Children are more likely to continue in mental health treatment when their parents perceive greater benefit from the treatment, according to new research presented in the August issue of Psychiatric Services, a journal of the American Psychiatric Association. Researchers also found that parents of children who received medication (with or without therapy) were more likely to see a benefit than parents of children who received talk therapy alone.

Researchers led by Sarah Horwitz, Ph.D., with the Department of Pediatrics and the Center for Health Policy at Stanford University, examined data from nearly 600 children age six to 12 years with elevated symptoms of mania who were new patients at nine outpatient clinics.

Twenty-nine percent of the parents reported that their child benefited a lot from treatment, 52% reported some benefit, and 19% reported no benefit. Children of parents who perceived a lot of benefit from treatment were twice as likely to continue treatment for six months compared to children whose parents perceived only some or no benefit. Parents whose children received only medication or received both medication and therapy were about twice as likely to report considerable benefit as parents whose children received only talk therapy.

Parents whose children had no comorbid psychiatric diagnosis were twice as likely to view treatment as being beneficial. Children who lived with both biological parents were more likely to stay in treatment. Other socio-demographic variables, including race and ethnicity, were not related to perceived benefit from treatment or continuation of treatment. African American, white, Latino, and other or mixed-race children continued treatment at similar rates.

This information on perceived benefit, the authors note, could be used to help develop strategies to engage and maintain families in treatment and thus help ensure that children receive the care they need.