Depression is common in children and young people, particularly in adolescence and among girls. On average, an episode of depression lasts for about eight months and often occurs alongside non-depressive conditions such as ADHD.
Depression
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Social connectedness and suicidal thoughts and behaviors among adolescents
Suicide is a major public health concern claiming over 44,000 lives annually and ranking within the top 10 causes of death for the general population and the 2nd leading cause of death for those aged 15-24 years of age (though there is variation in this when examining causes by racial groups).
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Children’s Understanding of Depression
Depression is a mental illness that affects children and especially adolescents, however little is known about how children and adolescents understand depression. Gaining an understanding of how children perceive illness can facilitate effective communication with health professionals and children’s active involvement in decision-making about their health.
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Continued family dysfunction accounts for the association between childhood adversity and adolescent self-harm
Non-suicidal self-injury (NSSI) is any deliberate attempt at inflicting physical self-harm in the absence of suicidal intent. NSSI peaks during adolescence, with roughly 17% of adolescents reporting having engaged in it at least once.
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Risk of serious harm to self, and others
Risk of serious harm, to self and others, is an important topic to discuss.
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Welcoming our new JCPP editors
We are excited to welcome five new members to the Journal of Child Psychology and Psychiatry (JCPP) editorial board. With their wide-ranging expertise and many years of cultivated academic prowess, they are an immensely valuable addition to the team.
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Responding to a Digital Generation
Considering the impact of digital media on the mental health of young people, both positive and negative, and how we can support them.
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Practitioner recommendations for PTSD: a 2018 update
In 2018, Patrick Smith, Tim Dalgleish and Richard Meiser-Stedman compiled a Practitioner Review for the Journal of Child Psychology and Psychiatry on post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD) and its treatment in children and adolescents. In their report, the researchers provide updates on the estimated rates of trauma exposure, and the incidence and course of PTSD in children.
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Trauma-focused group intervention is superior to usual care for young refugees
Data from a randomised controlled trial show that trauma-focused group intervention delivered by trained social workers in addition to usual care (UC) is more effective in reducing post-traumatic stress symptoms (PTSS) in young refugees than UC alone.
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Foster care promotes adaptive functioning in early adolescence among children who experienced severe, early deprivation.
Experiences in our early life can have long-term consequences on development. Children who have experienced severe deprivation, in the form of institutional care (orphanages), are at greater risk to experience a range of social, emotional, and cognitive difficulties. In fact, much of the research tracing long-term consequences of early adversity have come from a deficit model (i.e., “what goes wrong for those with negative experiences”).
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Early cognitive therapy for traumatised young people works and is also cost-effective
More than half of children and adolescents will experience traumatic events like vehicle accidents, house fires, or violence. However, brief counselling for young people in the immediate aftermath of an acute traumatic event has not be shown to be any more effective than not intervening and allowing natural recovery to take its course.
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