PubMed Health⌕ Search

Biomedical subjects

A E Kazdin

Publications and source records attributed to A E Kazdin.

At least 19 recordsLinked to original sources
PubMed1995

Child, parent and family dysfunction as predictors of outcome in cognitive-behavioral treatment of antisocial children.

The present study examined factors that predicted favorable treatment outcomes among clinically referred conduct problem children (N = 105, ages 7-13) who received cognitive-behavioral treatment. Three domains (severity and breadth of child impairment, parent stress and psychopathology and family dysfunction) assessed at pretreatment were predicted to affect treatment outcome. The results only partially supported the prediction. Less dysfunction in each of the domains predicted who responded favorably to treatment on parent ratings of deviance and prosocial functioning but not on teacher ratings of these outcomes. The findings have implications for identifying youths who respond to available treatments. The results also underscore fundamental questions about the assessment of treatment effects and the criteria for evaluating outcome.

Adolescent↗
PubMed1994

Dropping out of child psychotherapy: distinguishing early and late dropouts over the course of treatment.

The present study examined child, parent, and family factors that predict dropping out from therapy among children (ages 4-13) referred for the treatment of oppositional, aggressive, and antisocial behavior. It was proposed that factors predicting attrition would vary as a function of whether families dropped out early or late in treatment. Several factors related to family (e.g., socioeconomic disadvantage, adverse child-rearing practices), parent (e.g., stress, life events, history of antisocial behavior), and child functioning (e.g., severity and chronicity of antisocial behavior, lower IQ, peer relations) predicted premature termination from treatment. A different pattern was evident in the factors predicting early and late termination from therapy. The findings have implications for conceptualizing the process of engaging and retaining families in treatment and for preventing premature termination.

Adolescent↗
PubMed1994

Children's descriptions of their firesetting incidents: characteristics and relationship to recidivism.

OBJECTIVE: The primary purpose of the study was to identify characteristics of children's firesetting incidents and examine the relationship of reported characteristics to psychopathology and firesetting history. METHOD: A sample of 95 firesetters were interviewed using the Fire Incident Analysis for Children (FIAC). Other child or parent measures were obtained reflecting behavioral correlates and risk factors for firesetting at initial assessment, and firesetting history measures at 2-year follow-up. RESULTS: Access to incendiaries, lack of child remorse and parental consequences, and motives of curiosity and fun were commonly reported characteristics. Certain firesetting characteristics were associated with follow-up recidivism. Repeat versus single-incident firesetters at initial assessment were similar in firesetting characteristics but differed in measures of psychopathology and follow-up recidivism. CONCLUSIONS: Children can report on personal and environmental details of their firesetting incidents, which may help to identify those children most at-risk for setting an additional fire. The findings bear implications for understanding firesetting risk-assessment measures, the role of specialized child interviews, and potential predictors of firesetting recidivism among children.

Adolescent↗
PubMed1994

Treatment outcome among children with externalizing disorder who terminate prematurely versus those who complete psychotherapy.

OBJECTIVE: To compare the clinical dysfunction at the end of treatment of children who dropped out of therapy prematurely (dropouts) versus those who completed treatment (completers). We predicted that (1) children who terminated prematurely would show greater impairment at the end of treatment than would children who completed treatment, and (2) the differences at posttreatment would result from subject selection variables and severity of child dysfunction at pretreatment rather than from termination of treatment, per se. METHOD: Children (N = 75, aged 4 to 13 years) referred for oppositional, aggressive, and antisocial behavior formed three groups: dropouts, completers, and completers matched to dropouts on subject and demographic variables and severity of child dysfunction. RESULTS: At the end of treatment children who terminated prematurely showed greater impairment at home, at school, and in the community, compared with children who completed treatment. Outcome differences were less evident between dropouts and completers when pretreatment child severity of dysfunction was controlled. CONCLUSIONS: The findings suggest that selection factors and severity of impairment may relate both to attrition and limited responsiveness among patients who continue.

Adolescent↗
PubMed1993

Adolescent mental health. Prevention and treatment programs.

Adolescent mental health represents a neglected area of research. Mental health objectives include the promotion of optimal functioning as well as the prevention and reduction of maladaptive functioning. This article examines behaviors and conditions that place adolescents at risk for adverse outcomes and the urgent need for prevention and treatment to promote adaptive functioning. The current status of prevention and treatment programs is discussed along with critical issues including the interrelation and contribution of both prevention and treatment; the interplay of basic and applied research; and the need to extend existing interventions as well as to devise new models to address underserved, understudied, and high-risk populations. Research on the role of adolescent development, paths toward adjustment and maladjustment, and special opportunities that adolescence presents for intervention are also discussed.

Adolescent↗
PubMed1993

Psychotherapy for children and adolescents. Current progress and future research directions.

Psychotherapy research for children and adolescents has progressed considerably in the past decade. In this article, reviews of treatment outcome research, individual outcome studies, programmatic studies of specific interventions, and treatments for specific clinical dysfunctions are high-lighted to convey progress. Current advances in treatment have been augmented greatly by psychological theory and research on the nature of child dysfunction as well as by improved methods of assessing children and specifying and evaluating treatments. In light of the current status of research, several priorities are identified that include expanding the range of research questions asked about treatment, evaluating a broader range of treatments, examining long-term treatment effects, bridging research and practice, extending treatment further to underserved and understudied populations, and integrating developmental theory and research into child treatment research.

Adolescent↗
PubMed1993

Emotional/behavioral problems in clinic and nonclinic children: correspondence among child, parent and teacher reports.

This study examined the correspondence among child, parent and teacher reports, in rating emotional and behavioral problems of 98 community nonpatients and 64 clinically referred children (ages 6-13). The mean ratings differed significantly for the three sources and for the two samples, and there were a few significant interactions. Correlations of the scores between sources, especially parents and teachers, were in the moderate range and were not significantly different from one another. Informant correspondence was higher for externalizing than internalizing problems in both patient and nonpatient samples, and was higher for nonpatients than patients. In general, informant agreement was higher for cases characterized by lower family stress and higher child acceptance, among other clinical variables.

Adolescent↗
PubMed1992

The emergence and recurrence of child firesetting: a one-year prospective study.

This study provides 1-year, prospective data regarding the firesetting histories of a sample of 138 children (ages 6-13 years) recruited from patient and non-patient populations. Parent and child interviews were conducted at initial assessment and 1-year followup. Of 78 children initially classified as nonfiresetters, 14 children (18%) later had set a fire. Of 60 children initially identified as firesetters, 21 (35%) had set an additional fire by followup. Late starting was associated with limited family sociability, whereas recidivism was associated with child knowledge about combustibles and involvement in fire-related activities, community complaints about fire contact, child hostility, lax discipline, family conflict, and limited parental acceptance, family affiliation, and organization. The findings highlight alternative risk variables for initiation and repetition of child firesetting.

Adolescent↗
PubMed1992

Cognitive problem-solving skills training and parent management training in the treatment of antisocial behavior in children.

This study evaluated the effects of problem-solving skills training (PSST) and parent management training (PMT) on children (N = 97, ages 7-13 years) referred for severe antisocial behavior. Children and families were assigned randomly to 1 of 3 conditions: PSST, PMT, or PSST and PMT combined. It was predicted that (a) each treatment would improve child functioning (reduce overall deviance and aggressive, antisocial, and delinquent behavior, and increase prosocial competence); and (b) PSST and PMT combined would lead to more marked, pervasive, and durable changes in child functioning and greater changes in parent functioning (parental stress, depression, and overall symptoms). Expectations were supported by results at posttreatment and 1-year follow-up. PSST and PMT combined led to more marked changes in child and parent functioning and placed a greater proportion of youth within the range of nonclinic (normative) levels of functioning.

Adolescent↗
PubMed1992

DSM-III-R anxiety disorders in children: sociodemographic and clinical characteristics.

This study investigated the characteristics of each of the specific DSM-III-R (American Psychiatric Association, 1987) anxiety disorders in a clinic sample of 188 anxiety disordered children. Characteristics examined included sociodemographic variables (age-at-intake, gender, and race of the child, and family marital and socioeconomic status) and clinical variables (disorder age-at-onset and severity, and history of additional disorders). Findings are discussed in light of the contemporary literature on childhood anxiety disorders.

Adolescent↗
PubMed1991

Effectiveness of psychotherapy with children and adolescents.

This article reviews the outcome evidence of psychotherapy for children and adolescents. The questions that guide treatment research, conclusions about alternative treatments, and the impact on different types of problems are reviewed. Alternative treatments for children and adolescents have produced change across a diverse range of emotional and behavioral problems. Progress and advances in treatment research are illustrated by highlighting alternative treatments and factors that contribute to outcome in the treatment of conduct problem children. Although important advances can be readily identified in outcome research, the pace of progress has been thwarted by challenges of the subject matter (e.g., developmental issues, comorbidity, and the diverse parent, family, and other contextual factors in which child dysfunction is embedded) and deficiencies in current research (e.g., ambiguity in the characteristics of the samples, weak statistical power, departure of treatment conditions in research from those that characterize clinical work). Notwithstanding the recency of empirical attention to the topic, progress is evident in developing effective treatments for a wide range of problems.

Adaptation, Psychological↗
PubMed1991

Motives of childhood firesetters: firesetting characteristics and psychological correlates.

The present study evaluated curiosity and anger as motives among childhood firesetters. Parents of 133 firesetters (ages 6-13) completed the Fire Incident Analysis (FIA) to permit classification of the children as high and low on each of these two primary motives and to document details of the child's most serious incident within the past 12 months. The children were compared on measures of child dysfunction and firesetting history. An effect of Curiosity was found on measures of psychopathology, firesetting risk, and fire involvement, whereas an effect of Anger was found on measures of firesetting risk and the behavioral correlates of individual incidents. The results clarify the role of child motive in understanding firesetting involvement.

Adolescent↗
PubMed1990

Empirical and clinical focus of child and adolescent psychotherapy research.

The present study evaluated the characteristics of research on child and adolescent psychotherapy. Published studies (N = 223) of psychotherapy from 1970 to 1988 were codified to characterize research, clinical, and methodological characteristics. The major results indicate that (a) treatment research focuses almost exclusively on the impact of treatment techniques with scant attention to influences (child/adolescent, parent, family, therapist) that may moderate outcome and (b) several characteristics of the children/adolescents and methods of treatment delivery and approaches depart markedly from those evident in the practice of treatment. Priorities for treatment research to place clinical practice on firmer empirical footing are discussed.

Adolescent↗
PubMed1990

Premature termination from treatment among children referred for antisocial behavior.

The present study examined differences between children and families who complete treatment versus those who terminated prematurely. Children (N = 81, ages 7-13 years) referred to outpatient treatment for severe antisocial behavior and their families participated. It was predicted that families who terminate treatment prematurely would show greater dysfunction in four domains: child severity and breadth of antisocial behavior, maternal stress, maternal psychopathology, and socioeconomic disadvantage. The results indicated that among cases who terminate treatment prematurely children evinced more severe conduct disorder symptoms and more delinquent behaviors; mothers reported greater stress from their relations with the child, their own role functioning, and life events; and families were at greater socioeconomic disadvantage than those who remained in treatment. The implications of the present findings for the design and implementation of treatment of antisocial children and their families are discussed.

Adolescent↗
PubMed1989

Assessment of dimensions of childhood firesetting among patients and nonpatients: the Firesetting Risk Interview.

A model of firesetting risk poses that high curiosity, involvement in fire-related activities, exposure to peer/parental models, limited knowledge and skill related to fires, and poor parental supervision, among other features, are characteristic of firesetters. To operationalize several domains of the model, the Firesetting Risk Interview (FRI) for parents was developed consisting of 15 a priori dimensions. To provide a partial test of the measure and its generality across children with and without clinical dysfunction, 343 children (ages 6-13) and parents were drawn from samples of nonpatients (nonreferred), outpatients, and inpatients. In accord with the model, firesetters and nonfiresetters were found to differ in their curiosity about fire, recent involvement in fire-related activities, expression of negative emotions, early experiences with fire, exposure to others' involvement with fire, and parents' use of general disciplinary consequences. These group differences did not interact with the child's clinical status, level of antisocial behavior, or demographic background.

Adolescent↗
PubMed1989

Identifying depression in children: a comparison of alternative selection criteria.

This study evaluated commonly used methods of identifying "depressed" children and examined the extent to which the conclusions about correlates of dysfunction vary among different selection criteria. Child psychiatric patients (N = 231, ages 7-12) and their parents participated and completed measures to permit identification of "depressed" children on the basis of three separate criteria, including self-report scores on the Children's Depression Inventory, parent-reported scores for the same measure, and a DSM-III diagnosis of major depression. The study examined whether depressed and nondepressed children, defined separately by the different criteria, differed in a variety of depression-related symptoms, cognitive processes, and social activity. The results indicated little overlap in the persons identified as "depressed" on the basis of child- or parent-completed CDI scores or DSM-III diagnosis. Depressed and nondepressed children tended to differ across all domains (depression-related symptoms, cognitive processes, and social activity) for each selection criterion. However, significant differences were evident in these domains only when the selection criterion and other domains were assessed with the same informant (e.g., self-report) and hence shared a common method (rater) component. The findings underscore the potential influence that method factors may have in influencing the conclusions that are drawn regarding the correlates of childhood depression.

Child↗