The opening chapters set the scene with developmental considerations, epidemiology and assessment. Coverage includes causal factors and reflects the progress made in the understanding of the genetics of child psychiatric disorders. The main body of the book guides the reader through the major disorders. The final chapters address child abuse and neglect, treatment approaches and prevention. References are provided to enable readers to locate more information on subjects they wish to pursue further.

The book refers to the widely used systems of classifying psychiatric disorders – the World Health Organisation’s ICD-10 Classification of Mental and Behavioural Disorders and the American Psychiatric Association’s Diagnostic and Statistical Manual of Mental Disorders (DSM-IV-TR) - and provides a succinct orientation chapter on these systems.