ABSTRACT
The psychological effects of the COVID-19 pandemic still represent a focus of concern, especially in children and adolescents who are a group particularly vulnerable to the psychological consequences of the COVID-19 pandemic, mainly due to the loss of socialization and leisure spaces. The aim of the study is to determine the variation in the levels of depressive and anxious symptomatology in children and adolescents in the North of Chile. METHODS: A Repeated cross-sectional design (RCS) was used. The sample consisted of a total of 475 students aged 12 to 18 years (high school) from educational establishments in the city of Arica. To evaluate the changes in the mental health of students associated with the COVID-19 pandemic, the same mental health measures applied to students were compared in two waves (2018-2021). RESULTS: An increase in the symptomatology levels of depression, anxiety, social anxiety, and problems with the family, while a decrease in problems with school and peers was observed. CONCLUSIONS: The results show that there is an increase in mental health problems associated with the periods of time in which the COVID-19 pandemic transformed the social relation spaces and classrooms of secondary school students. The observed changes point to future challenges, which include that it may be important to improve the coordination and integration of mental health professionals in educational centers and schools.
ABSTRACT
(1) Background: Discrepancies between children's self-reports and their parents' reports on mental health indicators are associated with measurement errors or informant bias. However, they are a valuable tool in understanding the course of child psychopathology. This study aims to determine the level of discrepancies between parents' perceptions and children's self-reports in mental health indicators in Northern Chile. (2) Methods: A System of Evaluation of Children and Adolescents self-report (Sistema de Evaluación de Niños y Adolescentes, SENA) was responded to by 408 students between 8 and 13 years old and their parents. (3) Results: Children reported a significantly higher frequency of emotional problems, defiant behavior, and executive functions as compared to their parents' responses. (4) Conclusions: There is a disjunction between the report of parents and children, which could originate in poor family communication.
ABSTRACT
Substance use is a risk behavior that has been associated with adverse mental health outcomes in adolescence. The aim of this study was to determine the relation between behavioral problems, emotional problems, and substance use as well as the mediating role of contextual problems and sensation seeking in this relation. A cross-sectional study of 2277 adolescents from Northern Chile was conducted. The System for the Evaluation of Children and Adolescents (SENA) was used to assess substance use, contextual problems, sensation seeking, and emotional and behavioral problems. Through a mediational model, it was observed that substance use has a positive indirect effect on emotional and behavioral problems when both contextual problems and sensation seeking act as mediating variables. An indirect effect of substance use on contextual problems with sensation seeking as a mediator was also observed. The results suggests that context and sensation seeking are a relevant source of information in understanding adolescents and their propensity to use drugs. Interventions based on addressing contextual problems (problems with school, peers, and family) and enhancing personal resources should be implemented in order to reduce substance use in adolescents as well as the consequences it can generate in the short, medium, and long term.
