The 12th Scientific Symposia of the Alicia Koplowitz Foundation will focus this year on Mental Health in childhood, a period defined as the age from 6 to 12 years old. These are also known as the latency years or middle childhood; an intermediate period between the tantrums of early childhood and the emergence of adolescence, a period in which there are important changes in physical, emotional, social and psychosocial development which, however, has received much less attention from the international research community than the pre-school and adolescent stages. Important growth-modulating events occur in these years that are distinctive from other periods: cognitive development, the development of social concepts and skills, relationships with parents and family, relationships with friends, school and educational factors, personal achievements and emotional factors that affect their development; also deviance and psychopathology, including behavioural and adjustment problems, reaction to stress, or ego-processing. In addition, several factors make the study of psychopathology at this age particularly important.

Firstly, consultations to Mental Health services increase rapidly from the age of 5 years onwards. Secondly, mental health problems are closely intertwined with school activity and educational development; thirdly, mental health problems seem to crystallise in stronger patterns during middle childhood than in the pre-school years. Mental health problems also progressively extend to the world outside the family, often making it difficult for the child to join in age-appropriate social relationships.

Throughout the sessions of the Scientific Conference, we will delve into all these aspects of the world of children, their cognitive and emotional development, neurodevelopmental disorders in childhood, severe mental disorders of very early onset and pathologies such as Tourette’s Syndrome or Obsessive Compulsive Disorder, which we hope will be of interest to you and allow us all to deepen our knowledge of the development and Mental Health of our children from 6 to 12 years of age.

Alicia Koplowitz,
President