ISSN: 2375-4494

Journal of Child and Adolescent Behavior
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  • Case Report   
  • J Child Adolesc Behav 2016, Vol 4(2): 286
  • DOI: 10.4172/2375-4494.1000286

Observation Report from Clinical Practice in Ghana: Children and Adolescent Depression

Mavis Asare* and Samuel A Danquah
1Methodist University College Ghana/Progressive Life Center, , Ghana
2Psychology Department, Legon/Methodist University College, University of Ghana, Ghana
*Corresponding Author : Mavis Asare, P.O. Box AN 5628, Accra-North, Ghana, Tel: +233 272 06 31 93, Email: masare@mucg.edu.gh

Received Date: Feb 23, 2016 / Accepted Date: Mar 17, 2016 / Published Date: Mar 24, 2016

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.

Keywords: Child; Adolescent; Young people; Depression; Behaviour; Child psychology; Childtherapy

Citation: Asare M, Danquah SA (2016) Observation Report from Clinical Practice in Ghana: Children and Adolescent Depression. J Child Adolesc Behav 4: 286. Doi: 10.4172/2375-4494.1000286

Copyright: © 2016 Asare M, et al. This is an open-access article distributed under the terms of the Creative Commons Attribution License, which permits unrestricted use, distribution, and reproduction in any medium, provided the original author and source are credited.

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