Citation

Shoval G, Mansbach-Kleinfeld I, Farbstein I, Kanaaneh R, Lubin G, Apter A, Weizman A, Zalsman G. Eur. Psychiatry 2013; 28(4): 235-239.

Affiliation

Child and Adolescent Psychiatry Division, Geha Mental Health Center, Tel Aviv University, PO Box 102, 49100 Petah Tiqva, Israel; Sackler Faculty of Medicine, Tel Aviv University, Tel Aviv, Israel.

Copyright

(Copyright © 2013, Elsevier Publishing)

DOI

10.1016/j.eurpsy.2012.02.009

PMID

22542653

Abstract

There is relatively little research addressing parent-adolescent agreement as regards to reporting on adolescent suicidal behavior in general and their behavioral and emotional difficulties in particular. The objective of this study was to compare maternal and adolescents' reports on behavioral and emotional difficulties among adolescents with and without suicidal behavior. This nationally-representative sample included 906 adolescents and their mothers. The mothers and adolescents were interviewed and evaluated separately using the Development and Well-Being Assessment Inventory (DAWBA) and the Strengths and Difficulties Questionnaire (SDQ). Self-rated SDQ scores of the suicidal adolescents were significantly higher in all SDQ problem scales compared to the non-suicidal participants. In contrast, maternal-rated SDQ assessments failed to discriminate between these groups, except the Hyperactivity scale. We demonstrated that mothers of suicidal adolescents in the community hardly recognize the emotional and behavioral difficulties of their offsprings. CONCLUSION: The mental examination of the adolescent patient should be maintained as the central and most reliable source of information regarding the suicidal adolescent. Mental health services planning of national suicide prevention programs should take into account these poor mother-adolescent agreement findings.

Language: en