A Model-Based Method for Estimating Serious Emotional Disturbance Using a Mental Health Screener from Household Interview Data Combined with Clinical Interviews

• Activity Number: 215
• Type: Invited
• Date/Time: Monday, July 30, 2012 : 2:00 PM to 3:50 PM
• Sponsor: Caucus for Women in Statistics
• Author(s): Jeremy Aldworth*+ and Catherine M. Simile and Heather Ringeisen and Karen Morgan and Lisa Colpe and Joseph Gfroerer
• Companies: RTI International and National Center for Health Statistics and RTI International and RTI International and National Institute of Mental Health and SAMHSA
• Keywords: SDQ ; serious emotional distress ; child mental health ; survey methods

Abstract

This paper discusses the methodology used in a study to estimate serious emotional disturbance (SED) in children aged 4-17, based on a 5-item mental health screener for parents of children (the short Strength and Difficulties Questionnaire (SDQ)). The National Health Interview Survey (NHIS), which contains the SDQ, was selected for this study. A subsample from the NHIS of about 614 parents of children aged 4 to 17 were administered the Child and Adolescent Psychiatric Assessment over the telephone to determine the presence or absence of SED in their child. The diagnosis of SED based on parent responses to the clinical interview will be modeled against their responses to the SDQ screener, and a cutoff value will be identified to determine SED based on SDQ scores. This paper will include references to the methodology used in the Mental Health Surveillance Study conducted by the Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration (SAMHSA) to identify a cutoff value from adult mental health screeners to determine serious mental illness (SMI), the adult analog of SED.