@phdthesis{Mueller2021, author = {M{\"u}ller, Lauritz Rudolf Floribert}, title = {Mental health of asylum-seeking children and adolescents in Germany : rates, risks and new trends in screening and diagnostics}, doi = {10.17904/ku.opus-715}, url = {http://nbn-resolving.de/urn:nbn:de:bvb:824-opus4-7152}, school = {Katholische Universit{\"a}t Eichst{\"a}tt-Ingolstadt}, pages = {109 Seiten : Diagramme}, year = {2021}, abstract = {Adolescents who have fled to Western host countries show high levels of psychological distress and high risk for mental disorders. During the 2015-17 refugee crisis, Germany emerged as the largest host country for refugees in Europe. Therefore, rapid and valid screenings are needed to ensure assignment to appropriate treatments. However, it is unclear to what extent the situation of these adolescents is comparable to rates of mental health problems from other studies, as long-term studies with validated measures have not yet been conducted in Germany. In addition, procedural challenges exist in the context of valid diagnostics in the field of young refugees, including the question of transcultural validity of screening measures developed in the West and the reliability of interpreter-assisted diagnostics. This dissertation therefore explored three main questions: Publication 1 traced the natural course of various mental health symptoms in a group of young refugees. It was shown that although symptom severity decreased significantly within one year, a considerable part of the cohort still showed clinically significant symptoms. Publications 2 and 3 addressed the question of valid screening and diagnostics in the group of young refugees. Publication 2 applied smartphone-based Ecological Momentary Assessment in this group for the first time and was able to demonstrate an association between symptom measures assessed in the questionnaires and low-threshold daily-assessed parameters such as low mood and lower sleep duration. This may indicate the transcultural validity of the questionnaires used. Publication 3, on the other hand, examined psychometric parameters of the Child and Adolescent Trauma Screen as a function of interpreter use and showed in a post-hoc analysis that the groups with and without interpreters did not differ statistically. In terms of the reliability of the measurement, the inclusion of lay interpreters, which is common practice, at least did not appear to be disadvantageous. The implications and limitations of the studies conducted are discussed in the concluding chapter, showing that while promising treatment approaches exist, some research gaps also continue to exist with regard to various issues in the field of clinical research with young refugees.}, subject = {Jugendlicher Fl{\"u}chtling}, language = {en} }