Esmée E. Verhulp

Age and gender differences in depression across adolescence: real or ‘bias’?

BACKGROUND Since developmental psychologists are interested in explaining age and gender differences in depression across adolescence, it is important to investigate to what extent these observed differences can be attributed to measurement bias. Measurement bias may arise when the phenomenology of depression varies with age or gender, i.e., when younger versus older adolescents or girls versus boys differ in the way depression is experienced or expressed. METHODS The Childrens Depression Inventory (CDI) was administered to a large school population (N = 4048) aged 8-17 years. A 4-factor model was selected by means of factor analyses for ordered categorical measures. For each of the four factor scales measurement invariance with respect to gender and age (late childhood, early and middle adolescence) was tested using item response theory analyses. Subsequently, to examine which items contributed to measurement bias, all items were studied for differential item functioning (DIF). Finally, it was investigated how developmental patterns changed if measurement biases were accounted for. RESULTS For each of the factors Self-Deprecation, Dysphoria, School Problems, and Social Problems measurement bias with respect to both gender and age was found and many items showed DIF. Developmental patterns changed profoundly when measurement bias was taken into account. The CDI seemed to particularly overestimate depression in late childhood, and underestimate depression in middle adolescent boys. CONCLUSIONS For scientific as well as clinical use of the CDI, measurement bias with respect to gender and age should be accounted for.

Rage and revenge: Highly aggressive boys' explanations for their responses to ambiguous provocation

Children adapt their behaviour to their social environment through adequate social information processing (SIP). According to the SIP model, social information processing is goal oriented. Yet the subjective experience of reactively and severely aggressive children seems to be that their behaviour is impelled by uncontrollable rage, with no other goal in mind than venting anger and spite. To test whether reactive and proactive aggression by severely aggressive boys were related with experiences of goal directedness, 52 highly aggressive and 30 normal comparison boys were asked to explain their responses to hypothetical provocations by peers. Both highly aggressive and normal comparison boys primarily explained generation and selection of aggressive responses to provocation situations by feeling impelled to act by strong emotions, not with reference to outcome goals. Reactive aggression was specifically related with such emotion explanations for aggression. Moreover, highly aggressive boys more frequently advocated aggression by referring to emotions and referring to a moral rule that taking revenge is imperative, regardless of its consequences. Highly aggressive boys expected their responses to have more negative relational outcomes than comparison boys.

Understanding ethnic differences in mental health service use for adolescents' internalizing problems: the role of emotional problem identification.

Although immigrant adolescents are at least at equal risk of developing internalizing problems as their non-immigrant peers, immigrant adolescents are less likely to use mental health care. The present study is the first to examine ethnic differences in problem identification to find explanations for this disparity in mental health service use. Specifically, the extent to which emotional problem identification mediates the relationship between immigrant status and mental health service use for internalizing problems in three immigrant populations in the Netherlands (i.e., Surinamese, Turkish, and Moroccan) was investigated. A two-phase design was used to include adolescents at risk for internalizing problems. Data were used from the second phase, in which 349 parents and adolescents participated (95 native Dutch, 85 Surinamese, 87 Turkish, and 82 Moroccan). Results indicated that mental health service use for internalizing problems is far lower among immigrant adolescents than among native Dutch adolescents, although differences between immigrant groups were also substantive. A lack of emotional problem identification was identified as an essential mediator in the relationship between immigrant status and mental health service use. Since the results suggest the low levels of problem identification in our immigrant samples may serve an explanatory role in the relationship between immigrant status and mental health service use, future research should aim at understanding these ethnic differences in problem identification.

Using the Youth Self-Report internalizing syndrome scales among immigrant adolescents: Testing measurement invariance across groups and over time

Although the Youth Self-Report (YSR) has been used in many studies throughout the world, little is known about the equivalence of the factor structure of this instrument for immigrant adolescents. Measurement invariance of the three internalizing syndrome scales of the YSR was tested across four ethnic groups (native Dutch, Surinamese, Turkish, Moroccan) and over time. Results of the present study showed that the scales were invariant across all ethnic groups and over time. Together, the results indicated that the YSR can be used for developmental studies in these immigrant populations.

Lay Beliefs About Emotional Problems and Attitudes Toward Mental Health Care Among Parents and Adolescents : Exploring the Impact of Immigration

Objective: Individuals’ lay beliefs about mental health problems and attitudes toward mental health care are thought to be influenced by the cultural background of these individuals. In the current study, we investigated differences between immigrant Dutch and native Dutch parents and adolescents in lay beliefs about emotional problems and attitudes toward mental health care. Additionally, among immigrant Dutch parents, we examined the associations between acculturation orientations and lay beliefs about emotional problems as well as attitudes toward mental health care. Method: In total, 349 pairs of parents and their adolescent children participated in our study (95 native Dutch, 85 Surinamese-Dutch, 87 Turkish-Dutch, 82 Moroccan-Dutch). A vignette was used to examine participants’ lay beliefs. Results: Immigrant Dutch and native Dutch parents differed in their lay beliefs and attitudes toward mental health care, whereas hardly any differences were revealed among their children. Turkish-Dutch and Moroccan-Dutch parents showed more passive and fewer active solutions to emotional problems compared to native Dutch parents. Additionally, Moroccan-Dutch and Surinamese-Dutch parents reported greater fear of mental health care compared to native Dutch parents. Furthermore, the results showed that immigrant Dutch parents who were more strongly oriented toward the Dutch culture reported less fear of mental health care. Conclusion: Our results showed clear differences in lay beliefs and attitudes toward mental health care between immigrant Dutch and native Dutch parents but not between their children. Substantial differences were also found between parents from different immigrant Dutch populations as well as within the population of immigrant Dutch parents.

Ethnic Differences in Parent–Adolescent Agreement on Internalizing Disorders

Disagreement between parents and adolescents on the internalizing problems of adolescents poses a threat to diagnoses based on both parent- and adolescent-reported internalizing problems. In this article, we analyze ethnic differences in parent–adolescent agreement on internalizing disorders as reported in a diagnostic interview. A two-phase study design was used. In the first phase, a large sample of adolescents was screened for internalizing disorders using the Youth Self-Report. In the second phase, adolescents from each ethnic group (native Dutch, Surinamese Dutch, Turkish Dutch, Moroccan Dutch) were selected, with half scoring in the borderline/clinical range and half in the normal range. Diagnostic interviews were subsequently conducted with 348 parents and adolescents. Moroccan Dutch parents reported fewer internalizing disorders compared with native Dutch parents. Combining parent and adolescent reports therefore resulted in a lower amount of internalizing disorders among Moroccan Dutch adolescents. Results furthermore showed that (parent- and adolescent-reported) internalizing diagnoses were related to mental health service use in all ethnic groups. Professionals in the field should be sensitive to possible discrepancies between parents and adolescents when diagnosing adolescents’ internalizing disorders, in particular, because underreports of internalizing disorders among parents might contribute to lower levels of mental health service use among adolescents belonging to certain ethnic groups.

Ethnic Differences in Teacher–Student Relationship Quality and Associations With Teachers’ Informal Help for Adolescents’ Internalizing Problems

Ethnic minority adolescents receive not only less formal mental health services than their ethnic majority peers but also less school-based mental health services. Little is known about the extent to which adolescents indicate their teachers help them with their mental health problems. The aim of the current study was to investigate ethnic differences in teacher-provided informal help for adolescents’ internalizing problems, and whether these could be explained by differences in teacher-reported internalizing problems and teacher–adolescent relationship quality. A sample of adolescents at risk of internalizing problems and their teachers participated in the study (n = 229). Adolescents originated from four ethnic groups in the Netherlands: three ethnic minority groups (Surinamese Dutch, Turkish Dutch, Moroccan Dutch) and the ethnic majority (native Dutch). Results showed that only Moroccan Dutch adolescents reported considerably less informal help from their teachers for their internalizing problems than native Dutch adolescents, whereas Turkish Dutch and Surinamese Dutch adolescents were not found to differ from native Dutch adolescents. Teacher–student relationship quality and teacher-reported internalizing problems could not explain the differences in informal help between Moroccan Dutch and Dutch adolescents. Teachers reported significantly higher levels of conflict in their relationships with Moroccan Dutch than native Dutch adolescents, and for Moroccan Dutch adolescents, higher levels of conflict were associated with lower levels of informal help by the teacher.

Proactive aggression in early school-aged children with externalizing behavior problems: A longitudinal study on the influence of empathy in response to distress.

The course of proactive aggressive behavior may be affected by empathy in response to sadness and distress of others. The aim of the current study is to examine empathy in response to sadness and distress and its relation to proactive and reactive aggression in a clinical sample of children with externalizing behavior problems. At baseline (T1) and 12 months later (T2), parents and teachers of 104 six- and seven-year-old children completed the Instrument for Reactive and Proactive Aggression. At T1, parents and teachers also reported empathy in response to sadness and distress on the Griffith Empathy Measure. Findings show that low levels of parent-reported empathy at baseline were specifically associated with high parent-reported proactive aggression but not with reactive aggression. Similarly, low teacher-reported empathy was specifically related to high teacher-reported proactive aggression. Furthermore, high parent-reported but not teacher-reported empathy at baseline was associated with low proactive aggression at 12 months after controlling for proactive aggression at baseline. The conclusions support the notion that in the study of the course of aggression in clinical groups, the distinction between proactive and reactive aggression as well as the study of empathy in response to distress is relevant for a better understanding and might be taken into account in the development of future interventions.