed by adolescents toward their parents, and police resolution of these domestic abuse incidents. A modal pattern of male adolescent-to-mother abuse was revealed, although a sizeable number of female aggressive incidents were also observed. Most abusive incidents were associated with conflicts about home responsibilities, money, and privilege. Results are related to similar studies based solely on adolescent self-report or survey methods and are interpreted in the context of adolescent stress and family conflict theory.

Assessing Life Stressors and Social Resources among Adolescents

A growing body of evidence points to the importance of life stressors and social resources in adolescent functioning. This article describes the Life Stressors and Social Resources Inventory-Youth Form (LISRES-Y), which provides an integrated assessment of life stressors and social resources in eight domains: physical health, home/money, parent, sibling, extended family, school, friend, and boy/girlfriend. The indices were developed on data obtained from four groups of youth: depressed youth, youth with conduct disorder, youth with rheumatic disease, and healthy youth. As expected, depressed youth reported more acute and chronic stressors and fewer social resources than did healthy youth. In addition, the indices were predictably associated with individual differences in depressed mood, anxiety, behavior problems, and self-confidence. Negative life events, ongoing stressors in different domains, and stable social resources all contributed unique variance to the functioning criteria. The findings point to the value of an integrated measure of adolescent life context.

Differences in psychological health and family dysfunction by sexual victimization type in a clinical sample of African American adolescent women

We examined levels of sexual victimization among a sample of 249 14- to 19-year-old African American adolescent women. Victimization was common: 32.1% reported having been raped, 33.7% had experienced sexual coercion, and 10.8% reported an attempted rape. Only 23.4% had never been victimized. We investigated whether levels of psychological health and family dysfunction varied as a function of the type of sexual victimization. Girls who had been raped had lower levels of self-esteem and mastery and higher levels of depression compared to girls who reported no sexual victimization. Significantly higher levels of family cohesion and significantly lower levels of family support were reported by girls who had been raped versus girls who reported no sexual victimization. These findings are a starting point for future studies by providing evidence that levels of mental health and family dysfunction vary by the type of sexual victimization experienced.

The relationship of adolescent personality and family environment to psychiatric diagnosis

This study examines the relationship of adolescent personality and family environment to psychiatric diagnosis in 170 adolescents admitted to a psychiatric inpatient unit. Patients were administered the Child Assessment Schedule (CAS), the family Environment Scale (FES), and the Millon Adolescent Personality Inventory (MAPI). Adolescent personality and/or family environment were related to 1) major depression, conduct disorder, and attention deficit/hyperactivity disorder in both boys and girls, 2) oppositional defiant disorder, post traumatic stress disorder and overanxious disorder in girls, and 3) dysthymic disorder and alcohol use in boys. The study empirically shows the relationship of both personality and family environment in psychiatric diagnoses.

Psychological functioning and family discord among African-American adolescent females with and without a history of childhood sexual abuse

OBJECTIVES

The aim was to examine the rate of childhood sexual abuse along with the factors (age of abuse onset, type of perpetrator, and duration of the abuse), as well as the relationship of these factors to psychological functioning among females with a history of childhood abuse. Second, to determine whether levels of psychological functioning and family discord differ among females with and without a history of childhood sexual abuse.

METHOD

A cross-sectional design was used. Two hundred and forty-nine adolescent females were recruited from a community-based health program. Two trained female interviewers administered an anonymous survey that assessed childhood sexual abuse, psychological functioning, and family environment.

RESULTS

Fifty-seven (22.9%) of those surveyed reported childhood sexual abuse, of which 44.3% were intrafamilial and 55.7% were interfamilial. Age at onset ranged from 3 years to 17 years; 62.5% reported that the sexual abuse occurred 1 to 4 times; 27.9% reported a duration ranging from 1 year to 13 years; and 9.6% reported a duration of 1 month to 7 months. Multiple regression analysis revealed that a greater duration predicted higher levels of depression and lower levels of self-esteem among females with a history of sexual abuse. Females with a history of childhood sexual abuse scored significantly lower on measures of self-esteem and mastery, and significantly higher on measures of physical and emotional abuse.

CONCLUSIONS

Results indicate that adolescent females with a history of childhood sexual abuse suffer an array of negative sequelae that include psychological and family distress.

Adolescent girls. II. Background factors in anxiety and depressive states

BACKGROUND

This study investigated the prevalence and background variables associated with anxiety and depressive disorders occurring in a community population of older teenage girls.

METHOD

Girls aged 15-20 years (n = 529) whose names were drawn from general practitioner age/sex registers completed self-report Great Ormond Street Mood Questionnaires. From this sample, 143 girls (69 with high self-report scores and 74 controls) were intensively interviewed. Information was obtained on confiding/supportive relationships, family arguments and rows, quality of marital relationship, and degree of parental control. Psychiatric state was assessed by use of the Clinical Interview Schedule to provide a Total Weighted Score. A modified form of the Bedford Life Events and Difficulties Schedule was applied.

RESULTS

The estimated one-year prevalence rate for psychiatric disorder was 18.9%, and 16.9% for depression and anxiety disorders. Using a logit analysis, it was shown that maternal distress (P < 0.02) and the quality of the mother's marriage (P < 0.02) were independently associated with the presence of depression and anxiety disorders.

CONCLUSIONS

About 17% of girls in a community sample living at home showed a depression or anxiety disorder. Even in late adolescence, the presence of a mood disorder is closely linked to the quality of family relationships within the home.

Social support, life events and psychosomatic symptoms among 14-16-year-old adolescents

The role of family, friends and confidants in mediating the impact of adverse life events on psychosomatic symptoms in mid-adolescence was studied. School children (n = 2013) completed questionnaires in class on three occasions during 17 months. Data about social support and life events for 12 months were gathered retrospectively in the final questionnaire. The differences in symptoms by life events and social support were already present at the beginning of the study. Those adolescents who had experienced adverse life events and reported a poor relationship with one or both parents had the highest levels of symptoms and the greatest increase in symptoms during the follow-up. Lack of friends was also associated with psychosomatic symptoms, especially among those who had experienced adverse life events. The results suggest that adolescents who lack parental or peer support are at risk for psychosomatic symptoms in general, and especially in the face of stressful life events.

A developmental basis for social support

Developmental theory is proposed as a basis for understanding how social support is learned. The effect of life events on learning about social support is described. Six themes common to the developmental process which help to shape individual perceptions about social support are outlined.

Life stress and psychosomatic symptoms among 14 to 16-year old Finnish adolescents

School children (N = 2013) completed questionnaires in class on three occasions over a period of 17 months. Life stress data for 12 months were gathered retrospectively in the last questionnaire. Life events and interpersonal problems were associated with psychosomatic symptoms. In terms of change in symptoms, the impact of life events and interpersonal problems was demonstrated in boys but not in girls. Though boys with a history of no events or problems had lower symptom scores than girls, boys with a history of many events or problems caught up with the girls by the end of the follow-up period. On the other hand, symptom differences related to life stress scores were already apparent at the beginning of the study, and these differences were greater in girls than in boys.