This text examines the determinants of individual differences in children and young people, along with the origins of maladjustment and psychiatric disorders. It addresses the ways in which interventions and mental health services can be developed and shaped to address individual differences amongst children. Topics cover the influence of economic adversities and gender differences on child development and life course, as well as the range of risk and protective factors associated with the onset and persistence of problems, including sections on anxiety disorders in infants, bipolar disorder, and tics and Tourette’s.

Key features:

• • • emphasizes social and environmental influences
    • focuses on early developmental and infancy processes
    • covers a range of illustrative psychiatric disorders and problems
    • addresses the training of child and adolescent psychiatrists across Europe
    • works toward the goal of producing a mental health workforce with internationally recognized competencies