Anxiety Disorders
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Social Fears in Children: The Roles of Parental Communication and Child Temperament
A recent longitudinal study by Zeytinoglu and colleagues (2025) provides insights into how parental verbal communication and child characteristics contribute to the transmission of social fears. The study shows the impact of both positive and negative maternal statements about ambiguous social situations, finding that positive comments were linked to reductions in children’s social fear beliefs, while negative comments predicted increases, especially among children who were behaviourally inhibited or had high anxiety.
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Anxiety – Increasing Understanding and Improving Awareness
Celebrating its twelfth year, Mental Health Awareness Week has chosen to focus on ‘Anxiety’ – to increase public understanding of anxiety and improve awareness of the impact it can have on lives. Everyone, in some shape or form, experiences anxiety. However, anxiety can become overwhelming and, in some cases, can evolve into an anxiety disorder.
This Mental Health Awareness Week (15 to 21 May 2023), we encourage you to explore the FREE learning opportunities available on our website, and to share with your networks, to increase people’s awareness and understanding of the impact of anxiety on children and young people.
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Antidepressants for children and teenagers: what works?
Prescriptions for teenagers are rising. Research has found that the number of 12 to 17 year olds prescribed antidepressants more than doubled between 2005 and 2017. More recent information suggests that prescriptions have continued to increase, especially during the pandemic.
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Which disorders precede the development of mood disorders in young people?
Mood disorders such as bipolar disorder (BPD) and major depressive disorder (MDD) typically emerge in childhood or adolescence. Now, researchers in Switzerland, the USA and Canada have investigated whether certain other mental health disorders precede the onset of mood disorders
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Consistency is needed when measuring and reporting outcomes in child and adolescent anxiety disorders trials
This year, Cathy Creswell, Maaike Nauta and colleagues from around the world convened a series of international activities based around measuring and reporting in treatment trials for child and adolescent anxiety disorders.
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Paediatric anxiety disorders confer a considerable public health burden
Anxiety disorders usually begin in childhood or adolescence and are the most common mental health condition across the life span.1,2 Consequently, intense research efforts are focused on delineating the underlying mechanisms of paediatric anxiety so that we can better identify those at risk and intervene early.
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Are school-based interventions for depression and anxiety symptoms effective?
Gee et al. conducted a systematic search for randomised controlled trials of indicated psychological interventions delivered in an education setting. They focused on trials of interventions for adolescents aged 10-19 with elevated symptoms of depression and/or anxiety.
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Implementing mental health support in schools faces many challenges
Researchers identified 50 studies that reported barriers or facilitators to implementing interventions for adolescent emotional disorders delivered in educational settings. They found several important factors, including barriers of practical and logistical problems, and facilitators of quality training and supervision.
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Assessing and treating anxiety disorders: does one size really fit all?
Researchers first describe how anxiety disorders might develop and be maintained, and then focus on the various assessment and treatment considerations for children and adolescents with anxiety disorders.
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Obsessive compulsive disorder symptoms predict anxiety, and vice versa
Researchers in London have studied the relationship between anxiety sensitivity (the tendency to fear anxiety symptoms) and obsessive–compulsive disorder (OCD) symptoms.
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