Behavioral and emotional problems in a K uala L umpur children's home

Background There is a dearth of studies on behavioral and emotional problems in residential care children in M alaysia. This study describes the behavioral and emotional problems in a sample of children in a government residential care home and compares them with their classmates living with their birth parents. Methods A comparative cross‐sectional study was carried out where carers from both groups were asked to fill in the translated B ahasa M elayu version of the C hild B ehavior C heck L ist. Results Forms for 53 residential care children and 61 classmates were completed. The residential care children had significantly higher scores on the rule‐breaking ( P < 0.001) and Diagnostic and Statistical Manual of Mental Disorders ( DSM ) conduct problem subscales ( P < 0.001). Residential care children's age significantly correlated with DSM somatic problems ( P = 0.03) and post‐traumatic stress ( P = 0.023). Duration of care was significantly positively correlated with rule‐breaking ( P = 0.008), DSM conduct problems ( P = 0.018) and externalizing scores ( P = 0.017). Abuse and neglect cases had higher anxiety and depression scores ( P = 0.024). Number of reasons in care positively correlated with several subscales, including total behavioral problem score ( P = 0.005). Logistic regression revealed the greater number of reasons for placement a child had was significantly associated with having externalizing scores in the clinical range ( P = 0.016). However, after B onferroni correction, only the initial findings regarding rule‐breaking and DSM conduct problem scores remained significant. Conclusions Challenges exist in managing residential care children in M alaysia, especially regarding externalizing behavior. More studies are required to describe the M alaysian scene.