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Prevalence of mental health disorders among low-income African American adolescents

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Abstract

Purpose

Data on the prevalence of mental health disorders for low-income, urban African American adolescents are scarce. This study presents data about the burden of mental disorders for this understudied population.

Methods

Mental disorders were assessed using the Diagnostic Interview Schedule for Children (C-DISC), Youth Self-Report (YSR), and Child Behavior Checklist (CBCL) among a sample of adolescents and their caregivers from very impoverished neighborhoods in a Southern city.

Results

Based on the C-DISC, 3.8, 5.1 and 7.7 % of adolescents met diagnostic criteria for major depression, post-traumatic stress disorder, and conduct disorder, respectively. There were significant differences among some of the mental health disorders based on adolescent and caregiver characteristics such as sex, school status, caregiver work status, and income level. We found a low prevalence of alcohol, marijuana, and substance abuse and dependence disorders.

Conclusions

Information about the prevalence of mental health disorders in specific communities and populations can assist in addressing unmet needs, planning for services and treatment, and reducing health disparities.

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Acknowledgments

This project was supported by a Grant from the National Institute of Drug Abuse (RO1DA025039). The content is solely the responsibility of the authors and does not necessarily represent the official views of the funders.

Conflict of interest

There are no conflicts of interest by any authors in regard to this study or this publication.

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Authors and Affiliations

  1. Department of Medical Social Sciences, Feinberg School of Medicine, Northwestern University, 625 North Michigan Avenue, Suite 2700, Chicago, IL, 60611, USA

    Gayle R. Byck, Alan W. Ashbeck & Brian S. Mustanski

  2. College of Human Environmental Sciences, University of Alabama, Box 870158, Tuscaloosa, AL, 35487-0158, USA

    John Bolland

  3. Virginia Institute for Psychiatric and Behavioral Genetics, Virginia Commonwealth University Department of Psychiatry, PO Box 980126, Richmond, VA, 23298-0126, USA

    Danielle Dick

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  1. Gayle R. Byck
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  2. John Bolland
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  3. Danielle Dick
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  4. Alan W. Ashbeck
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  5. Brian S. Mustanski
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Correspondence to Brian S. Mustanski.

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Byck, G.R., Bolland, J., Dick, D. et al. Prevalence of mental health disorders among low-income African American adolescents. Soc Psychiatry Psychiatr Epidemiol 48, 1555–1567 (2013). https://doi.org/10.1007/s00127-013-0657-3

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