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Use of Child Reports of Daily Functioning to Facilitate Identification of Psychosocial Problems in Children
Beth G. Wildman, PhD;
Anne M. Kinsman, PhD;
William D. Smucker, MD
Arch Fam Med. 2000;9:612-616.
Background Despite the availability of effective screening measures, physicians fail to identify and manage many children with psychosocial problems. Physicians are most likely to identify children with psychosocial problems when parents voice concerns about their child's functioning. However, few parents express concerns to their child's physician, and children's perspectives of their own functioning are rarely considered. This study evaluated the potential utility of children's reports of their own functioning.
Methods The Child Functioning Scale (CFS) was completed by 107 parents and children and compared with the Pediatric Symptom Checklist (PSC) and physician reports on the psychosocial status of each child.
Results Physicians identified 20% of the children identified by the PSC. Children's self-reported problems on the CFS would have identified 53.3% of these children. Additionally, 11.2% of children who did not meet criteria on the PSC self-reported problems in daily functioning.
Conclusion Collecting information about children's perceptions of their own daily functioning could provide physicians with an additional tool for the assessment of psychosocial problems.
From the Department of Psychology, Kent State University, Kent, Ohio (Drs Wildman and Kinsman); and the Department of Family Medicine, Northeastern Ohio Universities College of Medicine, Rootstown (Dr Smucker). Dr Kinsman is now with the Cincinnati Center for Developmental Disorders at Children's Hospital Medical Center, Cincinnati, Ohio.
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