Abstract
Background Poverty may pose risks to child and adolescent mental health, but few studies have reported on this association among children and adolescents in low-income families in Norway.
Methods Based on a sample participating in an intervention for low-income families in Norway, we report data from the survey administered at the start of the intervention. Mental health problems were measured using the Strengths and Difficulties Questionnaire (SDQ; self-report (SR) n = 148; parent/proxy-report (PR) n = 153, mean age = 10.8). Demographic and family characteristics were obtained from parent reported data. Results are presented by gender and migration background. Regression analysis was used to investigate the relative contribution of background factors to mental health symptoms. The distribution of scores is compared to UK norms.
Results Participants reported relatively high scores on the Strengths and Difficulties Questionnaire (SDQ) Total Difficulties Scale (parent/proxy-report, PR mean=10.7; self-report, SR mean=10.1). Participants with non-immigrant backgrounds scored considerably higher on the Total Difficulties Scale (PR mean difference=2.9; SR 5.3) and on most other domains measured with the SDQ compared with their peers with immigration backgrounds. Participants generally scored higher than or equal to UK norms.
Conclusion Participants in the current study had many symptoms of mental health problems, with large differences between those with and without a migrant background. Interventions for low-income families should be based on detailed knowledge about differences in family risks, resources and needs.
Data availability statement
There are legal and ethical restrictions on sharing the dataset used for the present manuscript. Access to the dataset require application and approval by Regional Committee for Medical and Health Research Ethics (REC) in Western Norway and the Norwegian Centre for Research Data (NSD). In addition, Norwegian Health research legislation and the Norwegian Ethics committees require explicit consent from participants in order to transfer health research data outside of Norway. In this specific case, ethics approval is also contingent on storing the research data on secure storage facilities located in our research institution.
Methods Based on a sample participating in an intervention for low-income families in Norway, we report data from the survey administered at the start of the intervention. Mental health problems were measured using the Strengths and Difficulties Questionnaire (SDQ; self-report (SR) n = 148; parent/proxy-report (PR) n = 153, mean age = 10.8). Demographic and family characteristics were obtained from parent reported data. Results are presented by gender and migration background. Regression analysis was used to investigate the relative contribution of background factors to mental health symptoms. The distribution of scores is compared to UK norms.
Results Participants reported relatively high scores on the Strengths and Difficulties Questionnaire (SDQ) Total Difficulties Scale (parent/proxy-report, PR mean=10.7; self-report, SR mean=10.1). Participants with non-immigrant backgrounds scored considerably higher on the Total Difficulties Scale (PR mean difference=2.9; SR 5.3) and on most other domains measured with the SDQ compared with their peers with immigration backgrounds. Participants generally scored higher than or equal to UK norms.
Conclusion Participants in the current study had many symptoms of mental health problems, with large differences between those with and without a migrant background. Interventions for low-income families should be based on detailed knowledge about differences in family risks, resources and needs.
Data availability statement
There are legal and ethical restrictions on sharing the dataset used for the present manuscript. Access to the dataset require application and approval by Regional Committee for Medical and Health Research Ethics (REC) in Western Norway and the Norwegian Centre for Research Data (NSD). In addition, Norwegian Health research legislation and the Norwegian Ethics committees require explicit consent from participants in order to transfer health research data outside of Norway. In this specific case, ethics approval is also contingent on storing the research data on secure storage facilities located in our research institution.
| Original language | English |
|---|---|
| Article number | e076400 |
| Number of pages | 10 |
| Journal | BMJ Open |
| Volume | 13 |
| Issue number | 11 |
| Early online date | 27 Nov 2023 |
| DOIs | |
| Publication status | Published - 27 Nov 2023 |
Bibliographical note
AcknowledgmentsWe would like to thank master’s students Vilde Johanna Solheim Lie, Hedda Andrea Struksnæs Sørdal and HAO whose theses in clinical psychology at the University of Bergen functioned as a first draft to this article. We would like to thank the participants and acknowledge the New Patterns project family coordinators who conducted the mapping and supported the participants over time.
Funding The work was partly funded by a grant from the Research Council of Norway (number 295686).
Data Availability Statement
There are legal and ethical restrictions on sharing the dataset used for the present manuscript. Access to the dataset require application and approval by Regional Committee for Medical and Health Research Ethics (REC) in Western Norway and the Norwegian Centre for Research Data (NSD). In addition, Norwegian Health research legislation and the Norwegian Ethics committees require explicit consent from participants in order to transfer health research data outside of Norway. In this specific case, ethics approval is also contingent on storing the research data on secure storage facilities located in our research institution.
Access to Document
- Boe_etal_BMJO_Self_reported_And_VoR
©Author(s) (or their employer(s)) 2023This is an open access article distributed in accordance with the Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 Unported (CC BY 4.0) license, which permits others to copy, redistribute, remix, transform and build upon this work for any purpose, provided the original work is properly cited, a link to the licence is given, and indication of whether changes were made. See: https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/.