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The article reports on the result of a study conducted which evaluates the accuracy and efficiency of a brief screening instrument used for predicting externalizing disorders among Dutch children. The inquiry was done through providing teachers with a Strengths and Difficulties Questionnaire for an ethnic diverse sample of 2,185 children. Likewise, a stepwise logistic regression was applied by means of the Hyperactivity and Conduct Problems Scale of the Strengths and Difficulties Questionnaire, for predicting best diagnosis of any externalizing disorder. The result of the assessment revealed 91 cases of externalizing disorders. It was concluded that before the internally validated prediction tool can be implemented, external validation in another sample is needed.

The present study assesses the population prevalence of DSM-IV disorders among native and immigrant children living in low socio-economic status (SES) inner-city neighborhoods in the Netherlands. In the first phase of a two-phase epidemiological design, teachers screened an ethnically diverse sample of 2041 children aged 6-10 years using the Strengths and Difficulties Questionnaire (SDQ). In the second phase, a subsample of 253 children was psychiatrically examined, while their parents were interviewed. In addition, teachers completed a short questionnaire about 10 DSM-IV items. Prevalence was estimated using the best-estimate diagnosis based on parent, child and teacher information. Projected to the total population, 11% of the children had one or more impairing psychiatric disorders, which did not differ between native and non-native children. In the total group a clear relationship was observed between the prevalence of psychiatric disorders and gender, parental psychopathology, peer problems and school problems, but not among all ethnic groups separately. This study suggests that the prevalence of psychiatric disorders among non-treated minority and native children in low SES inner-city neighborhoods does not materially differ. However, associated mechanisms may be influenced by ethnicity. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]