School adjustment and health in Russian adolescents

Child and adolescent mental health problems in Tyva Republic, Russia, as possible risk factors for a high suicide rate

High rates of child mental health problems in the Russian Federation have recently been documented; the rates of youth suicide are among the highest in the world. Across the Russian regions, Republic of Tyva has one of the highest rates of child and adolescent suicide and the lowest life expectancy at birth. The aim of this study was to investigate the prevalence and associations of mental health problems in Native Tyvinian children and adolescents using internationally recognised measures and diagnoses. A two-stage, two-phase design involved selection of schools in five rural settlements in Western Tyva and two schools in the capital city followed by selection of Native Tyvinian children in grades 3-4 (ages 9-10) and 6-7 (ages 14-15). In the first phase, a screening measure of psychopathology, the Rutter Teacher Questionnaire, was obtained on 1048 children with a 97% participation rate. In the second phase, more detailed psychiatric assessments were carried out for subgroups of screen-positive and screen-negative children. The prevalence of mental health problems was about 25%, ranging from 40% in adolescent boys from rural areas to 9% in adolescent girls from the city. The patterning of disorders and risk factors were similar to those in other countries, rural areas were associated with an increased risk of psychopathology. The findings indicate that there is an urgent need for interventions to reduce risk in this population and provide effective help for Tyvinian children and adolescents with mental health problems.

Children of perestroika: the changing socioeconomic conditions in Russia and Ukraine and their effect on the psychological well-being of high-school adolescents

The present study investigates how the changing socioeconomic conditions in Russia and Ukraine affect the psychological well-being of high-school adolescents in these countries. Six indexes of psychological well-being, the adolescents' perception of the economic conditions in their families, perceived parental practices (care and autonomy providing), and perceived social support were measured in 1999 and 2007. Macro-level socioeconomic conditions in Russia and Ukraine, as well as the adolescents' perception of the economic conditions in their family, substantially improved from 1999 to 2007. However, the psychological well-being of the adolescents, as well as their perception of parental practices and the social support received from parents, peers, and teachers did not change. Russian adolescents consistently reported higher self-esteem and school competence than their Ukrainian peers, as well as higher parental care and autonomy providing, and higher social support received from peers. At the individual level, perceived parental care and autonomy providing, as well as perceived social support from parents, peers, and teachers were the major contributors to the adolescents' psychological well-being. The obtained results are discussed in light of the conservation of resources and ecological systems theories.