Social
and economic determinants of disparities in professional help-seeking
as a special population
Social and economic
determinants of disparities in professional help-seeking for child
mental health problems: evidence from a national sample. Considerable
evidence exists that children's mental health problems are undertreated,
with fewer than half and as few as 11 percent of children who screen
positive for some disorder actually receiving treatment (Zahner et
al. 1992; Cohen and Hesselbart 1993; Leaf et al. 1996; Costello et
al. 1997; Verhulst and van der Ende 1997; Farmer et al. 1999; Haines
et al. 2002). Undertreatment for mental health problems is especially
tragic, given that depression, attention-deficit, hyperactivity, and
other mental health problems have been shown to interfere not only
with children's current well-being, but also with educational attainment
and future job performance, and therefore with future psychosocial
and economic well-being (Mannuzza et al. 1997; Velting and Whitehurst
1997, Caspi et al. 1998; Fergusson and Horwood 1998). The importance
of these problems is heightened by the fact that over the last 50
years, the trend has been for ever earlier onset of mental health
problems, now reaching well into childhood (Burvill 1995). The decisions
to seek treatment for children's mental health issues occur in a peculiar
environment, substantively unlike other health care decisions for
children and even unlike adult mental health treatment decisions.
For this reason, the study of the social and economic determinants
of children's mental health services use is particularly important.
Children's mental health problems may develop slowly, subtly, or be
difficult to distinguish from normal--although at times difficult--child
and adolescent development....You
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