Research on Child and Adolescent Psychopathology

No Impaired Inhibition of Stimulus-Driven Behavior in Pediatric Obsessive-Compulsive Disorder: a Partial Test of the Habit Formation Model
Larsson A, Möller S, Andrekson S, Nordin G, Björkstrand J and Cervin M
The mechanisms that underlie obsessive-compulsive disorder (OCD) are elusive. The habit formation model of OCD postulates that compulsions arise from an imbalance between goal-directed and habit formation systems, stemming from impaired inhibition of stimulus-driven actions. Few studies have examined the core tenets of the habit formation model in pediatric OCD. We administered the object-interference task, which assesses the ability to inhibit stimulus-driven behavior, to 67 youths with OCD, 43 youths with an anxiety disorder (and no OCD), and 48 youths without any mental disorder. Impaired inhibition of stimulus-driven behavior was calculated by comparing response times to neutral non-nameable objects, neutral nameable objects, distress-eliciting objects, and incompleteness-eliciting objects. Youths with OCD did not differ significantly from youths with anxiety disorders and the non-clinical group on any response cost measure. All groups showed small response costs in relation to all three categories of non-neutral objects, with the clearest cost emerging in relation to distress-eliciting objects. Individual differences in response cost were not significantly correlated with any interview- or self-rated measure of OCD severity. Using the object-interference task, no evidence was found for impaired inhibition of stimulus-driven behavior in youths with OCD. We explore several possible interpretations of this result, including limitations of the task itself, the broader constraints of experimental methods in detecting such mechanisms, and the possibility that an imbalance between goal-directed and habit systems may not be a fundamental feature of pediatric OCD.
Within-person Relations Between Social Skills and Symptoms of Oppositional Defiant Disorder and Conduct Disorder from Preschool to Adolescence - A Birth Cohort Study
Husby SM, Ascaco LE and Wichstrøm L
Effective treatment of oppositional defiant disorder (ODD) and conduct disorder (CD) is dependent on etiological knowledge about what factors contribute to their development and maintenance. Previous research points to a role for social skills in this process, but findings are mixed, possibly due to methodological factors. A sample drawn from two birth cohorts (n = 1,079, 50.1% girls) in the city of Trondheim, Norway, was assessed biennially from age 4 to 16 years. Social skills were rated by teachers and parents and measures of symptoms of ODD and CD were obtained through diagnostic interviews of parents and children (from age 8). Bidirectional relations between within-person changes in social skills and symptoms of ODD and CD, respectively, were assessed by a random intercept cross-lagged model. Increased parent-reported social skills predicted reduced symptoms of both ODD and CD from preschool to adolescence, while teacher-rated social skills predicted reduced symptoms of ODD from 4 to 14 years but predicted reduced symptoms of CD from 6 to 8 years only. Symptoms of ODD and CD predicted reduced teacher-rated social skills on two occasions (6 to 8 years for CD and 8 to 10 years for ODD), but there were no reciprocal paths involving parent-rated social skills. Findings provide support for including social skills training in the prevention and treatment of symptoms of ODD and CD.
Problematic Sexual Behavior Among Children: A Meta-Analysis of Demographic and Clinical Correlates
Allen B, Wamser R, Ferrer-Pistone L and Campbell CL
Problematic sexual behavior (PSB) are behaviors that involve sexual body parts and that are developmentally inappropriate or potentially harmful among children ages 12 and younger. PSB has been associated with different types of maltreatment as well as clinical difficulties, albeit inconsistently. The aim of this meta-analysis was to summarize the current research on correlates of PSB, specifically child demographic factors (i.e., gender, age), maltreatment history (i.e., childhood sexual abuse [CSA], childhood physical abuse [CPA]), and comorbid clinical symptoms (i.e., externalizing and internalizing problems). A total of 47 samples (n = 15,562 children) were included. Males and younger children were slightly more likely to exhibit PSB (g = .12 and -.21, respectively). CSA was associated with PSB (g = .71); however, the strength of this relationship differed by caregiver gender and publication year. CPA was also related to PSB (g = .32), but was more strongly associated when PSB was limited to the interpersonally intrusive subtype of PSB (g = .46). Externalizing (g = .95) and internalizing (g = .63) symptoms were also linked with PSB, with externalizing difficulties evincing the strongest association of all of the correlates. These results are discussed in the context of advancing research on PSB, specifically addressing several limitations in the current literature. These include inconsistent assessment of PSB and CSA, as well as the pressing need to develop a more robust measure of PSB. Finally, a more comprehensive assessment of the correlates of PSB is needed to address significant common method variance.
Exploring the Lived Experiences of Iranian Adolescents Exhibiting Suicidal Behavior and Ideation
Arbabi K, Yeh CJ and Sangkar PR
Suicide is a complex phenomenon influenced by various individual and contextual factors that may inform prevention efforts. This research is part of a comprehensive project conducted in the chain clinics of Iris Company (pseudonym) throughout Iran. 1). The objective of the study was to expand the current literature on adolescent suicidality by qualitatively exploring the lived experiences of adolescents with a history of at least one suicide attempt and suicidal ideation through in-depth semi-structured interviews. 2).
Empathy Development in Preschoolers With/Without Hearing Loss and Its Associations with Social-Emotional Functioning
Li Z, Li B, Tsou YT, Frijns JHM, Meng Q, Yuen S, Wang L, Liang W and Rieffe C
Empathy plays a crucial role in children's social-emotional development. There is an increasing trend in recent studies to recognize empathy as a multi-dimensional construct, consisting of three distinct hierarchical levels: emotion contagion, attention to others' feelings and prosocial behaviors (Hoffman, Motiv Emot, 14(2), 151-172, 1990). The present study is amongst the first to use a longitudinal approach to examine the development trajectories of the distinct empathic levels, based on a sample of Chinese preschoolers aged 2 to 6 years, half of the sample being deaf or hard-of-hearing (DHH). Our results showed that according to the parental observation, DHH preschoolers manifested similar extent of emotion contagion and attention to others' feelings as their TH (typically hearing) peers over preschool years. Yet, DHH preschoolers showed fewer prosocial behaviors, compared to their TH peers. As for the longitudinal associations over time, emotion contagion contributed to more internalizing and externalizing behaviors in both groups; whilst attention to others' feelings contributed to fewer internalizing behaviors in only DHH children. Prosocial behaviors contributed to better social competence, and fewer internalizing and externalizing behaviors in both DHH and TH children just as expected. These outcomes imply that the early intervention or special education may be useful to safeguard children's empathic development, shrinking the gaps between DHH and TH children; but meanwhile, cultural factors might cause latent effects on children's understandings of empathy and impact on how empathy "regulates" children's social-emotional functioning, in a Chinese cultural context.
Cognitive Disengagement Syndrome and Autism Traits are Empirically Distinct from each Other and from Other Psychopathology Dimensions
Mayes SD, Becker SP and Waschbusch DA
Recently, an association between cognitive disengagement syndrome (CDS), formerly sluggish cognitive tempo, and autism has been documented, but it is not known if the association is due to overlapping autism and CDS traits or if CDS is empirically distinct from autism. Mothers rated 2,209 children 4-17 years (1,177 with autism, 725 with ADHD-Combined type, and 307 with ADHD-Inattentive type) on the Pediatric Behavior Scale. Factor analysis of the Pediatric Behavior Scale items indicated that CDS and autism traits are empirically distinct from each other without cross-loading and are distinct from eight other factors (attention deficit, impulsivity, hyperactivity, oppositional behavior, irritability/anger, conduct problems, depression, and anxiety). CDS total scores were significantly higher in the autism + ADHD-Inattentive and autism + ADHD-Combined groups than in the autism, ADHD-Combined, and ADHD-Inattentive only groups with a nonsignificant difference between the latter three groups. CDS and autism are empirically distinct from each other and from other psychopathology dimensions. Overlapping traits do not explain the association between autism and CDS. Autism in combination with ADHD-Combined or ADHD-Inattentive increases the likelihood of CDS relative to youth who have autism, ADHD-Combined, or ADHD-Inattentive only. Because of the known associations between autism, CDS, and ADHD, both autism and ADHD must be assessed in CDS research and clinically to better understand and explain research findings and provide targeted clinical intervention.
Effect of Probiotics on the Symptomatology of Autism Spectrum Disorder and/or Attention Deficit/Hyperactivity Disorder in Children and Adolescents: Pilot Study
Rojo-Marticella M, Arija V and Canals-Sans J
The aim of this study is to investigate the impact of using probiotics with strains related to dopamine and gamma-aminobutyric acid production on clinical features of autism spectrum disorder (ASD) and/or attention deficit/hyperactivity disorder (ADHD). This randomized, controlled trial involved 38 children with ADHD and 42 children with ASD, aged 5-16 years, who received probiotics (Lactiplantibacillus plantarum and Levilactobacillus brevis 109/cfu/daily) or placebo for 12 weeks. Parent-reported symptoms were assessed using Conners' 3rd-Ed and the Social Responsiveness Scale Test, 2nd-Ed (SRS-2), and children completed the Conners Continuous Performance Test, 3rd-Ed (CPT 3) or Conners Kiddie CPT, 2nd-Ed (K-CPT 2). Executive functions, quality of life and sleep patterns were also parent-assessed. Intention-to-treat analyses, controlling for sociodemographic and nutritional covariates, revealed no significant inter-group differences in parent-reported or neuropsychological data after the probiotic intervention. However, age-stratified analyses showed improved hyperactivity-impulsivity symptoms in younger children with ASD (Cohen's d = 1.245) and ADHD (Cohen's d = 0.692). Intra-group analyses supported these findings in the aforementioned age and intervention group for both diagnoses. An improvement in impulsivity for children with ASD was also observed in the intra-group analysis of the CPT commissions scores (probiotic: p = 0.001, Cohen's d = -1.216; placebo: p = 0.013, Cohen's d = -0.721). A better comfort score (quality of life) was shown in children with ASD (probiotic: p = 0.010, Cohen's d = 0.722; placebo: p = 0.099, Cohen's d = 0.456). The probiotics used, may improve hyperactivity-impulsivity in children with ASD or/and ADHD and quality of life in children with ASD. Further research is warranted to explore probiotics as an adjunctive therapeutic intervention for NDs.Trial registration: clinicaltrials.gov Identifier: NCT05167110.
Risk-Taking Behaviors of Young Children: The Role of Children's and Parents' Socioemotional and Cognitive Control Systems
Couture S, Paquette D, Bigras M, Dubois-Comtois K, Lemelin JP, Cyr C and Lemieux A
To prevent young children's injuries, studies have considered both child (e.g., temperament, age, sex) and parent factors (e.g., parental supervision and style, attachment) associated with risk-taking behaviors. Building on risk-taking theory literature, Jonas and Kochanska (Jonas & Kochanska, Journal of Abnormal Child Psychology 46:1573-1583, 2018) adapted the dual systems model (Steinberg, Developmental Review 28:78-106, 2008) to children and suggested that risk-taking propensity arises from an imbalance between the overactivation of the child's socioemotional system (sensation seeking or traits of surgency) and the lower cognitive control system (lack of self-regulation or of effortful control). However, from an intergenerational transmission perspective, it is relevant to consider the role both parents' and the children's socioemotional and cognitive control systems have on a child's risk-taking behaviors. The current longitudinal study is the first to examines sensation seeking and lack of self-regulation in parents in addition to the child's surgency-effortful control imbalance to understand the child's risk-taking behaviors. The sample comprised 177 two-parent families (89 boys) observed at two time points (child age ranges: 12-18 months and 24-30 months). Both parents provided sociodemographic information and completed self-reported questionnaires on sensation seeking and self-regulation, child's temperament and risk-taking behaviors. Results showed that fathers' higher sensation-seeking and mothers' lack of self-regulation were associated with higher children's risk-taking behaviors. After controlling for these parent factors and child sex, child surgency-effortful imbalance was strongly associated with higher children's risk-taking behaviors. An adapted dual systems model including both parents (sensation seeking and self-regulation) and children (surgency-effortful imbalance) seems a promising avenue to a fuller understanding of children's risk-taking behaviors.
Common Genetic and Environmental Contributions to Anxiety Sensitivity, Anxiety, and Cognitive Symptoms of Eating Disorders in Adolescence
Smail-Crevier R, Breen G, Eley TC and Rappaport LM
Anxiety sensitivity may be associated with both anxiety and eating disorder symptoms, which could contribute to the frequent comorbidity of both syndromes. This study examined the common (i.e., correlated) genetic and environmental contributions to anxiety sensitivity, cognitive symptoms of eating disorder severity, and anxiety symptoms to understand their co-occurrence in adolescence. This study analyzed data from the Twins Early Development Study. When twins were 16 years old (N = 5,111 pairs), they self-reported anxiety sensitivity via the Child Anxiety Sensitivity Index and cognitive symptoms of eating disorder severity via four items from the Eating Disorder Diagnostic Scale. Parents reported adolescent anxiety symptoms via the Anxiety Related Behaviour Questionnaire. Common genetic and non-shared environmental factors contributed to phenotypic correlations among cognitive symptoms of eating disorders. Genetic and nonshared environmental influences contributed to anxiety sensitivity and a latent variable of cognitive symptoms of eating disorder severity. Genetic, shared-, and nonshared- environmental influences contributed to anxiety symptoms. Common genetic and nonshared environmental influences contributed to anxiety sensitivity and anxiety symptoms, as well as anxiety sensitivity and cognitive symptoms of eating disorder severity. However, there was no evidence of common genetic or environmental contributions to anxiety symptoms and cognitive symptoms of eating disorder severity. This study implicates anxiety sensitivity as a potential cognitive process associated with both anxiety symptoms and cognitive symptoms of eating disorders.
Individualism and Collectivism as Moderators of Relations between Adverse Childhood Experiences and Adolescent Aggressive Behavior
Dang HM, Le T, Chau C, Nguyen PT and Weiss B
Adverse Childhood Experiences (ACEs) are generally associated with impaired life functioning, including mental health. Prevalent globally, ACEs' effects vary across cultural settings and groups. The present study assessed horizontal and vertical individualism and collectivism - key cultural dimensions - as moderators of ACEs' relations to adolescent aggressive behavior. The study was conducted in Vietnam, a Southeast Asian nation with high levels of collectivism but with levels of individualism increasing with globalization. The cross-sectional study included 644 high-school students (mean age = 16.6 years; 54% female). Self-report measures assessed ACEs, adolescent aggressive behavior, and individualism and collectivism. Given collectivism's focus on supporting one's social communities, it was hypothesized that collectivism would serve as a protective factor for statistical effects of ACEs on aggression. All four moderator analyses involving collectivism supported this hypothesis; i.e., at high levels of collectivism, relations between ACEs and aggression were significantly smaller than at low levels of collectivism. Statistical effects were largest for vertical (endorsing hierarchical power structures) collectivism. In the one significant individualism moderator analysis, individualism served as a risk factor for (i.e., increased) statistical effects of ACEs on proactive aggression. Results highlight the importance of the horizontal-vertical sub-dimensions, as they may provide for more precise theoretical explanatory and intervention models. For instance, concern for the power hierarchy's reactions (vertical collectivism) to one's aggression vs. concern for harm to one's groups (horizontal collectivism) by one's aggression have different implications for prevention and treatment that may be useful for maximizing interventions' effectiveness.
No Biased Attention to Threat, Incompleteness, and Disgust in Youth with OCD and Anxiety Disorders
Möller S, Larsson A, Möttus A, Nordin G, Björkstrand J and Cervin M
Obsessive-compulsive disorder (OCD) and anxiety disorders are early-onset mental disorders characterized by selective attention and strong emotional reactions. Attentional bias has been proposed to play a role in the development, onset, and maintenance of the disorders, but few studies have included youth with mental disorders, and no study has included more than one clinical group, making it unclear whether biased attention is disorder-specific or transdiagnostic in nature. In the present study, 65 youths with OCD (M = 13.6 [2.4], 57% girls), 52 youths with anxiety disorders (M = 14.5 [2.6] 83% girls), and 45 youths without a psychiatric disorder (M = 13.9 [3.1], 67% girls) completed a modified dot-probe task that included threat, incompleteness, and disgust cues. Contrary to our hypotheses, no group exhibited any attentional bias to any emotional cue, no group differences were present, and individual differences in attentional bias were not associated with individual differences in any symptom type. Disgust cues produced slower response times compared to the other emotional cues, but this effect was consistent across all type of trials and present in all three groups. In this study, no support for biased attention in treatment-seeking youth with OCD or anxiety disorders was found, which is in line with recent findings in adults using the dot-probe task. As attentional processes are clearly implicated in the clinical manifestation of these disorders, future research should try to better operationalize and measure relevant processes.
Depression in High-Risk Offspring: The Mediating Role of Sleep Problems
Roberts HA, Mattoni M, McMakin DL and Olino TM
Parental depression is associated with offspring depression and sleep problems are prospectively associated with the development of depression. However, little work has examined sleep problems in the offspring of depressed parents and whether these problems partially account for the association between parent and offspring depression. This longitudinal study examined the indirect effect of sleep problems on the association between parent psychopathology and offspring depression in a sample of 10,953 10 to 12-year-old children participating in the Adolescent Brain and Cognitive Development (ABCD) study. Controlling for age, sex, and other forms of parent psychopathology, we found significant indirect effects of parent to offspring depression through parent and youth reports of youth insomnia and hypersomnia. We also found indirect effects of parent history of anxiety and drug use problems to offspring depression through insomnia, and indirect effects of parent history of anxiety, drug use problems, and alcohol use problems to offspring depression through hypersomnia. Our findings show that sleep may be a mechanism of the transmission of parent depression, anxiety, drug use problems, and alcohol use problems to offspring depression. Mitigating sleep problems represents a potential avenue for preventative interventions in youth with a heightened susceptibility to depression.
Rumination Mediates the Relation of Hostile Attribution to Psychological Maladjustment Among Adolescents from Three Countries
Iselin AR, DeCoster J, DiGiunta L, Lansford JE, Dodge KA, Eisenberg N, Pastorelli C, Tirado LMU and Bacchini D
Addressing global concerns about youth mental health requires understanding longitudinal pathways to psychological maladjustment among diverse youth. Hostile attribution bias (HAB) and hostile rumination (HR) are cognitive vulnerabilities associated with multiple forms of psychological maladjustment among diverse youth. This study longitudinally examined whether HR mediates the relation of HAB to aggression, anxiety, and depression symptoms in a sample of adolescents from three countries. Participants included 532 mothers, 384 fathers, and 566 youth (50% female) from Colombia, Italy (Naples and Rome), and the U.S. (White, Black, and Latinx). Structural equation modeling indicated that youth-reported HR at Time 2 (mean age = 12.58 years) significantly mediated the relation of youth-reported HAB at Time 1 (mean age = 10.89 years) to parent-reported aggression and anxiety symptoms at Time 3 (mean age = 13.71 years; aggression: b = 0.05, 95% bootstrap CI = [0.006, 0.14]; anxiety: b = 0.06, 95% bootstrap CI = [0.01, 0.16]); but not to parent-reported depression symptoms at Time 3 (b = 0.02, 95% bootstrap CI = [-0.04, 0.08]). A reverse model indicated HAB at Time 3 significantly mediated the relation of HR at Time 2 to anxiety symptoms at Time 4 (mean age = 14.99 years; b = -0.01, 95% bootstrap CI = [-0.04, -0.001]), but not to aggression or depression symptoms at Time 4. Multi-group analyses indicated focal mediational paths did not vary significantly across national, regional, and racial subgroups or gender. Findings support the Integrative Cognitive Model of Aggression, providing evidence that HAB and HR may be vulnerability factors for aggression and anxiety among diverse youth.
Temporal Tendencies: Exploring the Impact of Chronotype Timing on Youth Depression Risk
Haraden DA, McCormick KC, Griffith JM and Hankin BL
Developmental changes in youth sleep preferences (chronotype) and pubertal development are consequential for youth risk for depression. Previous research has identified individual differences in chronotype in risk for psychopathology. However, little is known regarding how the timing of chronotype may confer risk in youth. This study addressed this gap by examining associations between chronotypal timing and symptoms of depression in youth. Community youth (N = 155; =12.7) completed self-report measures of chronotype, pubertal status and depression every six months for a period of one year (three assessment points). Regression analyses showed that chronotypal timing predicted change in depressive symptoms across six months (b = -0.66, p = 0.019), but not across any other timeframe. Findings suggested that youth experiencing more of a morning preference compared to same-aged peers were at increased risk for later depression across six months. Chronotypal timing continued to predict changes in symptoms of depression controlling for gender (b = -0.63, p = 0.023) and pubertal timing (b = -0.72, p = 0.012). These findings suggest that chronotypal timing is prospectively related to changes in youth symptoms of depression. Results indicate that attention to the timing of normative changes in chronotype is warranted, in addition to mean-level differences.
Association Between Early Childhood P300 Deficits and Risk for Preadolescence Depressive Disorder Mediated by Responsiveness to PCIT-ED Treatment
Santopetro NJ, Luby JL, Barch DM, Luking KR, Hennefield L, Gilbert KE, Whalen DJ and Hajcak G
Preschool-onset major depressive disorder (PO-MDD) is an impairing pediatric mental health disorder that impacts children as young as three years old. There is limited work dedicated to uncovering neural measures of this early childhood disorder which could be leveraged to further understand both treatment responsiveness and future depression risk. Event-related potentials (ERPs) such as the P300 have been employed extensively in adult populations to examine depression-related deficits in cognitive and motivational systems. Few studies examine the prospective relationships between depression and P300, especially in young children. Moreover, limited research examines the relationship between P300 with psychotherapy treatment responsiveness in youths. The current study sought to examine the prospective relationships between pre-intervention P300 (i.e., choice-locked) elicited from the doors task in depressed preschool children (i.e., PO-MDD; ages 3-to-6) with reductions in depressive symptoms after completing an 18-week long dyadic psychotherapy intervention (n = 59). We also explored relations to risk for depression assessed at a follow-up visit during preadolescence (ages 8-to-12; n = 82). Those with PO-MDD exhibiting reduced choice (doors)-locked P300 demonstrated worse treatment response to psychotherapy and were more likely to meet criteria for depression during preadolescence. Moreover, the relationship between pre-intervention P300 and later preadolescence depression was significantly mediated by response to treatment. These findings suggest that deficits in brain systems linked to the choice-locked P300 component (i.e., cognitive and motivational) might be indicative of non-responsiveness to early dyadic psychotherapeutic intervention efforts for depression which impacts risk for recurrent patterns of depression in youths.
Does Executive Functioning Moderate the Association Between Psychopathic Traits and Antisocial Behavior in Youth?
Joseph JJ and Waschbusch DA
This study examined the interplay of psychopathic traits, executive functioning, and antisocial behavior among adjudicated youth, with a focus on the potential moderating role of executive function. The current study uses data from the Pathways to Desistance dataset was examined, utilizing the Psychopathy Checklist: Youth Version (PCL-YV) and the Stroop Color-Word Task to measure psychopathic traits and executive functioning, respectively. Violent and property offending frequencies were self-reported. Both psychopathic traits and lower executive functioning were initially associated with higher frequencies of both violent and property offending. Crucially, a significant interaction emerged: Youth exhibiting higher socially deviant/lifestyle psychopathic traits and weaker executive function were most likely to engage in property offenses. These findings offer insights into specific risk profiles for offending behaviors and underscore the importance of interventions promoting executive function, especially for youth with these characteristics. This study highlights the complex ways in which individual differences contribute to antisocial outcomes.
The Daily Process of Interpersonal Conflict and Mood among Chinese Adolescents: A Multilevel Moderated Mediation Analysis of Cognitive Appraisal, Social Support and Psychological Capital
Zhang J, Jia J, Xiao J and Chen Y
A growing body of literature has confirmed the within-person process from interpersonal conflict to adolescent mood on a day-to-day timescale. However, research on how, when and for whom adolescent interpersonal conflict relates to their daily mood is underdeveloped. This study examined whether interpersonal conflict is related to mood through threat appraisal and self-blaming attribution and whether these relationships would be moderated by daily social support and psychological capital. Daily experience-sampling data were collected over 14 consecutive days from 264 Chinese adolescents (M = 14.74 years, SD = 1.48). The results indicate that adolescents had more negative moods and less positive moods on the days when they experienced more conflicts than usual. Same-day threat appraisal serves as a mediator in the relationship between interpersonal conflicts and negative mood, and same-day threat appraisal and self-blaming attributions play serial mediating roles in the relationship between interpersonal conflicts and same-day positive mood. Furthermore, the relationship between interpersonal conflict and same-day positive mood was moderated by daily social support and psychological capital, i.e., this relationship was stronger in days with more social support and in adolescents with high levels of psychological capital, which is consistent with the reverse stress-buffer model. These findings reveal the instant cognitive mechanism of interpersonal conflict and daily mood and identify when and for whom interpersonal conflict is associated with daily mood.
Interparental Relationship Discord and Adolescent Psychopathology in a United States Probability Sample
Stern EF, Rhee SH and Whisman MA
Exposure to interparental conflict and poor parental relationship adjustment (i.e., interparental relationship discord) has been associated with children's internalizing and externalizing symptoms throughout childhood and later life. However, the degree to which interparental relationship discord is associated with clinical levels of psychopathology in adolescents remains unclear. The association between parents' report of interparental relationship discord and mental disorders in adolescents was investigated in the National Comorbidity Survey-Adolescent Supplement, a United States probability sample of 13-17-year-old adolescents and their parents (N = 4,112 dyads). A hierarchical framework, consisting of 16 specific disorders, latent dimensions of internalizing and externalizing disorders, and a latent dimension of general psychopathology, was employed. Greater interparental relationship discord demonstrated small but significant associations with higher levels of general psychopathology and internalizing and externalizing psychopathology, as well as with several specific disorders. Overall, results are consistent with the perspective that interparental relationship discord may increase risk for clinical levels of psychopathology in adolescents.
Maternal Social Phobia, but not Generalized Anxiety, Symptoms Interact with Early Childhood Error-Related Negativity to Prospectively Predict Child Anxiety Symptoms
Nyman-Mallis T, Heffer RW and Brooker RJ
The error-related negativity (ERN) has been called a putative neural marker of anxiety risk in children, with smaller ERN amplitudes denoting greater risk in early childhood. Children of anxious mothers are at elevated risk for anxiety problems compared to children of non-anxious mothers. Still unknown is whether discrete maternal symptoms interact with child ERN to predict different forms of child anxiety risk, knowledge of which could increase our understanding of the specificity of known conditions and pathways for transgenerational effects. Targeting two of the most prevalent forms of anxiety problems across children and adults, we tested whether maternal generalized anxiety disorder (GAD) and social phobia (SP) symptoms when children were 3 years old interacted with child ERN at age 4 years to predict child symptoms of overanxiousness and separation anxiety at age 5 years. We found that greater maternal SP, but not GAD, symptoms along with smaller (i.e., less negative) child ERN predicted more separation anxiety and overanxious symptoms in children, suggesting some specificity in prediction but less specificity in outcomes regarding the transmission of anxiety risk from mothers to offspring.
Complex Health Needs in Hurricane-Affected Youth and Their Families: Barriers, Vulnerabilities, and Mental Health Outcomes
Kelly JT and Danzi BA
Youth with complex health needs (CHNs; e.g., requiring daily assistance or equipment for care) and their parents face heightened vulnerabilities during natural disasters, potentially leading to poorer mental health outcomes compared to those without CHNs. However, limited research has focused on this group's disaster-related experiences and their impact on mental health outcomes. This study aimed to investigate the disaster experiences, perceptions, and mental health outcomes of youth with CHNs and their parents' post-hurricane and to evaluate the unique influence of CHN- and disaster-related factors on their psychological functioning. Parents (N = 142) of youth with CHNs (n = 48) and without CHNs (n = 94) who experienced a hurricane reported on their youth's and their own psychological functioning, disaster perceptions, experiences, and CHN-related information. Youth with CHNs exhibited greater perceived life threat compared to youth without CHNs. Families of youth with CHNs were more likely to evacuate and faced greater evacuation barriers. They also exhibited greater PTS, depressive, and anxiety symptom severity compared to those without CHNs. Financial healthcare concerns were not associated with youth with CHNs or their parents' mental health symptomatology. Hurricane-impeded access to healthcare necessities was associated with youth and parent PTS and depressive symptom severity and youth anxiety symptom severity. These findings underscore the vulnerabilities of youth with CHNs and their parents' post-hurricane, emphasizing the need for tailored mental health services and improved disaster planning resources to support this population effectively.
Anxiety Symptoms Predict Subsequent Depressive Symptoms in Neurodivergent Youth: A 10-Year Longitudinal Study
Orm S, Wood JJ, Fossum IN, Adams K, Andersen PN, Fjermestad K, Øie MG and Skogli EW
Neurodivergent youth often experience anxiety and depressive symptoms that may hamper adaptive functioning and well-being. There is little knowledge of how anxiety and depression are related in neurodivergent youth. Therefore, we aimed to examine whether the relationship between anxiety and depressive symptoms is uni- or bidirectional in neurodiverse youth. We assessed self-reported anxiety and depressive symptoms over time in 173 youth (M = 11.7 years, SD = 2.1, 64% males, 36% females). The sample comprised 38 autistic youth, 85 youth diagnosed with attention-deficit/hyperactivity disorder (ADHD), and 50 comparison youth assessed at baseline (T1), 2-year follow-up (T2, 97% retention), and 10-year follow-up (T3, 73% retention). We used cross-lagged models to analyze the data. In neurodivergent youth, more anxiety symptoms at T1 and T2 predicted more depressive symptoms at T2 and T3. Preceding anxiety symptoms were linked with later depressive symptoms, even after accounting for autoregressive effects of depressive symptoms. The results are consistent with a prodromal model in which anxiety symptoms can independently foreshadow the emergence of depressive symptoms over the course of development among neurodivergent youth. Potentially, addressing anxiety symptoms among youth with autism or ADHD could play a role in preventing the onset of youth depression.
Multimodal Assessment of Adolescent Coping with Family Conflict Incorporating Video-Mediated Recall Methodology
Watson KH, Siciliano RE, Anderson AS, Ciriegio AE, Henry LM, Gruhn M, Vreeland A, Torres S, Kuhn T, Ebert J and Compas BE
The strategies adolescents use to cope with stress are key determinants of psychological adjustment. Research has most often utilized questionnaire methods to assess coping, which can be limited by recall bias and broad time frames. This study used a novel application of video-mediated recall methodology to assess adolescent coping during discussion of a family conflict. We examined associations between coping, observed emotions and behavior, and internalizing and externalizing symptoms. Caregiver-adolescent dyads (N = 89; ages 10 to 15) completed questionnaires on adolescent coping, family conflict, and symptoms of psychopathology. Caregiver-adolescent dyads were videorecorded during a 10-min conflict task. Adolescents then participated in a video-mediated recall procedure to self-report their use of coping strategies while reviewing segments of the conflict task. In addition, video recordings were coded for adolescent emotions and behaviors. Bivariate correlations revealed modest correspondence between questionnaire and recalled reports of in-the-moment adolescent coping strategies. In-the-moment coping was associated with observed and reported emotional and behavioral problems across strategies. In multivariate analyses, questionnaire reports of coping were significantly associated with questionnaire reports of internalizing and externalizing psychopathology, while in-the-moment coping responses were uniquely associated with observed emotions and behaviors. Differences in questionnaire and laboratory measures of coping underscore the need for comprehensive assessment to capture the complexity of coping in adolescence and their unique influence on emotions and behaviors and suggest that questionnaire measures may be sufficient to understand associations with global reports of symptoms. The conceptual, methodological, and clinical implications of the present study are discussed.
Utility of Parent and Teacher Behavior Ratings for Self-Regulatory Outcomes of Preschool Children: A Multi-Study Examination
DeCamp C, Hoffman ME, Allan DM, Morris BM and Lonigan CJ
Despite frequent reliance on teacher and parent ratings of children's behavior for multi-informant assessment, agreement between teachers' and parents' ratings is low. This study examined the predictive utility of teacher and parent ratings for children's self-regulatory outcomes (i.e., executive function, continuous performance task) in four studies. Study 1 included 163 children ranging from 31 to 84 months of age (M = 55.58 months, SD = 8.43). Study 2 included 1,088 children ranging from 48 to 63 months of age (M = 55.15, SD = 3.65). Study 3 included 246 bilingual Spanish-speaking children ranging from 40 to 72 months of age (M = 56.66, SD = 6.06). Study 4 included 280 children ranging from 38 to 75 months of age (M = 55.92, SD = 4.16). Across studies, parents and teachers rated children's externalizing behaviors on the Conners' Rating Scale, the Strength and Weaknesses of ADHD-Symptoms and Normal Behavior Scale, or both; children completed a variety of performance-based self-regulation tasks. The strength of associations of parent and teacher ratings with self-regulatory outcomes was compared, and regression analyses determined the unique and overlapping variance accounted for by different raters. Teachers' ratings had larger associations with self-regulation than did parents' ratings across outcomes and studies-except for two instances in Study 4 where the associations for teachers' and parents' ratings were equal. These findings indicate that teachers supply more useful information than parents, possibly because teachers have better-informed expectations of children's behavior, and they raise questions about the utility of multi-informant assessment, at least with preschool children.
Potential Harm in the Psychological Treatment of Sexual and Gender Minority Youth
Pinciotti CM, Cusack CE, Rodriguez-Seijas C, Lorenzo-Luaces L, Dyk ISV and Galupo MP
Sexual and gender minority (SGM) individuals show disproportionately high rates of mental distress relative to their cisgender, heterosexual peers resulting from minority stress, or unique identity-related stressors. The majority of research on minority stress and mental health in SGM individuals has focused on adults, a notable gap given that SGM youth face unique developmental factors that intersect with identity development and availability of support resources. SGM youth therefore represent a critical population for the mental health workforce to serve competently. Mental health providers risk significant harm to their SGM youth clients if they do not understand the mechanisms underlying mental health disparities in this population. This article will review treatment practices that carry the potential for harm with SGM youth, including harms that are more overt and attempt to change SGM identities (i.e., so-called "conversion therapies"), and others that are more covert, such as neglecting to consider SGM identity in conceptualization and treatment (e.g., eating disorders), pathologizing SGM identity and behaviors (e.g., personality disorders, social anxiety), and reinforcing stigma related to SGM identities (e.g., obsessive-compulsive disorder). Accordingly, this article reviews each of these potential harms in detail and provides alternative recommendations for affirming and justice-based treatment for SGM youth.
Child Interpretations of Teacher Behaviors Directed toward Students with and without ADHD Symptoms
Mikami AY and Miller CE
Many students with attention-deficit/hyperactivity disorder (ADHD) have negative social experiences with classmates and teachers. The Making Socially Accepting Inclusive Classrooms (MOSAIC) intervention asked teachers to give positive attention strategies to students at risk for ADHD, at a 3:1 ratio compared to their peers. Evidence suggested that although MOSAIC students at risk for ADHD reported improved relationships with teachers, they were more disliked by their classroom peers, relative to counterparts in a typical practice control group. The current study sought to investigate how classroom peers may have interpreted the teacher strategies. An independent sample of 191 children (ages 5-10; 102 boys) watched video vignettes displaying a teacher using MOSAIC strategies with a student. Participants were randomized into one of four conditions manipulating (a) the ADHD status of the student in the video (ADHD or Neurotypical), and (b) the equality in the teacher's implementation of the strategies across all students in the class (Equality or Inequality). Results suggested that children believed the teacher to be less genuine when delivering strategies to a student with ADHD relative to a neurotypical student. When teachers delivered strategies unequally (preferentially to the target student) relative to equally across all students, children found the teacher's actions to be less justified. Children's ratings of desired social contact with ADHD targets improved after watching the teacher use the MOSAIC strategies, but remained low overall. These findings underscore the importance of assessing children's interpretations of teacher-delivered intervention strategies, and have implications for future iterations of MOSAIC.
Ethical Considerations in Substance Use Treatment for Youth: Assessing Clinical Practices and Policy Frameworks for Potential Harm
Shircliff KR, Cummings C and Borgogna NC
The current conceptual review highlights considerations surrounding the potential for non-beneficence and undue coercion within the practices of psychologists and other clinicians providing substance use treatment for youth. The potential for nonbeneficence and undue coercion is assessed at three key stages of treatment for youth with substance use disorders (SUDs): the informed consent process, maintaining confidentiality, and treatment planning. We explore these concerns as they relate to the ethical principles of psychologists as outlined by the American Psychological Association (American Psychological Association [APA], 2017), as well as pertinent state and national legislative guidelines. The paper culminates in actionable recommendations to resolve these inconsistencies in practice and emphasizes opportunities for professionals at all career stages to engage in ethical policy initiatives. These endeavors aim to reduce potential for undue coercion and nonbeneficence from psychologists treating youth with substance use disorders and to elucidate beneficial treatment pathways for youth navigating substance use challenges.
Real-World Social Reward Processes are Linked to Momentary Positive Affect in Adolescent Girls
Sequeira SL, Griffith JM, Stanley Seah TH, James KM, Ladouceur CD and Silk JS
Positive peer interactions are critical for adolescent development and well-being. Showing little interest in interacting socially with peers and/or extracting little reward from positive peer interactions can be markers of social anhedonia, which impacts many youths, especially girls, with social anxiety and depressive disorders. Reduced interest or reward in peer interactions may contribute to social anxiety and depression in girls through effects on positive affect (PA), though associations between social anhedonia and momentary PA have yet to be tested. The present study used ecological momentary assessment to test such associations between real-world anticipatory social reward (i.e., interest in upcoming peer events), consummatory social reward (i.e., reward extracted from positive peer interactions), and momentary PA in a sample of 129 girls (aged 11-13 years) who were oversampled for high shy/fearful temperament, a risk factor for future social anxiety and depression. Girls reported higher PA following a more socially rewarding peer interaction, and higher PA on days they reported higher anticipatory social reward. Exploratory analyses showed that these associations were specific to PA; neither anticipatory nor consummatory social reward was associated with changes in negative affect. Findings may inform the development of clinical interventions that target social anhedonia to modify PA in youth with affective disorders.
Anhedonia Links Sleep Problems and Suicidal Thoughts: An Intensive Longitudinal Study in High-Risk Adolescents
Patel KK, Kearns JC, Foti D, Pigeon WR, Kleiman EM and Glenn CR
Growing research indicates that sleep problems are a robust independent risk factor for suicidal thoughts and behaviors among youth. However, relatively little is known about how this risk is conferred. This study used an intensive longitudinal design to investigate anhedonia as a mechanism linking sleep problems and next-day suicidal thoughts in a clinically high-risk sample of adolescents. Adolescents (N = 48; M=14.96; 77.1% white, 64.6% female) completed an ecological momentary assessment (EMA) study design for 28 days following discharge from acute psychiatric care for suicide risk. Daily sleep diaries were used to assess prior night total sleep time and sleep onset latency. Ecological momentary assessment was used to assess anhedonia and suicidal thoughts up to six times per day. A series of multi-level structural equation models were used to examine facets of anhedonia as parallel mediators of the association between sleep problems and next-day suicidal thoughts. Significant direct effects were found between sleep problems and consummatory anhedonia, consummatory anhedonia and suicidal thoughts, and anticipatory anhedonia and suicidal thoughts. There were significant indirect (mediated) effects between sleep problems and next-day suicidal thoughts through consummatory anhedonia, but not anticipatory anhedonia. Findings provide initial evidence as to how sleep problems may confer risk for next-day suicidal thoughts- by increasing consummatory anhedonia. Future research is needed to replicate these findings in larger samples and investigate how modifying anhedonia may mitigate suicide risk in youth.
Social-ecological Protective and Risk Factors Associated with Depressive Symptoms among Black Adolescents
Thomsen KN, Howell KH, Gilliam HC, Ahmed AM and Thurston IB
Exposure to direct and intergenerational adversity can negatively affect the mental health (e.g., depressive symptoms) of adolescents. Black adolescents are at particularly heightened risk for experiencing adversity due to systematic exposure to racism-related stress and discrimination; yet most Black youth do not develop mental health problems. Given this context, the current study explored social-ecological protective factors (e.g., internal assets, mother-adolescent communication, community cohesion) that Black adolescents may access to mitigate depressive symptoms. The sample included 141 Black adolescents and their mothers. Adolescents ranged in age from 11 to 17 (M = 13.70; SD = 2.02) and more than half identified as girls (64.08%). Mothers were between the ages of 28 and 64 (M = 37.91; SD = 7.64). Hierarchical linear regression modeling was used to (1) assess the direct effects of social-ecological factors and adversity-related variables on depressive symptoms while controlling for socioeconomic status, and (2) examine the moderating effects of the social-ecological factors on the association between direct adversity and depressive symptoms. Results indicated that less adversity exposure, more internal assets, and better mother-adolescent communication were associated with fewer depressive symptoms. Further, mother-adolescent communication moderated the relation between adolescents' adversity exposure and their depressive symptoms, such that more effective mother-adolescent communication reduced the strength of the relation between adversity and depressive symptoms. Future interventions targeting depression in Black adolescents may benefit from focusing on familial communication and bolstering internal assets.
Characteristics of Disclosure of Suicidal and Nonsuicidal Behaviors in a Clinical Sample of Adolescents
Brausch AM, Kalgren T and Howd C
Many adolescents fear disclosing self-injurious thoughts and behaviors (SITBs) due to stigma or concern about responses from others. The current study examined rates of disclosure for nonsuicidal self-injury (NSSI), suicide ideation, and suicide attempts in a clinical sample of adolescents, and identified the individuals to whom they disclosed their SITBs. Differences in reasons for living (parent and peer support, future optimism, self-acceptance, and fear of suicide) were examined across disclosure groups. The sample included 100 adolescent inpatients (mean age = 14.61). Rates of disclosure were relatively high: 77% for NSSI, 75% for suicide ideation, and 83.7% for suicide attempts. Adolescents who disclosed NSSI reported higher scores on subscales of self-esteem and future optimism compared to those who did not disclose. No differences were found for adolescents disclosing to parents vs. others; only the fear of suicide subscale was significantly different, and was lower for adolescents who disclosed NSSI to peers vs. others. Adolescents with suicide ideation disclosure reported more parent support compared to those who had not disclosed, those with peer disclosure reported lower fear of suicide than those disclosing to others, and there were no differences for disclosing to parents vs. others. For suicide attempts, only self-acceptance subscale scores were significantly different, and lower for adolescents who disclosed to peers vs. others. There were no differences for disclosing suicide attempts to parents versus other people. The willingness to disclose self-harm behaviors seems influenced by the perception of safety and anticipated support from parents or others to whom adolescents disclose.