Development of a brief, clinically relevant, scale for measuring attachment disorders.

A 17-item questionnaire for reactive attachment disorders (RAD) was developed and administered to 182 Scottish children living in foster care. The RAD questionnaire had a good test-retest reliability with an intra-class correlation (ICC) of 0.78 and inter-rater reliability with an ICC of 0.

A comparative study of Greek children in long-term residential group care and in two-parent families: II. Possible mediating mechanisms.

Forty-one children reared in group care were compared with 41 age- and sex-matched family care children according to interview, questionnaire, and observation measures of behavioural and scholastic functioning. Individual differences in outcome within the group care sample were examined in relation to a range of possible risk/protective indicators. The strongest predictor of outcome proved to be the reason for admission into residential care, with the implication that the outcome was best for children who had experienced stable, harmonious family relationships in their early years.

A comparative study of Greek children in long-term residential group care and in two-parent families: I. Social, emotional, and behavioural differences.

The social, behavioural, and school adjustment of 41 9-year-old children in long-term residential group care in Greece was compared with that of children of the same sex and age brought up in two-parent families. Observational, interview, and questionnaire measures were employed. Observations in school classrooms showed that compared with their classmates, the group care children were more inattentive, participated less often in the classroom activities, were more likely to be passive, and tended to be involved in alternative and nonproductive activities.

'Dyschronia' in a patient with Tourette's syndrome presenting as maternal neglect.

We report an unusual and unsuspected cause of maternal neglect in a patient with Tourette's syndrome. An important cause of the behaviour appears to have been a form of dyscalculia characterised by a complete inability to appreciate the passage of time. To our knowledge this is the first case of its kind to be reported.

Recurrence of unexpected infant death.

Families which had experienced two or more unexpected infant deaths were the subject of detailed confidential enquiries, including necropsy examination. Cases were derived from two main sources: first, deaths occurring during a nationwide programme of support for families with a subsequent baby (8 families) plus 2 families from a series of confidential enquiries in Sheffield, and second, direct referrals from paediatricians (17 families). Fifty-seven deaths were studied.

Patterns of psychiatric disorder in adopted girls: a research note.

Over a 15-year period adopted children were overrepresented in a psychiatric clinic population. The excess was seen in all age groups and there was no rise of referrals of adoptees during adolescence. Adopted boys showed the same range of disorder as all referred boys.

Asperger's syndrome: who is being abused?

Six case histories of children referred and admitted to a psychiatric inpatient unit at a tertiary referral centre because of concerns about poor functioning and possible emotional abuse are presented. On initial assessment the children appeared to be well functioning and the impression was confirmed that their emotional needs were not being met by their parents. After detailed inpatient appraisal the diagnosis of Asperger's syndrome was made in all six cases, exemplified mainly by a formal concrete way of thinking and an inability to identify and understand human emotions and relationships.

Comparative study of social and family correlates of children's behaviour ratings.

Using an random sample of first-time mothers the associations between their children's behaviour problems at three points in time are presented. A moderate to low correlation was obtained between the ages of 27 and 42 months. No correlation existed between 14 and 27 or 42 months.

Teenage pregnancy and motherhood.

In a random sample of British-born women from a deprived inner London borough who were expecting their first baby, 31% were teenagers at the time they gave birth. The teenage mothers were compared with a group of older women randomly selected from the sample and both groups were followed up for 6 1/2 years after the birth. The teenage mothers were more likely to have had a deprived background and to have experienced material disadvantage.

Mothers' depression and their children's attendance at medical facilities.

Data is presented from a longitudinal study examining the association between depression in mothers and the frequency with which medical services were used for their children. Children of depressed mothers were taken more often to their GPs and had more frequent hospital admissions than others. At various stages of the study they were more often prescribed certain forms of medication.

Research issues in child abuse.

Research into child abuse and its interpretation has been bedevilled by controversy over questions of definition and appropriate approaches. It is suggested in this paper that different questions require different approaches, and that the use of both sociological and medical models may be justified depending on the nature of the research issue. Possible future social science research activity based on this distinction is described in relation to definition, the acceptability of violence in society, the perception of punishment, the establishment of standards of care and decision-making by professionals.

A longitudinal study of maternal depression and child behaviour problems.

Using a random sample of first-time mothers from an inner London borough, the relationship was examined between maternal depression and child behaviour problems at various stages after the birth of the child. Child problems at 14 months were unrelated to present or past maternal depression. Child problems at 27 and 42 months were related in an interactive way with present and past depression.

Early abandonment of breast feeding: causes and effects.

One hundred and six primiparous women were interviewed late in pregnancy and at 4 and 14 months post-partum. Information was obtained about infant feeding and various psychological and social variables at each stage, and about infant temperament at the 4 and 14 months post-partum interviews. Few social or psychological variables related to the duration of breast feeding, nor was there a relationship between the child's temperament and the type of feeding or duration of breast feeding.

Adult psychiatric disorder and childhood experiences. The validity of retrospective data.

In a sample of young mothers an association was found between a depressed mood and the recall of poor parental relationships during childhood. Women who had been depressed but had recovered by the time of questioning did not recall a poor relationship. A second retrospective measure of a childhood experience, based on more factual details, was unrelated to current mental state.

Infant temperament, maternal mental state and child behaviour problems.

In a longitudinal study of firstborn children, interview-based measures of temperament were obtained when the infants were aged four months. From the individual items an 'easy-difficult' scale was constructed. The scale showed a fair internal consistency and reasonable test/retest reliability, and the obtained scores appeared to be independent of previous and current maternal attitudes and mental state.

Primary care workers' perception of disturbed children and the agencies they use to help these children.

The aim of this study was to investigate how workers from primary care agencies perceived children who might be considered disturbed and to elucidate those factors that caused them to refer a child or family to a specific agency for help. Questionnaires were distributed to various referring agencies and for comparison to Child Guidance Clinic Staff. The questionnaire had two components, the first examined the type of contact that the professionals had with other agencies.

Psychiatric disorders in children in long-term residential care: a follow-up study.

Ninety-two children who had been examined in a psychiatric study of five to twelve year-olds in long-term residential care were followed up four years later. Three-quarters were still in children's homes, but over half had been moved to different establishments. At both the original study and follow-up, the majority showed evidence of psychiatric disorder.