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Parent-child agreement on children's psychopathology and the impact of parental depression

Löchner J, Hämmerle S, Ghezih S, Starman-Wöhrle K, Schulte-Körne G, Platt B (2024)

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Publication Type: Journal article

Publication year: 2024

Journal

Book Volume: 33

Article Number: e1993

Journal Issue: 1

DOI: 10.1002/mpr.1993

Abstract

Background: Parental depression increases children's risk of mental illness and may simultaneously impair the detection of children's symptoms. Here we investigate the nature of parent-child agreement of children's psychopathology in children of parents with current (cMD) versus remitted (rMD) major depression. Methods: Baseline data from 100 parent-child dyads including healthy children aged 8–17 (M = 11.89, SD = 2.83) and their parents with a history of depression were analysed. The presence of sub-clinical psychopathology (yes/no) in children was assessed using semi-structured diagnostic interviews with child and parent (K-DIPS). Self- (YSR) and parent-report (CBCL) questionnaires were used to measure the severity of symptoms. Parent-child agreement was calculated using Chi-square tests and Cohen's kappa respectively. We compared whether agreement differed between children of parents with cMD (n = 52) versus rMD (n = 48). Results: In the interviews parents more frequently reported sub-clinical child psychopathology than the children themselves (χ²1,100 = 4.63, p < 0.001, d = 0.59). This pattern characterised parents with cMD (χ²1,52 = 7.99, p = 0.005; κ = 0.582) but not rMD (χ²1,48 = 000, p = 0.686; κ = −0.010), a difference which was statistically significant (z = 3.14, p < 0.001, d = 0.66). Conclusion: Since agreement between parents and children about the severity of children's symptoms was particularly poor in families where parents were currently depressed, parental mental illness should be taken into account when assessing youth psychopathology.

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How to cite

APA:

Löchner, J., Hämmerle, S., Ghezih, S., Starman-Wöhrle, K., Schulte-Körne, G., & Platt, B. (2024). Parent-child agreement on children's psychopathology and the impact of parental depression. International Journal of Methods in Psychiatric Research, 33(1). https://doi.org/10.1002/mpr.1993

MLA:

Löchner, Johanna, et al. "Parent-child agreement on children's psychopathology and the impact of parental depression." International Journal of Methods in Psychiatric Research 33.1 (2024).

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