Some problems are easier to observe from the outside than others. Parents do not see their children in every setting. This might mean we do not have a full picture of the mental health concerns of children with developmental disabilities.

One reason for relying on parent report, might be that the assessments are inaccessible for some young people – they are cognitively challenging (hard to understand). This might mean some children could self-report and some could not. This PhD will involve a range of studies looking at how mental health has been measured in young people with developmental disabilities, whether the assessments have been validated for self-report for this group and what adaptations have been made or should be made to aide them in self-reporting.

This doctoral research is funded through the Swedish Research Foundation as part of the Participation and Mental Health project.