Handbook of Preschool Mental Health: Development, Disorders, and Treatment

Comprehensively exploring the development of psychiatric disorders in 2- to 6-year-olds, this authoritative handbook has been thoroughly revised to incorporate important scientific and clinical advances. Leading researchers examine how behavioral and emotional problems emerge and can be treated effectively during this period of rapid developmental and brain changes. Current knowledge is presented on conduct disorders, attention-deficit/hyperactivity disorder, anxiety disorders, depressive disorders, autism spectrum disorder, attachment disorders, and sleep disorders in very young children. The volume reviews a range of interventions for preschoolers and their caregivers--including clear descriptions of clinical techniques--and discusses the strengths and limitations of the empirical evidence base. New to This Edition *Many new authors; extensively revised with the latest research and empirically supported treatments. *Heightened focus on brain development and the neural correlates of disorders. *Section on risk and resilience, including chapters on sensitive periods of development and the early environment. *Chapters on parent-child interaction therapy, cognitive-behavioral therapies, attachment-based therapies, and translational approaches to early intervention.

About the Author

Joan L. Luby, MD, is the Samuel and Mae S. Ludwig Professor of Psychiatry (Child) at Washington University School of Medicine in St. Louis, where she is also founder and director of the Early Emotional Development Program. Dr. Luby’s research focuses on preschool mood disorders, particularly depression--its clinical characteristics, biological markers, and associated alterations in brain and emotional development in young children with depressive syndromes. Another key area of interest is treatment development that focuses on early psychotherapeutic intervention, sensitive periods, and neural markers of change. Dr. Luby’s contributions include establishing the criteria for identification, validation, and early intervention in depressive syndromes in the preschool age group, as well as studies showing the effect of parental nurturance and early experiences of poverty on brain development. She is a recipient of honors including the Gerald Klerman Prize for Clinical Research from NARSAD (now the Brain and Behavior Research Foundation) and the Irving Philips Award for Prevention from the American Academy of Child and Adolescent Psychiatry. Dr. Luby has published extensively in general and child psychiatry journals and serves on a number of editorial boards.