Identifying children in the Colorado Adoption Project at risk for conduct disorder

Translation of research into interventions

This article discusses distinct ways in which research plays pivotal roles in the development, evaluation, refinement and dissemination of interventions for children and adolescents. A key challenge in interventions for high-risk children is to identify screening criteria for risk status. Longitudinal research is essential in creating a screening system with adequate sensitivity and specificity. Research-based developmental models should provide the framework for interventions as they are developed. These models can be then tested with the interventions, and ongoing developmental research can lead to a series of refinements of the interventions. Research can also provide essential information about who the programs succeed with and who they do not, and a newer phase of intervention research can rigorously identify factors which can bridge the “research-to-practice” gap, maximizing the effectiveness of interventions when they are disseminated into real-world settings.

Adoptive and Nonadoptive Mother-Child Behavioral Interaction: A Comparative Study at 4 Years of Age

Comparable samples of low-risk adopted and nonadopted children and mothers were observed during 3 tasks at age 4 years. Quality of mother-child interactions, child level of functioning in 4 domains, and maternal parenting satisfaction and social support were assessed. Adopted children were as competent as nonadopted children on measures of developmental functioning. Both groups of mothers expressed high satisfaction and support as parents. However, ratings of child, maternal, and dyadic behavior when interacting were all lower for adoptive dyads than for nonadoptive dyads, and adoptive dyads with boys accounted for the maternal and dyadic group differences.

Correlates and predictors of parenting stress among internationally adopting mothers: A longitudinal investigation

This study examined correlates and predictors of parenting stress among internationally adopting (IA) mothers with the goal of expanding the knowledge base on the experiences of adoptive parents. One hundred and forty-three IA mothers completed pre-adoption (Time 0) and six months post-adoption (Time 1) surveys with questions regarding child-, parent-, and family-related characteristics. Mother reports of higher depression symptoms, higher expectations of child developmental and behavioral/emotional problems, and a greater number of children in the family at pre-adoption were significantly related to higher parenting stress six months post-adoption. In contrast, mother reports of higher expectations for child acceptance and higher perceived social support at pre-adoption were significantly related to lower parenting stress six months post-adoption. Higher maternal depression symptoms, higher expectations of child behavior/emotional problems, and a greater number of children in the family at pre-adoption together accounted for 22% of the variance in parenting stress six months post-adoption. Concurrent higher maternal depression symptoms and higher reports of child behavioral/emotional problems predicted higher parenting stress six months post-adoption over and above pre-adoption predictors, and accounted for an additional 33% of the variance. Results and directions for future research are discussed from a transactional perspective, with particular emphasis on the importance of pre-adoptive information for adoption research and practice.

Families by Adoption and Birth: I. Mother-Infant Socio-emotional Interactions

The role of adoptive family dynamics in the etiology of both resilient and adverse developmental outcomes is not well understood. In this study, socio-emotional aspects of the mother-infant relationship were examined in families by adoption and by birth. Matched groups of mothers and their 5-month-old first babies were observed in the home setting. Dyads in the two groups were comparable in the frequency and ranking of a full array of age-appropriate behaviors. Group differences emerged for selected infant and maternal behaviors; infants by birth were in an alert state and smiled more often than infants by adoption, and adoptive mothers nourished and caressed their infants more than did mothers by birth. While the structure of the infant's behavior repertoire was similar for both groups, there were twice as many significant correlations among maternal behaviors for the birth group than for the adoptive group. There were also more correlations between maternal and infant behaviors for dyads by birth than for dyads by adoption, and the nature of the correlations differed for the two groups. It is argued that both groups of mothers and babies were functioning in the adaptive, healthy range, and that observed differences between them reflect subtle differences in behavioral emphasis, possibly related to the unique paths to parenthood represented by adoption and birth.

Evaluating models of the personality–psychopathology relationship in children and adolescents

Connections between personality traits and psychopathology in children and adolescents have frequently been reported in research studies. However, despite the occurrence of significant and systematic relationships between personality and mental disorders in childhood, a thorough understanding of the cause, nature, and implications of these relationships is lacking. In this paper, a comprehensive taxonomy of childhood personality is used to link research on children with that on adults, as well as provide a framework for discussing the personality-psychopathology relationship. Next, research on children and adolescents is integrated into various proposed models of the personality-psychopathology relationship. Finally, clinical implications and future directions are proposed for research on personality and psychopathology in children.

Process, mechanism, and explanation related to externalizing behavior in developmental psychopathology

Advances in conceptualization and statistical modeling, on the one hand, and enhanced appreciation of transactional pathways, gene-environment correlations and interactions, and moderator and mediator variables, on the other, have heightened awareness of the need to consider factors and processes that explain the development and maintenance of psychopathology. With a focus on attentional problems, impulsivity, and disruptive behavior patterns, I address the kinds of conceptual approaches most likely to lead to advances regarding explanatory models in the field. Findings from my own research program on processes and mechanisms reveal both promise and limitations. Progress will emanate from use of genetically informative designs, blends of variable and person-centered research, explicit testing of developmental processes, systematic approaches to moderation and mediation, exploitation of "natural experiments," and the conduct of prevention and intervention trials designed to accentuate explanation as well as outcome. In all, breakthroughs will occur only with advances in translational research-linking basic and applied science-and with the further development of transactional, systemic approaches to explanation.

Social-cognitive processes in preschool boys with and without oppositional defiant disorder

The social-cognitive characteristics of 88 preschool boys with Oppositional Defiant Disorder (ODD) and 80 nondisruptive boys were assessed 3 times over a 2-year period. Three questions were addressed: (1) Do social-cognitive processes (encoding, attribution, problem solving, and response evaluation) distinguish clinic-referred preschool boys from peers without behavior problems? (2) What is the relation between preschoolers' social-cognitive processes and observed problem behavior? (3) Are the social-cognitive processes of clinic boys with ODD influenced by comorbidity with Attention Deficit Hyperactivity Disorder (ADHD)? Boys were presented hypothetical, peer-oriented social dilemmas to resolve. At all 3 assessments, clinic boys were twice as likely as were comparison group boys to generate aggressive solutions. Relative to comparison boys, clinic boys' encoding of social information was less accurate. The groups did not differ in their attributions or response evaluations. Verbal IQ and language skills were modestly correlated with problem solving and encoding. Within the clinic group, social-cognitive processes were not affected by ADHD comorbidity and they showed little relation to later diagnostic status or severity of behavior problems.

Externalizing symptomatology among adoptive youth: prevalence and preadoption risk factors

The extent of symptomatology related to attention-deficit hyperactivity disorder (ADHD) and oppositional defiant disorder (ODD) was examined in a statewide sample of adopted youth, aged 4-18 years (n = 808). The use of normed questionnaires in a nonclinical sample decreased biases associated with past research on adopted children. According to parental report, a striking number of the youth qualified as manifesting significant symptom levels of externalizing behavior problems: 21% met symptom cutoffs for ADHD (with or without ODD) and 20% met criteria for ODD (with or without ADHD), for a combined total of 29% of the sample. A number of parent-reported, preadoptive risk factors distinguished these groups from one another and from the nonexternalizing youth. The clearest associated factors included histories of preadoption abuse/neglect, later age of adoption, prenatal drug exposure, and placement in multiple foster homes prior to adoption. We discuss implications regarding both etiology and current controversies surrounding the disproportionate levels of behavioral difficulties in adopted youth.

Risk and Protective Factors Scale: reliability and validity in preadolescents

OBJECTIVE

To describe the reliability and validity of a novel scale, the Risk and Protective Factors Scale (RPFS), in preadolescents. The RPFS is designed to predict the development of disruptive behaviour disorders (DBDs).

METHOD

A controlled study of 120 children aged 6-12 years in DBD and normal groups. Measures include the RPFS and the Revised Child Behaviour Profile (RCBP).

RESULTS

Cohen kappa for interrater reliability is 0.81, 92% agreement. Pearson correlation for test-retest reliability is 0.76, 94% agreement. Cronbach alpha for internal consistency is 0.89. Pearson correlation between the RPFS and RCBP is 0.82. The total scores and subscores of the RPFS discriminate significantly between DBD and control groups by student t-test.

CONCLUSION

The RPFS has good internal consistency and interrater and test-retest reliability. It has concurrent validity to the RCBP and discriminant validity between DBD and normal groups. This scale may help identify children at risk for DBD, which would allow early intervention, but requires a longitudinal study to establish its predictive power.

Mother-child interactions in ADHD and comparison boys: relationships with overt and covert externalizing behavior

Reciprocal relationships between child characteristics and such familial factors as parental psychopathology and interaction style with the child characterize the development and maintenance of attention-deficit hyperactivity disorder (ADHD) as well as its comorbidity with antisocial behavior. Our goal was to ascertain the ability of negative maternal behavior exhibited during mother-son interactions to predict independently observed overt and covert externalizing behavior in the child, controlling for current maternal symptomatology and the boy's acting out behavior during the interaction. Participants were 49 boys with ADHD and 37 comparison boys, aged 6 to 12 years. Hierarchical multiple-regression analyses revealed that, even with maternal psychopathology and child negativity with the mother partialed, maternal negative behaviors predicted both observed noncompliance exhibited in class and play settings and laboratory stealing. Stealing was predicted from maternal negativity even with child interactional compliance controlled. Differential predictions of noncompliance were revealed in ADHD versus comparison families, yet similar patterns emerged for stealing within each group. Results are discussed in light of the high risk for antisocial behavior in ADHD children.