Related Experiment Video
Updated: May 10, 2025

Author Spotlight: Unveiling the Connection Between Sleep Disorders and Cognitive Symptoms in Depression
Published on: April 26, 2024
Prevalence and Course of Anxiety and Depressive Symptoms in Adolescents With a Mild to Borderline Intellectual
Johanna J Westera1,2, Mariët J van der Molen3, Carlo Schuengel2
1's Heeren Loo Zorggroep, Advisium Groot Emaus, Ermelo, the Netherlands.
Background:
This study compared anxiety and depressive problems in adolescents with a mild to borderline intellectual disability in a residential treatment facility (MBID-RT) to those in the general community (MBID-GC).
Method:
Participants (N = 923, aged 11.9-19.3 years, M = 14.6 years, SD = 1.51, 42% girls) completed measures on anxiety and depressive problems. Part of this group (n = 155) participated twice, roughly 1 year apart.
Results:
Adolescents in the MBID-RT subgroup reported statistically more anxiety and depressive problems (higher average scores, higher percentages above cut-off scores and higher percentage of comorbid anxiety and depressive symptoms). Over a 1-year period, anxiety and depressive symptoms decreased in the MBID-GC subgroup but not in the MBID-RT subgroup.
Conclusions:
Findings call attention to the high prevalence of anxiety and depressive symptoms in adolescents with MBID in general, and those in residential treatment in particular, especially when externalising problems may be on the foreground.
Related Concept Videos
Depressive Disorders: MDD and Dysthymia
Autism Spectrum Disorder
These core symptoms manifest differently among individuals, ranging from mild to severe. The disorder's complexity extends beyond its clinical presentation, encompassing a diverse range of biological, cognitive, and sociocultural influences.
Social Anxiety Disorder
Intellectual Disability
Oppositional Defiant Disorder
Diagnostic Criteria and...
Attention-Deficit/Hyperactivity Disorder
Diagnostic Criteria and Symptoms
To diagnose ADHD, symptoms must manifest before age 12 and be evident across multiple settings....

