The survey, which was conducted during the 2005-2006 academic year, was released Sept. 3, 2008, by the National Center for Health Statistics. According to a USA Today article by Marilyn Ellis that was published the same day, experts aren't sure what these results indicate about the state of American families:
Nearly 1 out of 5 boys had parents who discussed such difficulties, and about 1 out of 10 girls, says the report from more than 17,000 parents with children 4 to 17 years old. ...Mental health care for children has undergone significant changes in recent years, Ellis reported. Antidepressant prescriptions dropped significantly following a 2004 warning by the U.S. Food and Drug Administration, but the presence of mental health experts is increasing in schools and pediatric practices.
There's no comparable earlier survey, but some children's mental health experts were surprised at the extent of concern, especially for boys and divided as to whether it's a good or bad sign.
The high number of parents who confide worries shows "the very, very narrow range of normalcy allowed for children these days," says behavioral pediatrician Lawrence Diller of Walnut Creek Calif., author of The Last Normal Child. "Welcome to the age of anxiety, where more is expected of children academically and in self-discipline, while both parents are working, so there's less support and structure."
Labels: parenting, teachers, doctors
Posted By: Aspen Education Group
