More psychotic symptoms among children in cities; new study explores why

Lower social cohesion among neighbours and higher crime rates contribute to higher rates of psychotic symptoms among urban children, a new study from researchers at Duke University and King's College London finds. Previous research has also identified higher rates of psychotic symptoms among children in cities. The new study, available online this week in Schizophrenia Bulletin , is the first to examine why. Psychotic symptoms include paranoid thoughts, hearing or seeing things that others do not, and believing others can read one's mind. Psychotic experiences in childhood are associated with schizophrenia and other psychiatric disorders in adulthood. "We wanted to understand how the communities children live in are affecting them," said Candice Odgers, an associate professor of psychology and public policy at Duke and senior associate director at the university's Center for Child and Family Policy. "This study helps us identify specific features of neighbourhoods that may be especially toxic for children's mental health." While a small minority of children overall experience persistent psychotic symptoms and eventual clinical diagnosis, those numbers are higher in cities.