Prevalence of Symptoms of Post-Traumatic Stress, Depression and Anxiety Among Abused and Neglected Adolescents in Charitable Children’s Institutions in Nairobi

Stella Kemuma Nyagwencha; Alice Munene; Naomi James; Ricarda Mewes; Antonia Barke

doi:doi:10.11648/j.ajap.20180702.12

| Peer-Reviewed

Prevalence of Symptoms of Post-Traumatic Stress, Depression and Anxiety Among Abused and Neglected Adolescents in Charitable Children’s Institutions in Nairobi

Stella Kemuma Nyagwencha, Alice Munene, Naomi James, Ricarda Mewes, Antonia Barke

Published in American Journal of Applied Psychology (Volume 7, Issue 2)

Received: 17 May 2018 Accepted: 4 June 2018 Published: 18 June 2018

Views: Downloads:

Download PDF

Share This Article

Twitter
Linked In
Facebook

Abstract

Children living in institutions experience separation from their birth parents and other caregivers. Further, they also suffer from the effects of abuse and neglect which led to their institutionalization as well as effects of institutional care despite the fact that their physical needs like food, clothing and shelter are adequately met. The purpose of this study was to establish the prevalence of symptoms of anxiety disorder, depression and post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD) among adolescents with a history of abuse and neglect living in charitable children’s institutions (CCIs) in Nairobi County, Kenya. Three purposely selected CCIs in Nairobi, Kenya, housing 341 adolescents aged between 13-18 years were studied. Of these, 232 adolescents provided informed consent or assent depending on age, reported sociodemographic data and answered questions about experiences of abuse and neglect. They also completed the Harvard Trauma Questionnaire (HTQ), Beck’s Anxiety Inventory (BAI) and Beck’s Depression Inventory II (BDI-II). Of the 232 respondents, 63.2% had experienced abuse and neglect. Analyses of mental health symptoms indicated that symptoms of anxiety had the highest point prevalence of 84.1%, followed by those of depression at 50.4% and PTSD at 21.6%. Due to the abuse experienced, adolescents living in CCIs represent a vulnerable group in terms of mental health and psychological support adapted to the needs of this group should be provided.

Published in	American Journal of Applied Psychology (Volume 7, Issue 2)
DOI	10.11648/j.ajap.20180702.12
Page(s)	37-43
Creative Commons	This is an Open Access article, distributed under the terms of the Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 International License (http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/), which permits unrestricted use, distribution and reproduction in any medium or format, provided the original work is properly cited.
Copyright	Copyright © The Author(s), 2018. Published by Science Publishing Group

Keywords

Anxiety, Depression, PTSD, Adolescents, Abuse, Charitable Children’s Institutions, Kenya

References

[1]	UN General Assembly, “DECLARATION OF THE RIGHTS OF THE CHILD,” in Declaration of the Rights of the Child.
[2]	M. Stoltenborgh, M. J. Bakermans-Kranenburg, L. R. A. Alink, and M. H. van IJzendoorn, “The Prevalence of Child Maltreatment across the Globe: Review of a Series of Meta-Analyses,” Child Abus. Rev., vol. 24, no. 1, pp. 37–50, Jan. 2015.
[3]	A. Lazenbatt, “The impact of abuse and neglect on the health and mental health of children and young people,” … Prev. Cruel. to Child. Available online …, no. February, pp. 1–25, 2010.
[4]	Government of Kenya. UNICEF. Global Affairs Canada, “Taking child protection to the next level in Kenya,” 2015.
[5]	UNICEF, “Violence Against Children in Kenya: Findings from 2010 National Survey,” 2012.
[6]	S. H. Karsberg and A. Elklit, “Victimization and PTSD in A Rural Kenyan Youth Sample.,” Clin. Pract. Epidemiol. Ment. Health, vol. 8, pp. 91–101, 2012.
[7]	2001 (Kenya) The Children Act, “Kenya: Children’s Act 8 of 2001,” vol. No. 8 of 2, 2001.
[8]	L. L. Carpenter, T. T. Shattuck, A. R. Tyrka, T. D. Geracioti, and L. H. Price, “Effect of childhood physical abuse on cortisol stress response.,” Psychopharmacology (Berl)., vol. 214, no. 1, pp. 367–75, Mar. 2011.
[9]	J.-Y. Feng, Y.-T. Chang, H.-Y. Chang, S. Fetzer, and J.-D. Wang, “Prevalence of different forms of child maltreatment among Taiwanese adolescents: A population-based study,” Child Abuse Negl., vol. 42, pp. 10–19, 2015.
[10]	A. Lamont and L. Bromfield, “Effects of child abuse and neglect for children and adolescents,” Natl. Child Prot. Clear. House, vol. 1, p. 7, 2010.
[11]	C. P. McLean, S. H. Morris, P. Conklin, N. Jayawickreme, and E. B. Foa, “Trauma Characteristics and Posttraumatic Stress Disorder among Adolescent Survivors of Childhood Sexual Abuse,” J. Fam. Violence, vol. 29, no. 5, 2014.
[12]	S. Pokhariyal, G. P., Rono, R., Munywoki, “full-text,” Traumatology (Tallahass. Fla)., vol. 19, no. 2, pp. 107–117, 2012.
[13]	D. M. Ndetei, F. A. Ongecha-Owuor, L. Khasakhala, V. Mutiso, G. Odhiambo, and D. A. Kokonya, “Traumatic experiences of Kenyan secondary school students,” J. Child Adolesc. Ment. Heal., vol. 19, no. 2, pp. 147–155, Oct. 2007.
[14]	L. I. Khasakhala, D. M. Ndetei, V. Mutiso, A. W. Mbwayo, and M. Mathai, “The prevalence of depressive symptoms among adolescents in Nairobi public secondary schools: association with perceived maladaptive parental behaviour.,” Afr. J. Psychiatry, vol. 15, no. 2, pp. 106–13, Mar. 2012.
[15]	F. Atieno Aboge, A. Obondo, D. Kathuku, and D. Kibuule, “The Prevalence of Depressive Symptoms among Sensory and Physically Challenged Persons Living with HIV/AIDS Attending Clinics in Nyanza Province, Kenya,” J. Depress. Anxiety, vol. 4, no. 2, 2015.
[16]	D. Ndetei et al., “The prevalence of anxiety and depression symptoms and syndromes in Kenyan children and adolescents,” J. Child Adolesc. Ment. Heal., vol. 20, no. 1, pp. 33–51, Aug. 2008.
[17]	A. Schimmenti and A. Bifulco, “Linking lack of care in childhood to anxiety disorders in emerging adulthood: the role of attachment styles,” Child Adolesc. Ment. Health, vol. 20, no. 1, pp. 41–48, Feb. 2015.
[18]	R. F. Mollica, Y. Caspi-Yavin, P. Bollini, T. Truong, S. Tor, and J. Lavelle, “The Harvard Trauma Questionnaire. Validating a cross-cultural instrument for measuring torture, trauma, and posttraumatic stress disorder in Indochinese refugees.,” J. Nerv. Ment. Dis., vol. 180, no. 2, pp. 111–6, Feb. 1992.
[19]	M. R. Shoeb, Marwa., Weinstein, Harvey., “The Harvard Trauma Questionnaire: Adapting a Cross-Cultural Instrument measuring Torture, Trauma and Posttraumatic Stress disorder in Iraqi Refugees,” Int. J. Soc. Psychiatry, vol. 53, no. 5, p. 447, 2007.
[20]	H. P. Söndergaard, S. Ekblad, and T. Theorell, “Screening for post-traumatic stress disorder among refugees in Stockholm,” Nord. J. Psychiatry, vol. 57, no. 3, pp. 185–189, Jan. 2003.
[21]	A. T. Beck, R. A. Steer, and G. Brown, “BDI-II psychometric properties,” NCTSN, 1996. [Online]. Available: http://nctsn.org/sites/default/files/assets/pdfs/measures/BDI-II.pdf. [Accessed: 31-Jul-2017].
[22]	A. T. Beck, C. H. Ward, M. Mendelson, J. Mock, and J. Erbaugh, “An inventory for measuring depression.,” Arch. Gen. Psychiatry, vol. 4, pp. 561–71, Jun. 1961.
[23]	D. M. Ndetei, F. A. Ongecha-Owuor, L. Khasakhala, V. Mutiso, G. Odhiambo, and D. A. Kokonya, “Traumatic experiences of Kenyan secondary school students,” J. Child Adolesc. Ment. Health, vol. 19, no. 2, pp. 147–155, 2007.
[24]	A. T. Beck, N. Epstein, G. Brown, and R. A. Steer, “An inventory for measuring clinical anxiety: Psychometric properties.,” J. Consult. Clin. Psychol., vol. 56, no. 6, pp. 893–897, 1988.
[25]	I. M. Nyaga, “Prevalence of PTSD, depression and anxiety among female survivors of rape following Post Election violence 2007 December Nairobi-Kenya,” unpublished, 2010.
[26]	G. Morantz, D. C. Cole, S. Ayaya, D. Ayuku, and P. Braitstein, “Maltreatment experiences and associated factors prior to admission to residential care: A sample of institutionalized children and youth in western Kenya,” Child Abuse Negl., vol. 37, no. 10, pp. 778–787, Oct. 2013.
[27]	M. R. Infurna, C. Reichl, P. Parzer, A. Schimmenti, A. Bifulco, and M. Kaess, “Associations between depression and specific childhood experiences of abuse and neglect: A meta-analysis,” J. Affect. Disord., vol. 190, pp. 47–55, 2015.
[28]	T. N. Brockie, G. Dana-Sacco, G. R. Wallen, H. C. Wilcox, and J. C. Campbell, “The Relationship of Adverse Childhood Experiences to PTSD, Depression, Poly-Drug Use and Suicide Attempt in Reservation-Based Native American Adolescents and Young Adults,” Am. J. Community Psychol., vol. 55, no. 3–4, pp. 411–421, Jun. 2015.
[29]	T. O. Afifi, H. L. MacMillan, M. Boyle, T. Taillieu, K. Cheung, and J. Sareen, “Child abuse and mental disorders in Canada.,” Can. Med. Assoc. J., vol. 186, no. 9, pp. e324-32, Jun. 2014.
[30]	A. M. Naughton, L. E. Cowley, V. Tempest, S. A. Maguire, M. K. Mann, and A. M. Kemp, “Ask Me! self-reported features of adolescents experiencing neglect or emotional maltreatment: a rapid systematic review,” Child. Care. Health Dev., vol. 43, no. 3, pp. 348–360, May 2017.
[31]	L. Atwoli et al., “Impact of domestic care environment on trauma and posttraumatic stress disorder among orphans in western Kenya.,” PLoS One, vol. 9, no. 3, p. e89937, 2014.
[32]	R. Jenkins et al., “Probable Post Traumatic Stress Disorder in Kenya and Its Associated Risk Factors: A Cross-Sectional Household Survey.,” Int. J. Environ. Res. Public Health, vol. 12, no. 10, pp. 13494–509, Oct. 2015.
[33]	T. Mutavi, M. Mathai, and A. Obondo, “Post-Traumatic Stress Disorder (PTSD) in Sexually Abused Children and Educational Status in Kenya: A Longitudinal Study,” J. Child Adolesc. Behav., vol. 5, no. 5, pp. 1–8, Sep. 2017.
[34]	M. A. Rashid, A., Aziz, A., Thabet, “Prevalence of PTSD, Depression, and Anxiety Among Orphaned Children in the Gaza Strip - Semantic Scholar,” ECRONICON OPEN ACCESS, vol. 5, no. 6, pp. 159–169, 2017.

Cite This Article

Plain Text BibTeX RIS

APA Style

Stella Kemuma Nyagwencha, Alice Munene, Naomi James, Ricarda Mewes, Antonia Barke. (2018). Prevalence of Symptoms of Post-Traumatic Stress, Depression and Anxiety Among Abused and Neglected Adolescents in Charitable Children’s Institutions in Nairobi. American Journal of Applied Psychology, 7(2), 37-43. https://doi.org/10.11648/j.ajap.20180702.12

Copy | Download

ACS Style

Stella Kemuma Nyagwencha; Alice Munene; Naomi James; Ricarda Mewes; Antonia Barke. Prevalence of Symptoms of Post-Traumatic Stress, Depression and Anxiety Among Abused and Neglected Adolescents in Charitable Children’s Institutions in Nairobi. Am. J. Appl. Psychol. 2018, 7(2), 37-43. doi: 10.11648/j.ajap.20180702.12

Copy | Download

AMA Style

Stella Kemuma Nyagwencha, Alice Munene, Naomi James, Ricarda Mewes, Antonia Barke. Prevalence of Symptoms of Post-Traumatic Stress, Depression and Anxiety Among Abused and Neglected Adolescents in Charitable Children’s Institutions in Nairobi. Am J Appl Psychol. 2018;7(2):37-43. doi: 10.11648/j.ajap.20180702.12

Copy | Download

@article{10.11648/j.ajap.20180702.12,
  author = {Stella Kemuma Nyagwencha and Alice Munene and Naomi James and Ricarda Mewes and Antonia Barke},
  title = {Prevalence of Symptoms of Post-Traumatic Stress, Depression and Anxiety Among Abused and Neglected Adolescents in Charitable Children’s Institutions in Nairobi},
  journal = {American Journal of Applied Psychology},
  volume = {7},
  number = {2},
  pages = {37-43},
  doi = {10.11648/j.ajap.20180702.12},
  url = {https://doi.org/10.11648/j.ajap.20180702.12},
  eprint = {https://article.sciencepublishinggroup.com/pdf/10.11648.j.ajap.20180702.12},
  abstract = {Children living in institutions experience separation from their birth parents and other caregivers. Further, they also suffer from the effects of abuse and neglect which led to their institutionalization as well as effects of institutional care despite the fact that their physical needs like food, clothing and shelter are adequately met. The purpose of this study was to establish the prevalence of symptoms of anxiety disorder, depression and post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD) among adolescents with a history of abuse and neglect living in charitable children’s institutions (CCIs) in Nairobi County, Kenya. Three purposely selected CCIs in Nairobi, Kenya, housing 341 adolescents aged between 13-18 years were studied. Of these, 232 adolescents provided informed consent or assent depending on age, reported sociodemographic data and answered questions about experiences of abuse and neglect. They also completed the Harvard Trauma Questionnaire (HTQ), Beck’s Anxiety Inventory (BAI) and Beck’s Depression Inventory II (BDI-II). Of the 232 respondents, 63.2% had experienced abuse and neglect. Analyses of mental health symptoms indicated that symptoms of anxiety had the highest point prevalence of 84.1%, followed by those of depression at 50.4% and PTSD at 21.6%. Due to the abuse experienced, adolescents living in CCIs represent a vulnerable group in terms of mental health and psychological support adapted to the needs of this group should be provided.},
 year = {2018}
}

Copy | Download

TY  - JOUR
T1  - Prevalence of Symptoms of Post-Traumatic Stress, Depression and Anxiety Among Abused and Neglected Adolescents in Charitable Children’s Institutions in Nairobi
AU  - Stella Kemuma Nyagwencha
AU  - Alice Munene
AU  - Naomi James
AU  - Ricarda Mewes
AU  - Antonia Barke
Y1  - 2018/06/18
PY  - 2018
N1  - https://doi.org/10.11648/j.ajap.20180702.12
DO  - 10.11648/j.ajap.20180702.12
T2  - American Journal of Applied Psychology
JF  - American Journal of Applied Psychology
JO  - American Journal of Applied Psychology
SP  - 37
EP  - 43
PB  - Science Publishing Group
SN  - 2328-5672
UR  - https://doi.org/10.11648/j.ajap.20180702.12
AB  - Children living in institutions experience separation from their birth parents and other caregivers. Further, they also suffer from the effects of abuse and neglect which led to their institutionalization as well as effects of institutional care despite the fact that their physical needs like food, clothing and shelter are adequately met. The purpose of this study was to establish the prevalence of symptoms of anxiety disorder, depression and post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD) among adolescents with a history of abuse and neglect living in charitable children’s institutions (CCIs) in Nairobi County, Kenya. Three purposely selected CCIs in Nairobi, Kenya, housing 341 adolescents aged between 13-18 years were studied. Of these, 232 adolescents provided informed consent or assent depending on age, reported sociodemographic data and answered questions about experiences of abuse and neglect. They also completed the Harvard Trauma Questionnaire (HTQ), Beck’s Anxiety Inventory (BAI) and Beck’s Depression Inventory II (BDI-II). Of the 232 respondents, 63.2% had experienced abuse and neglect. Analyses of mental health symptoms indicated that symptoms of anxiety had the highest point prevalence of 84.1%, followed by those of depression at 50.4% and PTSD at 21.6%. Due to the abuse experienced, adolescents living in CCIs represent a vulnerable group in terms of mental health and psychological support adapted to the needs of this group should be provided.
VL  - 7
IS  - 2
ER  -

Copy | Download

Author Information

Stella Kemuma Nyagwencha

Department of Psychology and Counseling, Daystar University, Nairobi, Kenya
Alice Munene

Department of Psychology and Counseling, Daystar University, Nairobi, Kenya
Naomi James

Department of Psychology and Counseling, Daystar University, Nairobi, Kenya
Ricarda Mewes

Department of Psychology, University of Vienna, Vienna, Germany
Antonia Barke

Department of Psychology, Philipps University, Marburg, Germany

Download PDF

Sections

Plain Text BibTeX RIS

APA Style

Stella Kemuma Nyagwencha, Alice Munene, Naomi James, Ricarda Mewes, Antonia Barke. (2018). Prevalence of Symptoms of Post-Traumatic Stress, Depression and Anxiety Among Abused and Neglected Adolescents in Charitable Children’s Institutions in Nairobi. American Journal of Applied Psychology, 7(2), 37-43. https://doi.org/10.11648/j.ajap.20180702.12

Copy | Download

ACS Style

Stella Kemuma Nyagwencha; Alice Munene; Naomi James; Ricarda Mewes; Antonia Barke. Prevalence of Symptoms of Post-Traumatic Stress, Depression and Anxiety Among Abused and Neglected Adolescents in Charitable Children’s Institutions in Nairobi. Am. J. Appl. Psychol. 2018, 7(2), 37-43. doi: 10.11648/j.ajap.20180702.12

Copy | Download

AMA Style

Stella Kemuma Nyagwencha, Alice Munene, Naomi James, Ricarda Mewes, Antonia Barke. Prevalence of Symptoms of Post-Traumatic Stress, Depression and Anxiety Among Abused and Neglected Adolescents in Charitable Children’s Institutions in Nairobi. Am J Appl Psychol. 2018;7(2):37-43. doi: 10.11648/j.ajap.20180702.12

Copy | Download

@article{10.11648/j.ajap.20180702.12,
  author = {Stella Kemuma Nyagwencha and Alice Munene and Naomi James and Ricarda Mewes and Antonia Barke},
  title = {Prevalence of Symptoms of Post-Traumatic Stress, Depression and Anxiety Among Abused and Neglected Adolescents in Charitable Children’s Institutions in Nairobi},
  journal = {American Journal of Applied Psychology},
  volume = {7},
  number = {2},
  pages = {37-43},
  doi = {10.11648/j.ajap.20180702.12},
  url = {https://doi.org/10.11648/j.ajap.20180702.12},
  eprint = {https://article.sciencepublishinggroup.com/pdf/10.11648.j.ajap.20180702.12},
  abstract = {Children living in institutions experience separation from their birth parents and other caregivers. Further, they also suffer from the effects of abuse and neglect which led to their institutionalization as well as effects of institutional care despite the fact that their physical needs like food, clothing and shelter are adequately met. The purpose of this study was to establish the prevalence of symptoms of anxiety disorder, depression and post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD) among adolescents with a history of abuse and neglect living in charitable children’s institutions (CCIs) in Nairobi County, Kenya. Three purposely selected CCIs in Nairobi, Kenya, housing 341 adolescents aged between 13-18 years were studied. Of these, 232 adolescents provided informed consent or assent depending on age, reported sociodemographic data and answered questions about experiences of abuse and neglect. They also completed the Harvard Trauma Questionnaire (HTQ), Beck’s Anxiety Inventory (BAI) and Beck’s Depression Inventory II (BDI-II). Of the 232 respondents, 63.2% had experienced abuse and neglect. Analyses of mental health symptoms indicated that symptoms of anxiety had the highest point prevalence of 84.1%, followed by those of depression at 50.4% and PTSD at 21.6%. Due to the abuse experienced, adolescents living in CCIs represent a vulnerable group in terms of mental health and psychological support adapted to the needs of this group should be provided.},
 year = {2018}
}

Copy | Download

TY  - JOUR
T1  - Prevalence of Symptoms of Post-Traumatic Stress, Depression and Anxiety Among Abused and Neglected Adolescents in Charitable Children’s Institutions in Nairobi
AU  - Stella Kemuma Nyagwencha
AU  - Alice Munene
AU  - Naomi James
AU  - Ricarda Mewes
AU  - Antonia Barke
Y1  - 2018/06/18
PY  - 2018
N1  - https://doi.org/10.11648/j.ajap.20180702.12
DO  - 10.11648/j.ajap.20180702.12
T2  - American Journal of Applied Psychology
JF  - American Journal of Applied Psychology
JO  - American Journal of Applied Psychology
SP  - 37
EP  - 43
PB  - Science Publishing Group
SN  - 2328-5672
UR  - https://doi.org/10.11648/j.ajap.20180702.12
AB  - Children living in institutions experience separation from their birth parents and other caregivers. Further, they also suffer from the effects of abuse and neglect which led to their institutionalization as well as effects of institutional care despite the fact that their physical needs like food, clothing and shelter are adequately met. The purpose of this study was to establish the prevalence of symptoms of anxiety disorder, depression and post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD) among adolescents with a history of abuse and neglect living in charitable children’s institutions (CCIs) in Nairobi County, Kenya. Three purposely selected CCIs in Nairobi, Kenya, housing 341 adolescents aged between 13-18 years were studied. Of these, 232 adolescents provided informed consent or assent depending on age, reported sociodemographic data and answered questions about experiences of abuse and neglect. They also completed the Harvard Trauma Questionnaire (HTQ), Beck’s Anxiety Inventory (BAI) and Beck’s Depression Inventory II (BDI-II). Of the 232 respondents, 63.2% had experienced abuse and neglect. Analyses of mental health symptoms indicated that symptoms of anxiety had the highest point prevalence of 84.1%, followed by those of depression at 50.4% and PTSD at 21.6%. Due to the abuse experienced, adolescents living in CCIs represent a vulnerable group in terms of mental health and psychological support adapted to the needs of this group should be provided.
VL  - 7
IS  - 2
ER  -

Copy | Download