Evidence map›Paper›PMID 41074663›Full record

ArticleChild and adolescent mental health2026

Editorial Perspective: A call for action on imposter participants in child and adolescent mental health research.

Brian C F Ching, Cornelius Ani, Angie Pitt, Sharon Eager, Emily Simonoff, Johnny Downs

Abstract readEditorial
In one paragraph

Article in Child and adolescent mental health, 2026. The graph could read no effect estimate from its abstract, so it casts no vote on the map. Cited by 3 papers.

0numbers the graph read from it
0cells of the map it votes in
3citing papers in PubMed
–field-weighted citation impact
1 · What the graph read from it

What it found

Each row is one number read from the abstract, on the scale the paper reported it, with its interval. Left of the dashed line favours the treatment, right favours the comparator. Under each row is the sentence it came from. New to these charts? A ten-minute tutorial.

The abstract states no effect estimate the extractor could read, or names no intervention and outcome on the map, so this paper lights no cell and moves no belief. It is still indexed, cited and linked below.

2 · The registry

The trial behind it

Trials whose registry record cites this paper, or whose number appears in the abstract. A trial that started after this paper was published is citing it as background, not reporting it.

Neither the registry nor the abstract names a trial number. If this is a trial report, that itself is worth knowing.

3 · Its place in the literature

Who cites it

3 citing papers in PubMed.

  1. Article
  2. Article
  3. Article
4 · The record

Corrections and comments

PubMed lists nothing against this paper. Absence here is not a guarantee, only a check that was made.

5 · Who and what money

Authors and funding

6 authors.

Brian C F ChingCAMHS Digital Lab, Institute of Psychiatry, Psychology & Neuroscience, King's College London, London, UK.
Cornelius AniDivision of Psychiatry, Imperial College London, London, UK.
Angie PittDepartment of Psychological Medicine, Institute of Psychiatry, Psychology and Neuroscience, King's College London, London, UK.
Sharon EagerDivision of Psychiatry, University College London, London, UK.
Emily SimonoffDepartment of Child and Adolescent Psychiatry, Institute of Psychiatry, Psychology & Neuroscience, King's College London, London, UK.
Johnny DownsCAMHS Digital Lab, Institute of Psychiatry, Psychology & Neuroscience, King's College London, London, UK.ORCID 0000-0002-8061-295X

Funding

Clinical Research Training Fellowship MR/L017105/1Economic and Social Research Council ESRC 003041/1European Union Innovative Medicines Initiative EU-IMI 115300GSST Charity GSTT EF1150502Maudsley CharityMedical Research Council MR/W006820/1NIHR Biomedical Research Centre (BRC) IS-BRC-1215-20018NIHR Clinician Science Fellowship award CS-2018-18-ST2-014NIHR through a program grant RP-PG-1211-20016Psychiatry Research Trust Peggy Pollak Research Fellowship in Developmental PsychiatrySenior Investigator Award NF-SI-0514-10073Senior Investigator Award NF-SI-0617-10120
6 · The paper itself

Abstract

Imposter participants are dishonest participants who fake their identities or exaggerate their experiences to participate in research. This appears to be a rising problem in quantitative and qualitative research as well as lived experience groups for child and adolescent mental health research. Imposters in research present great challenges for young people's safety, privacy, and well-being, and the data integrity of affected research studies. Although strategies have been suggested to identify and address this challenge, they come with limitations. Also, there are no evidence-based guidelines or frameworks about imposter data. We discuss key issues and considerations and propose actionable steps for researchers and practitioners working with young people. We also make a call for action for robust research to improve how we prevent, identify, and address imposters in child and adolescent mental health research.

Indexed as

DeceptionMental HealthAdolescentChildHumansEpidemiologyqualitative methodsstudy design

Identifiers

PMID41074663
PMCPMC13116026

What OpenQuestion holds

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LicenceCC BY
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Registered trials

None linked

Read under generation 80e0d062 · epoch 390. Bibliography from PubMed, PubMed Central and OpenAlex; grants from NIH RePORTER; trial links from ClinicalTrials.gov; estimates, votes and beliefs from the OpenQuestion graph.