School-based psychosocial and educational interventions for children and adolescents after the 1999 Marmara earthquakes in Turkey: A review on lessons learned.

The massive earthquakes experienced in August and November 1999 affected thousands of people in the Marmara region, the most densely populated and industrialized part of Turkey. The humanitarian and economic cost was so enormous, and these earthquakes have changed the Turkish disaster management system and the Turkish people's approach to disasters. Marmara earthquakes are also considered as a milestone in the provision of psychosocial services for disaster victims. This paper aims to review the psychosocial interventions targeting children, adolescents, and their families after the 1999 earthquakes in Turkey. The progression from initial responses to more organized psychosocial interventions is outlined. Conducting the interventions at schools has ensured that thousands of children, teachers, and parents are reached in the most efficient and effective way possible. The significance of the school context in designing psychosocial interventions is highlighted and implications of the lessons learned for traumatic experiences of children and parents are also explored. It is evaluated that these inferences obtained from the Marmara earthquake in Turkey can be used in disasters around the world.

A Review of Studies on the Covid-19 Pandemic and the Psychological Effects of Related Measures on Children, Youth and Parents. / COVID-19 Küresel Salgini ve Ilgili Tedbirlerin Çocuklar, Gençler ve Ebeveynler Üzerindeki Psikolojik Etkilerine Dair Çalismalarin Gözden Geçirilmesi.

Pandemics are social events that affect individuals' lives in many ways and have a significant impact on the mental health of masses. Pandemics and measures taken to combat these epidemics affect children and young people as well as adults. The purpose of the current review is to compile studies that have been conducted on the psychological effects of the COVID-19 pandemic and related measures on children, youth, and parents, and use the findings to shed light on future studies. In this review, 35 studies that were determined as a result of a comprehensive search in relevant literature were examined. It was observed that the aforementioned studies noted that the COVID-19 global pandemic and the measures taken to combat the epidemic (e.g., quarantine, lockdown, and school closures) had negative psychological effects on children, young people, and parents. Problems observed in children and young people, such as the fear of catching or transmitting the virus, getting bored, not being able to communicate enough with friends and teachers, and problems observed in parents, such as the troubles of negative repercussions of working at home or unemployment and difficulties in communicating with children with the closure of schools, are only a few to name these negative effects. The reviewed studies were discussed taking their limitations into account. Recommendations were made for future studies and intervention programs to be planned for community mental health. Keywords: COVID-19, children and youth, parents, pandemic, quarantine.

Social Contact, Academic Satisfaction, COVID-19 Knowledge, and Subjective Well-being Among Students at Turkish Universities: a Nine-University Sample.

Adverse effects of COVID-19 are seen not only on the physical health of infected individuals but also on their subjective well-being. Sudden changes in social lives, lockdowns, and shifts towards online education have had a negative impact on many people, especially university students. As part of an international study, the current study focused on the well-being of students at Turkish universities in relation to social contact, academic satisfaction, and COVID-19 knowledge. A total of 7363 students from nine universities (86.6% from state universities, 71.04% female, and 73.52% at bachelor's level) participated in an online survey. Results revealed that females had lower levels of subjective well-being and academic satisfaction. According to a mediation model in the study, the relationship between social contact and well-being was mediated by academic satisfaction and COVID-19 knowledge. Our findings can guide future researchers, mental health professionals, universities, and policymakers to understand and improve subjective well-being of university students.

The diagnostic utility of the Wechsler Intelligence Scale for Children-Fourth Edition (WISC-IV) in identification of gifted children.

Accurate assessment and early identification of gifted children is of great importance in terms of providing them with educational programs tailored for their abilities in specific areas. Individually administered intelligence tests are widely used to identify gifted children, and an above-average level of intellectual capacity is generally accepted as the main criterion for giftedness. This study aimed to investigate the utility of the Turkish version of the Wechsler Intelligence Scale for Children-Fourth Edition (WISC-IV) to distinguish gifted children from non-gifted children. For this purpose, 201 gifted children and 201 non-gifted children were included in the study. To be able to determine the predictive power of the WISC-IV index and subtest scores, logistic regression analyses were performed. Results indicated that the Perceptual Reasoning Index, Working Memory Index, and Processing Speed Index ​​scores (except Verbal Comprehension Index score), and all subtest scores significantly predicted giftedness. Furthermore, correct classification rates among gifted children were 93% for index scores and 97% for subtest scores. The findings of this study suggest that intelligence scores obtained from the WISC-IV have a diagnostic utility and provide valid and reliable results in identifying gifted children.

[Comparing Two Editions of Wechsler Intelligence Scales and Assessing Reading Skills in Children with Attention Deficit and Hyperactivity Disorder]. / Dikkat Eksikligi Hiperaktivite Bozuklugu'nda Wechsler ocuklar Iin Zekâ Ölegi'nin Iki Sürümünün Karsilastirilmasi ve Okuma Becerilerinin Degerlendirilmesi.

OBJECTIVE: This study aimed to examine the cognitive profiles of children with Attention Deficit and Hyperactivity Disorder (ADHD) with the Wechsler Intelligence Scales for Children-Revised (WISC-R) and the Wechsler Intelligence Scales for Children-Fourth Edition (WISC-IV), the latter of which was recently standardized in Turkey. In addition, the reading abilities and intelligence scores of these children were also investigated. METHODS: A total of 48 children with ADHD between the ages of 6 and 16 years who were outpatients in Mus State Hospital were included in this study. The children were administered the WISC-R, the WISC-IV, and the Oral Reading Skills and Reading Comprehension Test (ORCT). RESULTS: There were no significant differences between the WISC-R IQ scores and WISC-IV index scores. Moreover, reading comprehension skills (derived from ORCT scores) were predicted with significant accuracy by both the WISC-R Verbal IQ and the WISC-IV WMI (Working Memory Index). CONCLUSION: Results of this study suggest that the WISC-R and the WISC-IV scale are not sufficient for obtaining a specific cognitive profile for ADHD - there is no significant difference between them. However, the four-factor structure of the WISC-IV is believed to provide more specific information. In addition, results of this study related to reading skills indicate that the importance of reading skills should not be overlooked when assessing children with ADHD.

Using Neuropsychometric Measurements in the Differential Diagnosis of Specific Learning Disability.

INTRODUCTION: The aim of this study was to develop a neuropsychometric battery for the differential diagnosis of specific learning disability (SLD), with specific respect to attention deficit hyperactivity disorder (ADHD), and to help resolve the conflicting results in the literature by an integrative utilization of scores on both the Bannatyne categories and neuropsychological tests. METHODS: The sample included 168 primary school boys who were assigned to SLD (n=21), ADHD (n=45), SLD and ADHD (n=57), and control groups (n=45). The exclusion criteria were a neurological or psychiatric comorbidity other than ADHD, a level of anxiety and/or depression above the cutoff score, medication affecting cognitive processes, visual and/or auditory disorders, and an intelligence level outside the IQ range of 85-129. Psychometric scores were obtained from the SLD Battery and Wechsler Intelligence Scale for Children-Revised in the form of Bannatyne category scores. Neuropsychological scores were from the Visual-Aural Digit Span Test-Form B, Serial Digit Learning Test, Judgment of Line Orientation, and Mangina Test. The battery was called the Integrative Battery of SLD. RESULTS: The correctness of estimation for classifying cases into the diagnostic dyads (SLD/ADHD, SLD/SLD+ADHD, and SLD+ADHD/ADHD) by an integrative utilization of both the Bannatyne category scores (n=4) and scores from the four neuropsychological tests (n=10) was 92.4%, 81.4%, and 71.8%, respectively. These proportions were generally higher than those obtained using the Bannatyne category scores alone (86.4%, 75.5%, and 73.1%, respectively). The same trend was seen in the classification of children into diagnostic and control groups. However, the proportion of the correctness of estimation was higher than that obtained for the diagnostic dyads. CONCLUSION: When conducted using appropriately chosen research designs and statistical techniques and if confounding variables are sufficiently controlled, a neuropsychometric battery that includes capacities that relate to intelligence (Bannatyne categories) and those that relate to neurocognitive processes (neuropsychological tests) can be useful in the differential diagnosis of SLD.

[Crime analysis regarding sex offenders in Turkey: psychological profiling, cognitive distortions and psychopathy among rapists]. / Türkiye'de cinsel suçlular ile ilgili suç analizi: cinsel saldiri suçlularinin psikolojik profilleri, bilissel çarpitmalari ve psikopati düzeyleri.

AIM: In this study the characteristics offenders and victims that contribute to offender profiling are analyzed in cases of sexual assault. The analysis of sexual assaults are identifies the relationship between these characteristics and sex crimes by examining the elements which contribute to sex crimes including demographic characteristics, domestic and developmental conditions, forensic history, cognitive distortions and psychopathy. METHODS: The Interviewing Tool For Sex Crimes, Cognitive Distortions Question Tool About Rape, and Levenson Self Report Psychopathy Scale (LSRP) were applied to 106 male convicts between the ages of 18-65 or a control group consisting of 100 males volunteers between the age range of 18-65 from 11 different closed prisons. RESULTS: The results of the cognitive distortions questionnaire score was significantly different among sex offenders compared to innocent individuals. The level of cognitive distortion is significantly greater among sex offenders. The first and the second psychopathy scores are significantly higher than the scores of comparison group, with the second testing revealing increased scores in comparison to the first among sex offenders. CONCLUSION: The typology of most of sex offenders can be evaluated as opportunistic. This study serves as an initial point of reference for the necessary theoretical studies of risk assessment, common in the forensic psychology field not yet applied in Turkey.

Psychoeducation and expressed emotion by parents of children with learning disorders.

The present study assessed use of a psychoeducation group program on expressed emotion, family functioning, and child behavior by parents of children with learning disorders. 81 parents of children with learning disorders were randomly assigned to a psychoeducation group program (n=46) or to a regular treatment group (n=35). A semistructured interview for parental expressed emotion, self-reports of family functioning, and child behavior were utilized at baseline and after an 8-session psychoeducation group program. Parents who attended the program differed significantly from parents in the regular treatment group on measures of criticism, warmth, and positive remarks, and overall expressed emotion, but not on measures of perceived family functioning and child behavior. Findings indicate a psychoeducation group program could be effective in helping parents to establish a more positive emotional climate in their relationships with their children who have learning disorders.

[Development of grade level norms for reading speed and writing errors of Turkish elementary school children]. / Ilkögretim okullarina devam eden türk cocuklarinin sinif düzeylerine göre okuma hizi ve yazim hatalari normlarinin gelistirilmesi.

INTRODUCTION: Despite being in the normal intelligence range, children with learning disorders fail to reach expected academic performance levels. Clinical diagnosis and decisions for therapeutic management for these children require the use of academic achievement tests. The lack of reliable achievement tests and age appropriate reading speed and writing norms hinder clinical studies with Turkish children. OBJECTIVE: To develop and establish Turkish norms of an assessment tool which will aid in the objective evaluation and diagnosis of learning disorders. METHOD: A total of 2572 children attending the 1st-5th grades of randomly selected elementary schools belonging to different socioeconomic levels constituted the sample of the study. The number of words read from grade-level appropriate scripts in 1 minute indicated reading speed. A three-sentence script containing repeating consonants p-b-t-d-m-n-v-f was dictated to determine writing errors. RESULTS AND DISCUSSION: Grade levels of reading speed increase and writing errors decrease as the child grows. Mean, standard deviation and standard error scores indicate that objective academic achievement criteria were reached. Achievement differences according to gender and sociocultural status, which were not the subject of this study, also seem to be important variables.