A COMMUNITY STUDY OF PRESCHOOL BEHAVIOR DISORDER IN NEW-ZEALAND

A two stage epidemiological study of 320 children aged between 2.5 and 5 years of age, from eight randomly selected preschool centres, was p erformed in order (1) to test the psychometrics of the Behaviour Check List (BCL), a parent report instrument for preschool children, (2) to estimate the prevalence, and (3) to describe the correlates of presch ool behaviour disorder, After the initial screening using the BCL, the Hyperactivity Scale (HAS) and the Internalising Disorder Scale (IDS), parents were interviewed using the Behaviour Screening Questionnaire (BSQ); the children were examined using the Rutter and Graham's interv iew, Data was also collected on family functioning, maternal mental he alth, social adversity, development, physical health and perinatal his tory. The BCL was found to be a reliable and valid screening measure, A cut off point of 8+ was established for New Zealand preschoolers; th is is lower than that in the UK sample, illustrating the importance of retesting the instruments in a different culture, The prevalence rate of behaviour problems based on clinical diagnosis was 22.5%, Results of logistic regression analysis showed that poor family functioning, p oor maternal mental health and parental separation were associated sig nificantly with behaviour disorder. This study emphasises the need to identify preschool behaviour disorder and associated risk factors to e nable an early intervention.