Prevalence of conduct disorder symptoms among adolescents living in selected urban informal settlements in Nairobi, Kenya

                @article{CRSIJ26000439,
                  author = {Judith Osok},
                  title = {Prevalence of conduct disorder symptoms among adolescents living in selected urban informal settlements in Nairobi, Kenya},
                  journal = {Cosmo Research and Science International Journal},
                  year = {2026},
                  volume = {2},
                  number = {2},
                  pages = {629-636},
                  issn = {3108-1584},
                  url = {https://cosmorsij.com/published/CRSIJ26000439.pdf},
                  abstract = {Conduct disorder (CD) is a behavioural disorder characterized by a persistent pattern of behaviours that violate the rights of others and age-appropriate social norms. Although evidence on adolescent mental health in Kenya is increasing, much of the available evidence on conduct disorder has been generated from school, institutional, rehabilitation, or correctional populations. Limited evidence is available on conduct-disorder symptoms among adolescents living within community settings in urban informal settlements. This study therefore estimated the prevalence of conduct-disorder symptoms among adolescents affiliated with youth organizations in two selected urban informal settlements in Nairobi, Kenya. A cross-sectional analysis of baseline screening data from a larger mixed-methods quasi-experimental study was undertaken in February 2026. The study was conducted among adolescents aged 12–19 years affiliated with two youth organizations located in Kariobangi North and Mathare North, Nairobi. The accessible population comprised 147 adolescents, all of whom were screened for conduct-disorder symptoms. Conduct-disorder symptoms were assessed using the Conduct and Oppositional Defiant Disorder Scale (CODDS). For this study, a score of 4.5 or higher on the conduct-disorder items was considered indicative of a positive conduct-disorder screen. Prevalence was estimated as the proportion of adolescents meeting the screening threshold, with 95% confidence intervals. Pearson's chi-square test was used to compare prevalence between the two study sites, while an independent-samples t-test was used to compare mean conduct-disorder scores. Among the 147 adolescents screened, 75 met the study criterion for conduct-disorder symptoms, corresponding to a prevalence of 51.0% (95% CI: 42.7–59.3%). Prevalence was 54.4% (95% CI: 41.9–66.4%) among adolescents in the control site and 48.1% (95% CI: 36.8–59.6%) among those in the intervention site. The difference between sites was not statistically significant (Pearson's χ² test, p = .550). The overall mean conduct-disorder score was 8.01 (95% CI: 6.8–9.2), compared with 8.18 (95% CI: 6.4–10.0) in the control group and 7.86 (95% CI: 6.2–9.5) in the intervention group. The difference in mean scores was not statistically significant (p = .795). A substantial proportion of adolescents screened within the two participating youth organizations met the study criterion for conduct-disorder symptoms. The prevalence observed was higher than estimates reported in general adolescent populations but broadly comparable with estimates from some higher-risk Kenyan populations. The findings highlight the importance of context-specific assessment of conduct-disorder symptoms among adolescents living in urban informal settlements.},
                  keywords = {Conduct disorder, adolescents, prevalence, informal settlements, Nairobi, Kenya, CODDS, adolescent mental health},
                  month = {September}
        }