Time Trends in Dutch Children's Mental Health

This study investigated time trends in Dutch children's and adolescent's mental health problems by comparing population samples from different time periods. From 1983 to 2003, 6-16-year-olds parent-reported internalizing problems increased. No increases were seen regarding the emotional and behavioral problems of 2- and 3-year-olds between 1989 to 2003. Self-reported alcohol use and suicidal behavior increased. These trends mostly affected girls' functioning. Service-use increased from 3.5% in 1993 to 5.9% in 2003. This increase was partly due to increases in the proportion of children from a single parent family or children with educational problems

Psychosexual Functioning of Cognitively-able Adolescents with Autism Spectrum Disorder Compared to Typically Developing Peers

To gain further insight into psychosexual functioning, including behaviors, intrapersonal and interpersonal aspects, in adolescents with Autism Spectrum Disorder (ASD), comprehensive, multi-informant measures are needed. This study describes (1) the development of a new measure of psychosexual functioning in both parent- and self-reports (Teen Transition Inventory; TTI) covering all three domains of psychosexual functioning (i.e. psychosexual socialization, psychosexual selfhood, and sexual/intimate behavior). And (2) the initial testing of this instrument, comparing adolescents with ASD (n = 79 parent-report; n = 58 self-report) to Typically Developing (TD) adolescents (n = 131 parent-report; n = 91 self-report) while taking into account gender as a covariate. Results from both informants indicate more difficulties regarding psychosexual socialization and psychosexual selfhood in the ASD group. With regard to sexual/intimate behavior, only parents reported significantly more problems in adolescents with ASD

Insight into Informant Discrepancies Regarding Psychosexual Functioning of Adolescents with and without Autism Spectrum Disorder

The private nature of psychosexual functioning leads adolescents and their parents to have different perspectives, which highlights studying parent–child informant discrepancies in this domain. We investigated informant discrepancy in psychosexual functioning, using the self-report and parent report versions of the Teen Transition Inventory (TTI), of adolescents with autism spectrum disorder (ASD; 136 parent–child dyads) compared to adolescents from the general population (GP; 70 parent–child dyads). Significantly larger informant discrepancies exist in ASD dyads than GP dyads in most domains of psychosexual functioning, except for Body image, Sexual behavior, and Confidence in the future. It is important to use and pay attention to both informants, as discrepancies are relevant for both research and clinical practice regarding psychosexual functionin

Developmental Links between Teacher-Child Closeness and Disobedience for Boys Placed in Special Education

The aim of this study was to examine developmental links between disobedience and teacher-child closeness in a sample of boys with psychiatric disorders (i.e., emotional and behavioral disorders (EBD) and autism spectrum disorders (ASD)) and special educational needs who are placed in special education. More specifically, this study examined whether developmental links were different between boys with EBD (n = 150) versus boys with ASD (n = 122). Developmental links between disobedience and teacher-child closeness were investigated by incorporating a multi-informant perspective using teacher, child, and peer ratings and analyzed using autoregressive cross-lagged models across three waves within one school year. Results showed that in general, developmental links between teacher-child closeness and disobedience were stronger for boys with EBD than for boys with ASD. Specifically, boys with EBD experiencing less teacher-child closeness showed more disobedience, which in turn negatively affected their rela

The challenge of a complex diversity: Difficult student behavior, teachers’ sense of inefficacy and emotional exhaustion in primary special education

Sinds de invoering van passend onderwijs zien leerkrachten op scholen voor speciaal basisonderwijs (SBO) en cluster 4-scholen voor speciaal onderwijs (SO) vaker complex en moeilijk leerlinggedrag. Dit is niet alleen zorgelijk met oog op de ontwikkeling van leerlingen, maar ook vanwege de toenemende druk op leerkrachten en het risico op burn-outklachten. Om leerkrachten goed te kunnen ondersteunen is het belangrijk een beeld te krijgen van het gedrag dat zij in de huidige onderwijspraktijk zien en hoe vaardig zij zich voelen om daarmee om te gaan. In deze studie hebben we middels een online-vragenlijstonderzoek in kaart gebracht in hoeverre S(B)O-leerkrachten (N=355) te maken krijgen met diverse vormen van moeilijk leerlinggedrag in de klas en hoe vaak zij zich daarbij handelingsverlegen voelen. Ook onderzochten we hoe deze zaken samenhangen met emotionele uitputting (i.e. het kernelement van een burn-out) bij leerkrachten. We vonden dat de meeste leerkrachten geregeld tot zeer vaak geconfronteerd worden met diverse vormen van externaliserend gedrag, internaliserend gedrag en met een negatieve houding van leerlingen ten aanzien van schoolwerk. Dit geldt het sterkst voor SO-leerkrachten. Hoewel leerkrachten zich overwegend vaardig voelen in de omgang met alle vormen van moeilijk leerlinggedrag, roept dit bij de meesten soms gevoelens van handelingsverlegenheid op. Leerkrachten die vaker externaliserend leerlinggedrag zien, hebben, mede doordat zij daar vaker handelingsverlegenheid bij voelen, meer last van emotionele uitputting. Voor internaliserend gedrag en een negatieve houding ten aanzien van schoolwerk vonden we dit specifieke verband niet. Deze bevindingen laten zien dat S(B) O-leerkrachten voor de uitdaging van een complexe diversiteit staan, die niet zonder risico is voor hun beroepsmatig welzijn. Interventies die deze leerkrachten kunnen ondersteunen in het omgaan met in het bijzonder externaliserend leerlinggedrag, kunnen bijdragen aan een betere (beroepsmatige) gezondheid van deze leerkrachten en daarmee aan de continuïteit en kwaliteit van het onderwijsleerproces van veelal kwetsbare S(B)O-leerlingen

Effecten van Taakspel op leerlingen en leerkrachten in het speciaal onderwijs

Leerlingen met psychiatrische stoornissen kampen vaak met sociaal-emotionele en gedragsproblemen die hun ontwikkeling in de weg staan. Veel van deze leerlingen volgen onderwijs in hiertoe aangewezen scholen voor speciaal onderwijs, ook wel cluster 4 scholen genoemd. Het lesgeven aan deze leerlingen gaat gepaard met veel uitdagingen die het welzijn van leerkrachten kunnen beïnvloeden. Het is daarom belangrijk dat leerkrachten in het speciaal onderwijs cluster 4 in staat worden gesteld om hun leerlingen optimaal in hun ontwikkeling te begeleiden. Een manier om dit te doen is door gebruik te maken van de gedragsmanagementinterventie Taakspel. Dit is een interventie die in het regulier onderwijs effectief is gebleken om het sociaal-emotioneel en gedragsmatig functioneren van leerlingen positief te beïnvloeden. In deze studie wordt getoetst middels een cluster-gerandomiseerde trial of deze interventie ook een positief effect heeft op de emotionele en gedragsproblemen en sociale relaties van leerlingen in het speciaal onderwijs cluster 4 (N=389). Ook worden mogelijke effecten op de burn-out symptomen en gevoelens van zelfeffectiviteit van hun leerkrachten onderzocht. De resultaten van deze studie laten zien dat de interventie een preventief effect heeft op de ontwikkeling van emotionele en gedragsproblemen van leerlingen, aangezien de mate van problemen voor leerlingen in de Taakspelconditie gelijk bleef gedurende het schooljaar, terwijl de problemen van leerlingen in de controleconditie een toename lieten zien. Tevens geven resultaten aan dat de interventie in staat is de gevoelens van zelfeffectiviteit van leerkrachten aangaande het kunnen betrekken en motiveren van leerlingen bij schoolwerk positief te beïnvloeden. Er zijn echter geen effecten gevonden van Taakspel op de sociale relaties tussen leerlingen en tussen leerlingen en leerkrachten of op andere maten van leerkrachtwelbevinden. De leerlingen en leerkrachten in het speciaal onderwijs kunnen mogelijk profiteren van een langere uitvoeringsperiode van Taakspel en een toepassing van aanvullende elementen gericht op het bevorderen van de sociale relaties in de klas

The impact of teachers’ self-efficacy and classroom externalising problem behaviours on emotional exhaustion: Between- and within-person associations

Teaching can be a challenging profession, which puts teachers at high risk for developing burnout symptoms, such as emotional exhaustion. In this study we aim to investigate the interplay between classroom externalising problem behaviours (as a job demand), teachers’ self-efficacy (as a job resource) and emotional exhaustion over a school year. Conducting three measurements during a school year among 103 Dutch primary education teachers, we examine the sensitivity for, and the individual development of, emotional exhaustion. Findings show that emotional exhaustion, classroom externalising problem behaviours, and teachers’ self-efficacy are stable constructs in teachers. Traditional (between-person) cross-lagged panel models indicate that teachers with low levels of self-efficacy are more likely to develop emotional exhaustion during the school year, compared to their colleagues. We found no evidence that teachers confronted with classroom externalising problem behaviours were more likely to develop emotional exhaustion. Random intercept (within-person) cross-lagged panel models indicate that teachers with high levels of classroom externalising problem behaviours do not show increased emotional exhaustion at a later time point. For self-efficacy and emotional exhaustion, we could not estimate the within-person model due to limited variance in the variables. Implications of these findings and suggestions for further research were discussed

Social–emotional development of students with social–emotional and behavioral difficulties in inclusive regular and exclusive special education

The present study investigated (1) how social relationships with teachers and peers and self-esteem of students with social–emotional and behavioral difficulties (SEBD) in inclusive regular education (regular schools) and students with SEBD in exclusive special education (special schools) develop over time in comparison with each other and in comparison with their typically developing peers and (2) whether factors—present before students with SEBD received special education services—predicted social–emotional development in either educational setting. Thirty-six students with SEBD in regular schools, 15 students with SEBD in special schools, and 1,270 typically developing peers participated. We collected data when students with SEBD resided in regular education without additional support, and we followed the development of students with SEBD for 1.5 years with three additional measurements in either school setting. Data of typically developing peers were collected when they resided in a classroom of a participating student with SEBD. Using Bayesian statistics, we found that students with SEBD in special schools had more conflictual relationships with their teachers than typically developing peers, but these relationships improved over time. Students with SEBD in regular schools were less accepted among peers than typically developing students and peer acceptance was stable over time for all three groups. Self-esteem and development in self-esteem over time did not differ between groups. The current study shows that students with SEBD show different developmental trajectories in regular or special schools and that it is difficult to predict their social–emotional development by factors present before students with SEBD received special education services

Teacher characteristics, social classroom relationships, and children's social, emotional, and behavioral classroom adjustment in special education

The goal of this study was to explore relations between teacher characteristics (i.e., competence and wellbeing); social classroom relationships (i.e., teacher-child and peer interactions); and children's social, emotional, and behavioral classroom adjustment. These relations were explored at both the individual and classroom levels among 414 children with emotional and behavioral disorders placed in special education. Two models were specified. In the first model, children's classroom adjustment was regressed on social relationships and teacher characteristics. In the second model, reversed links were examined by regressing teacher characteristics on social relationships and children's adjustment. Results of model 1 showed that, at the individual level, better social and emotional adjustment of children was predicted by higher levels of teacher-child closeness and better behavioral adjustment was predicted by both positive teacher-child and peer interactions. At the classroom level, positive social relationships were predicted by higher levels of teacher competence, which in turn were associated with lower classroom levels of social problems. Higher levels of teacher wellbeing were directly associated with classroom adaptive and maladaptive child outcomes. Results of model 2 showed that, at the individual and classroom levels, only the emotional and behavioral problems of children predicted social classroom relationships. At the classroom level, teacher competence was best predicted by positive teacher-child relationships and teacher wellbeing was best predicted by classroom levels of prosocial behavior. We discuss the importance of positive teacher-child and peer interactions for children placed in special education and suggest ways of improving classroom processes by targeting teacher competence