Observation Report from Clinical Practice in Ghana: Children and Adolescent Depression
Date
2016
Authors
Journal Title
Journal ISSN
Volume Title
Publisher
Journal of Child & Adolescent Behavior
Abstract
The priority of Ghanaian parents is seeking higher academic attainment for their children. This is associated with
the first President of Ghana, President Nkrumah, who stated that Ghanaians should seek first the status of
education and everything shall be added unto it. As a result parents compete with each other to achieve the higher
status of education for their children. Parents desperately seek help to intervene learning difficulties among school
children and adolescents. The aim of this study is to investigate learning disability cases that are seen in a
psychological clinic in Ghana using a survey method. The analysis included cases of young people from 3 to 18
years (mean age = 12.7 years, SD = 5.21) that were seen from the year 2011 to 2013. Eighty eight (58%) of the
cases were learning disabilities associated with environmental factors whereas 64 (42%) were organic learning
disability associated with biological factors. Children experiencing non-organic learning disability conditions were
from low socio-economic status families (X2
= 5.95, df = 1, p < 0.05). Findings revealed that high demands of
academic performance on these school children manifest as mental health symptoms of depression and anxiety
including substance abuse. Practitioners in Ghana are encouraged to assess cognitive functioning of children
diagnosed with emotional difficulties in order to get a correct diagnosis and plan appropriate treatment for these
children.
Description
Research Article
Keywords
Child, Adolescent, Young people