Family correlates of emotional and behavioral problems in Nepali school children

Abstract

Background There is a substantial gap in our knowledge about family correlates of child emotional and behavioral problems in low- and middle-income countries (LMIC). The present study contributes to filling this gap by examining such correlates in a larger population study in Nepal. Methods Our study is a cross-sectional, observational study among 3840 Nepali children aged 6–18 years from 64 schools and 16 districts in the three main geographical regions in the country. We used the Nepali version of the Child Behavior Checklist (CBCL)/6-18 to assess children’s internalizing and externalizing problems and an additional background information questionnaire to assess possible family correlates which included parental education, family structure, migrant worker parents, parental mental and physical illness, family conflicts, and child-rearing. The associations between family variables and child internalizing and externalizing problems were analyzed using bivariate correlations and multiple regression. Results Using bivariate analysis, we found that mental and physical illness in parents, conflict in the family, parental disagreement in child-rearing, and physical punishment of child correlated positively with both Internalizing Problems and Externalizing Problems. The same associations were found by using multiple regression analysis. In addition, parental education, family structure, and migrant worker mothers were associated with Externalizing Problems. However, the effect sizes were small. Conclusion The results suggest that in Nepal, child mental problems were associated with several family risk factors. Further, the study points to the need of strengthening prevention- and intervention measures to minimize family risk factors of child mental health disorders.

Cross-informant ratings on emotional and behavioral problems in Nepali adolescents: A comparison of adolescents’ self-reports with parents’ and teachers’ reports

“…This study is part of a larger, cross-sectional population-based survey on EBPs in the general child population of Nepal (aged 6-18 years) [31][32][33]. A more detailed description of the procedure and background instrument has been reported in a previous study [32].…”

Teacher reports of emotional and behavioral problems in Nepali schoolchildren: to what extent do they agree with parent reports?

“…This study presents information on teacher reports collected during a larger research project on the examination of EBPs of Nepali children from different castes and ethnic groups. The distribution of demographic data of the sample and the parent reports of EBPs have already been described in previous papers [ 27 , 28 ].…”

“…Thus, in each of the 16 districts, 240 children were selected, which gave a total of 3,840 children. The selection procedure has been reported in more details in previous papers [ 27 , 28 ].…”

Epidemiology of emotional and psychological problems in Iranian children: Protocol of a cross-sectional study in Isfahan

“…[ 1 ] Children in these countries are encountering increasingly with the risk of psychological disorders due to social and environmental conflicts. [ 2 ] Many children experience symptoms of mental disorders such as low self-esteem, depressive thoughts, anxiety, impulsive or maladaptive behaviors. Majority of these psychological problems start in childhood and adolescence and lasted till adulthood and significantly affect the well-being and physical and emotional promotion and impose huge burden on both children and their parents.…”

“…Interparental conflicts have effects on children's mental health through parental emotional unavailability and poor parenting self-control, as well as through children's maladaptive coping behaviors and responses reflected in symptoms such as fears, feelings of rejection, and stress. [ 2 ]…”