title: [School truancy. A heterogeneous disturbing picture].
abstract: School truancy is not a diagnostic entity. It is rather a conglomeration of symptoms with various causal factors. With a prevalence of about 5% of all children attending school, three typical groups of anxious school truants can be differentiated: children with separation anxiety, with simple and social phobia as well as anxious and/or depressive symptoms. Anxious truants show depressive symptoms and separation anxiety significantly above chance, while school truancy is closely associated with social disorders, depression and oppositional behaviour and mostly occurs in boys. Psychosocial risk factors such as contact problems with peers, familial and school problems often play an important part. The increased comorbidity as well as various associated stress factors demand multiple behaviour and psychological diagnostics. Sophisticated therapeutic measures should regard this and focus on cognitive behaviour therapy as well as educative and supportive interventions.
authors.affiliation: Charité, Universitätsmedizin Berlin, Berlin. ulrike.lehmkuhl@charite.de
authors.forename: U
authors.initials: U
authors.lastname: Lehmkuhl
authors.forename: G
authors.initials: G
authors.lastname: Lehmkuhl
mesh_terms: D000041:Absenteeism; D000293:Adolescent; D000328:Adult; D001010:Anxiety, Separation / Q000453:epidemiology / Q000523:psychology* / Q000628:therapy; D002648:Child; D002653:Child Behavior Disorders / Q000453:epidemiology / Q000523:psychology* / Q000628:therapy; D015897:Comorbidity; D003863:Depression / Q000453:epidemiology / Q000523:psychology* / Q000628:therapy; D005260:Female; D005858:Germany / Q000453:epidemiology; D006801:Humans; D008297:Male; D010698:Phobic Disorders / Q000453:epidemiology / Q000523:psychology* / Q000628:therapy; D018570:Risk Assessment / Q000379:methods; D012307:Risk Factors; D012574:Schools; D013332:Student Dropouts / Q000523:psychology; D013334:Students / Q000523:psychology*
vernacular_title: Schulverweigerung. Ein heterogenes Störungsbild.