Effects of individual differences, society, and culture on youth-rated problems and strengths in 38 societies.

Background: Clinicians increasingly serve youths from societal/cultural backgrounds different from their own. This raises questions about how to interpret what such youths report. Rescorla et al.

Testing Syndromes of Psychopathology in Parent and Youth Ratings Across Societies.

As societies become increasingly diverse, mental health professionals need instruments for assessing emotional, behavioral, and social problems in terms of constructs that are supported within and across societies. Building on decades of research findings, multisample alignment confirmatory factor analyses tested an empirically based 8-syndrome model on parent ratings across 30 societies and youth self-ratings across 19 societies. The Child Behavior Checklist for Ages 6-18 and Youth Self-Report for Ages 11-18 were used to measure syndromes descriptively designated as , and .

Parent-teacher agreement on children's problems in 21 societies.

Parent-teacher cross-informant agreement, although usually modest, may provide important clinical information. Using data for 27,962 children from 21 societies, we asked the following: (a) Do parents report more problems than teachers, and does this vary by society, age, gender, or type of problem? (b) Does parent-teacher agreement vary across different problem scales or across societies? (c) How well do parents and teachers in different societies agree on problem item ratings? (d) How much do parent-teacher dyads in different societies vary in within-dyad agreement on problem items? (e) How well do parents and teachers in 21 societies agree on whether the child's problem level exceeds a deviance threshold? We used five methods to test agreement for Child Behavior Checklist (CBCL) and Teacher's Report Form (TRF) ratings. CBCL scores were higher than TRF scores on most scales, but the informant differences varied in magnitude across the societies studied.

Longitudinal study of PTSD, depression, and quality of life among adolescents after the Parnitha earthquake.

Objective: To investigate the course of PTSD, depression, and current quality of life among adolescents 32-months after the 1999 Parnitha earthquake in Greece.

Methods: The follow-up was conducted among 511 adolescents originally evaluated at 3-months post-earthquake using the UCLA PTSD Reaction Index (PTSD-RI), Depression Self-Rating Scale (DSRS), and Quality of Life Questionnaire (QOLQ).

Results: Mean PTSD scores for the whole sample had subsided to mild levels; however, 8.

Depression and PTSD symptoms among bereaved adolescents 6(1/2) years after the 1988 Spitak earthquake.

Objective: To compare depression and PTSD symptoms of parentally bereaved adolescents and a comparison group after a catastrophic natural disaster.

Method: Six and a half years after the Spitak earthquake, 48 parentally bereaved adolescents and a comparison group of 44 subjects with no parental loss were evaluated using the Depression Self - Rating Scale (DSRS) and Child Posttraumatic Stress Disorder Reaction Index (CPTSD-RI).

Results: Orphans scored significantly higher on depression than those who lost a father (Mean DSRS scores: 20.

The generalizability of the Youth Self-Report syndrome structure in 23 societies.

As a basis for theories of psychopathology, clinical psychology and related disciplines need sound taxonomies that are generalizable across diverse populations. To test the generalizability of a statistically derived 8-syndrome taxonomic model for youth psychopathology, confirmatory factor analyses (CFAs) were performed on the Youth Self-Report (T. M.

Cigarette smoking among Greek adolescents: behavior, attitudes, risk, and preventive factors.

Unlabelled: This study was produced in the context of the first author's thesis at Athens University and was a collaboration between the Department of Clinical Care Medicine, Athens University, and Attiki Child Psychiatric Hospital. It was supported by a project grant from the THORAX Foundation, Greece.

Objective: To study the smoking behavior, attitudes, and beliefs of Greek adolescents, as well as the risk and preventive factors for the onset of smoking and to obtain data to serve in the planning of comprehensive antismoking campaigns tailored to the Greek adolescent's specific profile.

Epidemiological comparisons of problems and positive qualities reported by adolescents in 24 countries.

In this study, the authors compared ratings of behavioral and emotional problems and positive qualities on the Youth Self-Report (T. M. Achenbach & L.

Posttraumatic stress and depressive reactions among children and adolescents after the 1999 earthquake in Ano Liosia, Greece.

Objective: This study evaluated the severity of posttraumatic stress and depressive reactions among children and adolescents 3 months after the 1999 earthquake in Ano Liosia, Greece, and additionally assessed the relationship of these reactions to objective and subjective features of earthquake exposure, sex, school level, postearthquake difficulties, death of a family member, and thoughts of revenge.

Method: This school-based study of 1,937 students was conducted in two differentially exposed cities (Ano Liosia, at the epicenter, and Dafni, 10 kilometers from the epicenter) with an earthquake exposure questionnaire, the UCLA Posttraumatic Stress Disorder (PTSD) Reaction Index, and the Depression Self-Rating Scale.

Results: Endorsement of earthquake-related exposure items between the two cities was congruent with the extent of earthquake impact in each city.

The Leyton obsessional inventory - child version in Greek adolescents: standardization in a national school-based survey and two-year follow-up.

Objective: The aims of this study were a) to standardize the survey form of the Leyton Obsessional Inventory - Child Version (Leyton-CV) in Greece, and estimate its sensitivity and specificity, and b) to assess high-risk factors for the development of adolescent obsessive-compulsive disorder (OCD) within a two year period.

Method: The Leyton-CV was administered to a national, representative, school-based population of 2552 Greek adolescents. Adolescents with a wide range of Leyton-CV scores were interviewed with the SADS-LA to determine the sensitivity and specificity of the instrument.