Editorial: Making clinical trials smarter (and more interesting)

Abstract

At its heart, the field of child psychology and psychiatry is geared towards using science to develop interventions that promote children's healthy development and treat behavioural and emotional difficulties when they arise. While there have been some successes (e.g. stimulant medication for ADHD, parent training for child conduct problems, Fonagy et al.,) serious challenges lie ahead if we are to achieve reliable and lasting improvements for a larger number of children, and for a broader spectrum of problems.