Sleep and psycho-behavioral problems in internally displaced children in Georgia

Abstract Objective The aim of this study was to examine sleep and psycho-behavioral variables in Georgian Internally Displaced (ID) Children and their population-based controls. Methods One hundred and sixty one children (10.85 ± 0.9) from ID families escaped from Shida Kartli, Georgia, and 161 non-ID children (10.94 ± 0.9) were studied after seven years of displacement. Children completed the Pre-Sleep Arousal Scale, Buss-Perry Aggression Questionnaire (BPAQ), Children's Depression Inventory (CDI), and the Child Trauma Screening Questionnaire (CTSQ). In addition, we assessed the children's appraisal of the family environment. Moreover, parents reported socio-demographic information, their children's academic excellence, and completed the Sleep Disturbance Scale for Children (SDSC), Beck Depression Inventory II (BDI), and Perceived Stress Scale (PSS). Results Compared with the control group, ID children had a lower level of academic excellence and family environment (p  Conclusion Sleep and psycho-behavioral problems are noticeable even in those ID children who were very young at the time of displacement. Psycho-social environment in which children are growing up warrants major consideration in ID population.