Culture-Specific Manifestations of Internalising Disorders in Nigerian Children: Toward a Culturally Valid Diagnostic Framework

This study investigates culture-specific manifestations of internalising disorders in Nigerian children with the aim of developing a culturally valid diagnostic framework that supplements internationally standardised classifications. Current diagnostic systems, including the DSM-5 and ICD-11, were developed primarily from Western clinical samples and may fail to capture culturally conditioned expressions of anxiety, depression, and somatic distress in Nigerian children. This research employed an integrated methodological design across three phases. Phase 1 involved ethnographic interviews and focus groups with 180 parents, teachers, traditional healers, and child mental health specialists from Hausa-Fulani, Yoruba, and Igbo cultural communities. Phase 2 administered adapted and indigenously developed instruments to 540 children aged 6 to 14 years identified through school and clinic referrals. Phase 3 used confirmatory factor analysis to test the structure of proposed culturally grounded internalising constructs against DSM-aligned factor models. Results indicate significant cultural variation in somatic presentation, social withdrawal expressions, and the role of spiritual attribution in distress conceptualisation. A nine-factor culturally extended internalising structure demonstrated superior fit compared to the standard three-factor DSM model in the Nigerian sample. The study provides the most comprehensive culture-specific analysis of child internalising disorders in Nigeria to date and recommends revision of national child psychiatric assessment guidelines to incorporate culturally validated screeners. Keywords: internalising disorders, cultural validity, Nigerian children, diagnostic framework, developmental psychopathology.