Why are there such large geographical differences in the number of children with diagnoses?
A research team led by sociologist Lasse Folke Henriksen from CBS aims to shed light on this question. He has just received seven million kroner from Independent Research Fund Denmark for the project
For every child in Odense who receives an ADHD diagnosis, five children receive one in Struer. In Frederiksberg, one child is diagnosed for every three children diagnosed in Favrskov.
Nationally, the North Denmark Region has the highest number of diagnoses, while the Region of Southern Denmark, and more specifically Funen, has the lowest.
The distribution of children diagnosed with autism is also geographically uneven.
What explains the major geographical differences in the prevalence of psychiatric conditions such as ADHD and autism among children? A research team led by Associate Professor Lasse Folke Henriksen from CBS has received just over seven million kroner from the Independent Research Fund Denmark to investigate the issue.
Networks may be essential
“Our hypothesis is that geographical inequalities in diagnoses are caused by networks. These networks, like the conditions themselves, tend to cluster in specific places,” says Lasse Folke Henriksen and elaborates:
“We have good reason to believe that the resources, practices and knowledge circulating within the network surrounding children’s families, schoolteachers, psychologists, doctors, psychiatrists and other professionals influence who is referred for assessment and what the outcome of that assessment is.”
Alongside registry data, which will form an essential part of the study, the researchers will conduct field work in areas that stand out due to very low or very high prevalence of diagnoses.
Lasse Folke Henriksen’s team will include sociologists, epidemiologists and psychologists. He has worked with network theories for several years and at CBS he is part of a research group examining dynamics in social networks. Several of his colleagues also study organisation within the healthcare system.
Still no clear answers
Diagnoses of ADHD and autism are not based on clear biological markers. Instead, they rely on descriptions of the child’s behaviour and challenges provided by parents and professionals such as teachers, doctors and psychologists.
Existing research has not yet identified the cause of the geographical variation in the prevalence of ADHD and autism diagnoses observed in many countries. However, a previous study by sociologist Peter Bearman from Columbia University suggested that networks may play a role.
In the upcoming project, Lasse Folke Henriksen will collaborate closely with Kathrine Bang Madsen, epidemiologist at the University of Southern Denmark, and psychologist Mads Bonde Ubbesen from Aarhus University Hospital.
The formal title of the project is ‘NeuroNet: Classification networks and spatial clustering in children with ADHD and ASD’. The grant from the Independent Research Fund Denmark is part of 29 projects under the theme ‘Psychiatric research’ designed to contribute to better prevention and treatment of mental illnesses.