An Examination of the Mental Health Status of Canadian Children and Youth with Disabilities
Publication: Canadian Journal of Community Mental Health
21 December 2022
Abstract
Children and youth with disabilities (CYD) are more likely to experience poor mental health compared to non-disabled peers. Disability type may impact mental health outcomes; however, a more comprehensive understanding of mental health outcomes in CYD with diverse disability types is needed. This study examined the mental health status of CYD. Parents of 473 CYD completed a survey including a measure of mental health indicators. Approximately 72% of the sample had above average total difficulties scores. Boys scored higher than girls on the hyperactivity subscale, and those with comorbid disabilities scored the highest on total difficulties. Overall, the results indicate CYD experience mental health challenges at rates well above population norms. Research exploring interventions that may buffer these effects is warranted.
Résumé
Les enfants et les jeunes handicapés (EJH) sont plus susceptibles de souffrir d’une mauvaise santé mentale que leurs pairs non handicapés. Le type d’incapacité peut avoir une incidence sur la santé mentale, mais il est nécessaire de mieux comprendre les conséquences en matière de santé mentale chez les EJH ayant divers types d’incapacité. Cette étude a examiné l’état de santé mentale des EJH. Les parents de 473 EJH ont répondu à une enquête comprenant une mesure des indicateurs de santé mentale. Environ 72 % de l’échantillon avait des scores de difficultés totales supérieurs à la moyenne. Les garçons ont obtenu des scores plus élevés que les filles sur la sous-échelle de l’hyperactivité, et les personnes souffrant de handicaps concomitants ont obtenu les scores les plus élevés sur les difficultés totales. Dans l’ensemble, les résultats indiquent que les EJH connaissent des problèmes de santé mentale à des taux bien supérieurs aux normes de la population. Des recherches explorant les interventions susceptibles d’atténuer ces effets sont justifiées.
Formats available
You can view the full content in the following formats:
References
Achenbach T. M., Ivanova M. Y., Rescorla L. A., Turner L. V., and Althoff R. R. 2016 Internalizing/externalizing problems: Review and recommendations for clinical and research applications Journal of the American Academy of Child & Adolescent Psychiatry 55 8 647 -656 https://doi.org/10.1016/j.jaac.2016.05.012
Angerhofer Christopher R 2018 A biological review of mental illness: An overview of genetics and pathophysiology of schizophrenia, major depression, and addiction Biology and Microbiology Graduate Students Plan B Research Projects 5 https://openprairie.sdstate.edu/biomicro_plan-b/5
Ara E. 2016 Internalizing and externalizing problems in adolescents analyzing the gender difference International Journal of Research in Social Sciences 6 1 328 -337
Bajeux E., Klemanski D. H., Husky M., Leray E., Chee C. C., Shojaei T., Fermanian C., and Kovess-Masfety V. 2018 Factors associated with parent–child discrepancies in reports of mental health disorders in young children Child Psychiatry & Human Development 49 6 1003 -1010
Bjørnebekk G., Kjøbli J., and Ogden T. 2015 Children with conduct problems and co-occurring ADHD: Behavioral improvements following parent management training Child & Family Behavior Therapy 37 1 1 -19 https://doi.org/10.1080/07317107.2015.1000227
Bornstein M. H., Hahn C.-S., and Haynes O. M. 2010 Social competence, externalizing, and internalizing behavioral adjustment from early childhood through early adolescence: Developmental cascades Development and Psychopathology 22 4 717
Bourdon K. H., Goodman R., Rae D. S., Simpson G., and Koretz D. S. 2005 The Strengths and Difficulties Questionnaire: U.S. normative data and psychometric properties Journal of the American Academy of Child and Adolescent Psychiatry 44 6 557 -564 https://doi.org/10.1097/01.chi.0000159157.57075.c8
Breslau N. 1985 Psychiatric disorder in children with physical disabilities Journal of the American Academy of Child Psychiatry 24 1 87 -94 https://doi.org/10.1016/S0002-7138(09)60415-5
Cadman D., Boyle M., Szatmari P., and Offord D. R. 1987 Chronic illness, disability, and mental and social wellbeing: Findings of the Ontario Child Health Study Pediatrics 79 5 805 -813
Canadian Disability Participation Project. (2015). National physical activity monitoring study. Canadian Disability Participation Project. https://cdpp.ca/projects/national-physical-activity-monitoring-study
Chaplin T. M. and Aldao A. 2013 Gender differences in emotion expression in children: A meta-analytic review Psychological Bulletin 139 4 735
Classi P., Milton D., Ward S., Sarsour K., and Johnston J. 2012 Social and emotional difficulties in children with ADHD and the impact on school attendance and healthcare utilization Child and Adolescent Psychiatry and Mental Health 6 33 https://doi.org/10.1186/1753-2000-6-33
Comer-HaGans D., Weller B. E., Story C., and Holton J. 2020 Developmental stages and estimated prevalence of coexisting mental health and neurodevelopmental conditions and service use in youth with intellectual disabilities, 2011–2012 Journal of Intellectual Disability Research 64 3 185 -196
Conti-Ramsden G., Mok P. L. H., Pickles A., and Durkin K. 2013 Adolescents with a history of specific language impairment (SLI): Strengths and difficulties in social, emotional and behavioral functioning Research in Developmental Disabilities 34 11 4161 -4169 https://doi.org/10.1016/j.ridd.2013.08.043
Darrow A. A. 2016 Unspoken words: Understanding nonverbal learning disabilities General Music Today 29 2 35 -38
Downs J., Blackmore A. M., Epstein A., Skoss R., Langdon K., Jacoby P., Whitehouse A. J., Leonard H., Rowe P. W., and Glasson E. J. 2018 The prevalence of mental health disorders and symptoms in children and adolescents with cerebral palsy: A systematic review and meta-analysis Developmental Medicine & Child Neurology 60 1 30 -38
Dunn D. W. and Kronenberger W. G. 2008 Is ADHD in epilepsy the expression of a neurological disorder? Psychiatric Controversies in Epilepsy 141 -152 https://doi.org/10.1016/B978-0-12-374006-9.00010-2
Dunn K., Rydzewska E., Fleming M., and Cooper S.-A. 2020 Prevalence of mental health conditions, sensory impairments and physical disability in people with co-occurring intellectual disabilities and autism compared with other people: A cross-sectional total population study in Scotland BMJ Open 10 4 e035280
El-Keshky M. and Emam M. 2015 Emotional and behavioural difficulties in children referred for learning disabilities from two Arab countries: A cross-cultural examination of the Strengths and Difficulties Questionnaire Research in Developmental Disabilities 36C 459 -469 https://doi.org/10.1016/j.ridd.2014.10.039
Emerson E. 2005 Use of the Strengths and Difficulties Questionnaire to assess the mental health needs of children and adolescents with intellectual disabilities Journal of Intellectual and Developmental Disability 30 1 14 -23
Emerson E., Einfeld S., and Stancliffe R. J. 2010 The mental health of young children with intellectual disabilities or borderline intellectual functioning Social Psychiatry and Psychiatric Epidemiology 45 5 579 -587
Emerson E. and Hatton C. 2007 Mental health of children and adolescents with intellectual disabilities in Britain The British Journal of Psychiatry 191 6 493 -499
Gobbo K. and Shmulsky S. 2012 Classroom needs of community college students with Asperger’s disorder and autism spectrum disorders Community College Journal of Research and Practice 36 1 40 -46
Goodman R. 2001 Psychometric properties of the Strengths and Difficulties Questionnaire Journal of the American Academy of Child and Adolescent Psychiatry 40 11 1337 -1345 https://doi.org/10.1097/00004583-200111000-00015
Gresham F. M., MacMillan D. L., Bocian K. M., Ward S. L., and Forness S. R. 1998 Comorbidity of hyperactivityimpulsivity-inattention and conduct problems: Risk factors in social, affective, and academic domains Journal of Abnormal Child Psychology 26 5 393 -406
Guralnick M. J. 2005 Early intervention for children with intellectual disabilities: Current knowledge and future prospects Journal of Applied Research in Intellectual Disabilities 18 4 313 -324 https://doi.org/10.1111/j.1468-3148.2005.00270.x
Gutman L. M. and Codiroli McMaster N. 2020 Gendered pathways of internalizing problems from early childhood to adolescence and associated adolescent outcomes Journal of Abnormal Child Psychology 48 5 703 -718
Hartshorne T. S. and Schmittel M. C. 2016 Social-emotional development in children and youth who are deafblind American Annals of the Deaf 161 4 444 -453 JSTOR
Hauser-Cram P. and Woodman A. C. 2016 Trajectories of internalizing and externalizing behavior problems in children with developmental disabilities Journal of Abnormal Child Psychology 44 4 811 -821 https://doi.org/10.1007/s10802-015-0055-2
Herring S., Gray K., Taffe J., Tonge B., Sweeney D., and Einfeld S. 2006 Behaviour and emotional problems in toddlers with pervasive developmental disorders and developmental delay: Associations with parental mental health and family functioning Journal of Intellectual Disability Research 50 12 874 -882
Honey A., Emerson E., and Llewellyn G. 2011 The mental health of young people with disabilities: Impact of social conditions Social Psychiatry and Psychiatric Epidemiology 46 1 1 -10 https://doi.org/10.1007/s00127-009-0161-y
Kaptein S., Jansen D. E. M. C., Vogels A. G. C., and Reijneveld S. A. 2008 Mental health problems in children with intellectual disability: Use of the Strengths and Difficulties Questionnaire Journal of Intellectual Disability Research 52 2 125 -131 https://doi.org/10.1111/j.1365-2788.2007.00978.x
Kavanagh A. M., Krnjacki L., Aitken Z., LaMontagne A. D., Beer A., Baker E., and Bentley R. 2015 Intersections between disability, type of impairment, gender and socio-economic disadvantage in a nationally representative sample of 33,101 working-aged Australians Disability and Health Journal 8 2 191 -199 https://doi.org/10.1016/j.dhjo.2014.08.008
Keyes C. L. 2002 The mental health continuum: From languishing to flourishing in life Journal of Health and Social Behavior 207 -222
Keyes C. L. 2005 Mental illness and/or mental health? Investigating axioms of the complete state model of health Journal of Consulting and Clinical Psychology 73 3 539
Kuczmarski, R. J. (2002). 2000 CDC Growth Charts for the United States: Methods and development (No. 246). Department of Health and Human Services, Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, National Center for Health Statistics.
Martel M. M., Von Eye A., and Nigg J. 2012 Developmental differences in structure of attention-deficit/hyperactivity disorder (ADHD) between childhood and adulthood International Journal of Behavioral Development 36 4 279 -292
Martin Ginis K. A., Evans M. B., Mortenson W. B., and Noreau L. 2017 Broadening the conceptualization of participation of persons with physical disabilities: A configurative review and recommendations Archives of Physical Medicine and Rehabilitation 98 2 395 -402 https://doi.org/10.1016/j.apmr.2016.04.017
Matsuishi T., Nagano M., Araki Y., Tanaka Y., Iwasaki M., Yamashita Y., Nagamitsu S., Iizuka C., Ohya T., Shibuya K., Hara M., Matsuda K., Tsuda A., and Kakuma T. 2008 Scale properties of the Japanese version of the Strengths and Difficulties Questionnaire (SDQ): A study of infant and school children in community samples Brain & Development 30 6 410 -415 https://doi.org/10.1016/j.braindev.2007.12.003
Miyahara M. and Piek J. 2006 Self-esteem of children and adolescents with physical disabilities: Quantitative evidence from meta-analysis Journal of Developmental and Physical Disabilities 18 3 219 -234 https://doi.org/10.1007/s10882-006-9014-8
Mphahlele R. M., Pillay B., and Meyer A. 2020 Internalising comorbidities in primary school children with attentiondeficit hyperactivity disorder (ADHD): Sex and age differences Journal of Child & Adolescent Mental Health 32 2–3 119 -129
Munir K. M. 2016 The co-occurrence of mental disorders in children and adolescents with intellectual disability/intellectual developmental disorder Current Opinion in Psychiatry 29 2 95
Petrenchik, T., King, G., & Batorowicz, B. (2011). Children and youth with disabilities: Enhancing mental health through positive experiences of doing and belonging. In Mental health promotion, prevention, and intervention in children and youth: A guiding framework for occupational therapy. Bethesda, MD: The American Occupational Therapy Association.
Pinquart M. 2017 Systematic review: Bullying involvement of children with and without chronic physical illness and/ or physical/sensory disability—a meta-analytic comparison with healthy/nondisabled peers Journal of Pediatric Psychology 42 3 245 -259 https://doi.org/10.1093/jpepsy/jsw081
Raviv A., Sills R., Raviv A., and Wilansky P. 2000 Adolescents’ help-seeking behaviour: The difference between self-and other-referral Journal of Adolescence 23 6 721 -740
Schwartzman J. M. and Corbett B. A. 2020 Higher depressive symptoms in early adolescents with autism spectrum disorder by self-and parent-report compared to typically-developing peers Research in Autism Spectrum Disorders 77 101613
Shaikh E. A. and Shinde V. R. 2018 Gender differences in internalized and externalized behavioral problems among school going children Indian Journal of Health & Wellbeing 9 4
Shaw L., Moore D., Nunns M., Thompson Coon J., Ford T., Berry V., Walker E., Heyman I., Dickens C., and Bennett S. 2019 Experiences of interventions aiming to improve the mental health and well-being of children and young people with a long-term physical condition: A systematic review and meta-ethnography Child: Care, Health and Development 45 6 832 -849
Shtayermman O. 2009 An exploratory study of the stigma associated with a diagnosis of Asperger’s syndrome: The mental health impact on the adolescents and young adults diagnosed with a disability with a social nature Journal of Human Behavior in the Social Environment 19 3 298 -313
Snowdon, A. (2012). Strengthening communities for Canadian children with disabilities. The Sandbox Project’s in Proceedings of the 2nd Annual Conference. Discussion Document.
Snowdon J. 2018 Differences between patterns of suicide in East Asia and the West. The importance of sociocultural factors Asian Journal of Psychiatry 37 106 -111
Taheri A., Perry A., and Minnes P. 2016 Examining the social participation of children and adolescents with intellectual disabilities and autism spectrum disorder in relation to peers Journal of Intellectual Disability Research 60 5 435 -443 https://doi.org/10.1111/jir.12289
Tanabe T., Kashiwagi M., Shimakawa S., Fukui M., Kadobayashi K., Azumakawa K., Tamai H., and Wakamiya E. 2013 Behavioral assessment of Japanese children with epilepsy using SDQ (Strengths and Difficulties Questionnaire) Brain & Development 35 1 81 -86 https://doi.org/10.1016/j.braindev.2012.03.008
Tanure Alves M. L., Grenier M., Haegele J. A., and Duarte E. 2020 ‘I didn’t do anything, I just watched’: Perspectives of Brazilian students with physical disabilities toward physical education International Journal of Inclusive Education 24 10 1129 -1142
Tsitsika A., Janikian M., Wójcik S., Makaruk K., Tzavela E., Tzavara C., Greydanus D., Merrick J., and Richardson C. 2015 Cyberbullying victimization prevalence and associations with internalizing and externalizing problems among adolescents in six European countries Computers in Human Behavior 51 1 -7 https://doi.org/10.1016/j.braindev.2012.03.008
United Nations (2006). United Nations Convention on the Rights of Persons with Disabilities. United Nations http://www.un.org/esa/socdev/enable/rights/convtexte.html
Venning A., Wilson A., Kettler L., and Eliott J. 2013 Mental health among youth in South Australia: A survey of flourishing, languishing, struggling, and floundering Australian Psychologist 48 4 299 -310
Verbrugge L. M., Lepkowski J. M., and Imanaka Y. 1989 Comorbidity and its impact on disability The Milbank Quarterly 450 -484
Westerhof G. J. and Keyes C. L. M. 2010 Mental illness and mental health: The two continua model across the lifespan Journal of Adult Development 17 2 110 -119 https://doi.org/10.1007/s10804-009-9082-y
World Health Organization. (2019). ICD-10 2019 version. Classification of Diseases (ICD). https://icd.who.int/browse10/2010/en
Yao S., Zhang C., Zhu X., Jing X., McWhinnie C. M., and Abela J. R. Z. 2009 Measuring adolescent psychopathology: Psychometric properties of the self-report strengths and difficulties questionnaire in a sample of Chinese adolescents The Journal of Adolescent Health: Official Publication of the Society for Adolescent Medicine 45 1 55 -62 https://doi.org/10.1016/j.jadohealth.2008.11.006
Youth in Mind. (2016, June 20). Scoring the Strengths & Difficulties Questionnaire for age 4-17 or 18+. Youth in Mind. https://www.sdqinfo.org/py/sdqinfo/c0.py
Zahn-Waxler C., Shirtcliff E. A., and Marceau K. 2008 Disorders of childhood and adolescence: Gender and psychopathology Annual Revue of Clinical Psychology 4 275 -303
Information & Authors
Information
Published In
Canadian Journal of Community Mental Health
Volume 41 • Number 4 • October 2022
Pages: 75 - 103
History
Version of record online: 21 December 2022
Key Words
Mots-clés
Authors
Metrics & Citations
Metrics
Other Metrics
Citations
Cite As
Roxy Helliker O’Rourke, Denver Brown, Kathleen A. Martin Ginis, and Kelly P. Arbour-Nicitopoulos. 2022. An Examination of the Mental Health Status of Canadian Children and Youth with Disabilities. Canadian Journal of Community Mental Health.
41(4): 75-103. https://doi.org/10.7870/cjcmh-2022-033
Export Citations
If you have the appropriate software installed, you can download article citation data to the citation manager of your choice. Simply select your manager software from the list below and click Download.
There are no citations for this item
View Options
View options
Get Access
Login options
Check if you access through your login credentials or your institution to get full access on this article.
Subscribe
Click on the button below to subscribe to Canadian Journal of Community Mental Health
