Developmental changes in the relations between inhibitory control and externalizing problems during early childhood

Deficits in executive function, and in particular, reduced capacity to inhibit a dominant action, are a risk factor for externalizing problems (EP). Inhibitory control (IC) develops in the later preschool and early childhood periods, such that IC might not regulate EP in toddlers and younger preschoolers. Aggression was observed during peer play for 66 girls and 49 boys, from 2.75 to 6.00 years (M=4.14, S.D.=0.78). Mothers reported on children's IC and EP concurrently and 12 months later, and concurrent teacher reports of EP were also collected. Factor analysis supported aggregation of mother and teacher‐reported EP and observed physical aggression into one measure of externalizing difficulties. Mothers reported lower IC for children with more externalizing difficulties, and the inverse relation between IC and externalizing difficulties strengthened over the toddler, preschool and kindergarten periods. Similar relations between IC and EP were observed 12 months later, and increases in IC also predicted reductions in EP over 1 year. These data demonstrate that the preschool years are a dynamic period of developmental change in the relations between IC and EP. Copyright © 2010 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.     

Developmental associations between externalizing behaviors, peer delinquency, drug use, perceived neighborhood crime, and violent behavior in urban communities

This study examines the precursors of violent behavior among urban, racial/ethnic minority adults. Data are from an on-going study of male and female African Americans and Puerto Ricans, interviewed at four time waves, Time 1-Time 4 (T1-T4), from adolescence to adulthood. Structural Equation Modeling was used to analyze the developmental pathways, beginning in mid-adolescence (T1; age = 14.0 years), to violent behavior in adulthood (T4; age = 29.2 years). The variables assessed were: components of externalizing behaviors (i.e., rebelliousness, delinquency; T1, T3); illicit drug use (T2); peer delinquency (T2); perceived neighborhood crime (T4); and violent behavior (T3, T4). Results showed that the participants' externalizing behaviors (rebelliousness and delinquency) were relatively stable from mid-adolescence (T1; age = 14.0 years) to early adulthood (T3; age = 24.4 years). The participants' externalizing behaviors in mid-adolescence also had a direct pathway to peer delinquency in late adolescence (T2; age = 19.1 years). Peer delinquency, in turn, had a direct pathway to the participants' illicit drug use in late adolescence (T2), and to externalizing behaviors in early adulthood (T3). The participants' illicit drug use (T2; age = 19.1 years) had both direct and indirect paths to violent behavior in adulthood (T4). The participants' externalizing behaviors in early adulthood (T3) were linked with violent behavior at T3, and perceived neighborhood crime (T4), both of which had direct pathways to violent behavior in adulthood (T4). The findings suggest developmental periods during which externalizing behaviors, exposure to delinquent peers, illegal drug use, and neighborhood crime could be targeted by prevention and intervention programs in order to reduce violent behavior.     

Social Discounting and Externalizing Behavior Problems in Boys

Social discounting refers to the fact that most people assign more value to the welfare of close affiliates than they do to the welfare of distant affiliates—they discount the latter compared to the former. We report the first study to apply a social discounting paradigm to boys. We were particularly interested in investigating the relations between social discounting, age, and externalizing behavior problems (antisocial behavior). Results showed that (1) preadolescent boys were more likely than adolescent boys to show atypical response patterns in allocating rewards to affiliates; (2) task behavior was well represented as social discounting once boys with atypical response patterns were deleted from the sample, and (3) boys functioning in the clinical range on indices of externalizing behavior problems demonstrated steeper social discounting compared to controls. We conclude that social discounting as a measure of perceived social closeness is feasible for use in adolescent samples. Social discounting may operate similarly to other forms of discounting in impulsive individuals. Copyright © 2011 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.     

父母教养与MAOA基因rs6323多态性对学前儿童外化问题的共同作用

采用G×E交互作用的研究范式,以295名学前儿童（M=4.49）和其母亲、父亲作为研究对象,探讨母亲和父亲的教养方式与MAOA基因rs6323多态性对学前儿童外化问题行为的影响。结果发现：母亲、父亲教养方式和MAOA基因多态性对学前儿童外化问题行为的影响存在性别差异,预测男孩外化问题行为时,母亲和父亲教养方式的主效应显著,与MAOA基因多态性的交互作用不显著;在预测女孩外化问题行为时,父亲教养方式的主效应显著,母亲教养方式与MAOA基因多态性的交互作用显著,显著性区域分析发现,携带T等位基因的女孩更容易受到母亲消极教养的不利影响而产生更多外化问题行为,也更容易受到其积极教养的有利影响而减少外化问题行为,这一结果支持差别易感性理论模型。     

Child Victims' Attributions about Being Physically Abused: An Examination of Factors Associated with Symptom Severity

The goal of the present study was to examine a conceptual attributional model for the development of psychopathology after child physical abuse. Physically abused or maltreated children referred for treatment completed a series of measures to assess parent-to-child violence, abuse-specific attributions and general attributional style, other potential predictors, and children's psychopathology. Results revealed that the severity of current parent-to-child violence was associated with children's internalizing and externalizing symptoms. Attributions predicted the level of children's psychopathology beyond the variance accounted for by the severity of parent-to-child violence. The severity of parent-to-child violence, attributions about the abuse, general attributional style, and level of family functioning accounted for 28%–63% of the variance in children's abuse-specific, internalizing, and externalizing symptoms. Implications of the findings and research recommendations are discussed.     

The Association Between Internalizing and Externalizing Behavior in Childhood and Early Adolescence: Genetic or Environmental Common Influences?

This study analyzed the genetic and environmental influences on internalizing and externalizing behavior problems and the nature of their cooccurrence in a national Norwegian twin sample. The sample comprised 526 identical and 389 fraternal same-sexed twin pairs from five birth cohorts, aged 5-6, 8-9, 12-13, 13-14, and 14-15 years. Behavior problems were assessed by parental ratings on the Child Behavior Checklist. A model of additive genetic, shared, and nonshared environmental influences was fitted to both internalizing and externalizing behavior in four sex and age groups. The considerable covariance,r = .51 to .58, between these traits is accounted for mainly by common environmental components; this effect was most marked in the 5 to 9-year olds. Concordance rates for children scoring above 1 standard deviation from the total sample mean on the internalizing scale only, externalizing scale only, or both indicated stronger genetic influences for internalizing or externalizing problems only than for combined problems.     

延迟折扣及其与青少年物质滥用与成瘾、外化问题的关系

延迟折扣指由于发生时间上的延迟,未来结果的当前价值低于其实际价值或控制当前行为效力下降的心理现象。本文在介绍了延迟折扣的概念及测量方法与指标的基础上,综述了延迟折扣与青少年物质滥用与成瘾、外化问题间关系的研究,发现青少年酗酒者、烟瘾者及网络成瘾者的延迟折扣率高于非成瘾者,而延迟折扣与青少年外化问题之间的关系尚无一致性结论,最后指出了延迟折扣及其与青少年物质滥用与成瘾、外化问题间关系的未来研究方向。     

流动儿童的歧视知觉与学校适应:一项追踪研究

采用追踪研究考察了流动儿童的歧视知觉与学校适应之间的双向关系及其是否存在性别差异。分别在初一和初二上学期,邀请流动儿童（男孩157人,女孩124人;M_年龄=13.09岁,SD=1.13）填写歧视知觉问卷,邀请父母及老师评价流动儿童在学校的适应情况。结果表明,男孩知觉到的歧视和学校适应问题显著高于女孩。流动儿童第一年知觉到的歧视正向预测其第二年的学校适应问题,但儿童第一年的学校适应问题不能预测其第二年的歧视知觉,二者之间的关系不存在性别差异。本研究表明,歧视体验和知觉对流动儿童的学校适应具有单向的、消极的影响。     

Assessing Biobehavioural Self‐Regulation and Coregulation in Early Childhood: The Parent‐Child Challenge Task

Researchers have argued for more dynamic and contextually relevant measures of regulatory processes in interpersonal interactions. In response, we introduce and examine the effectiveness of a new task, the Parent–Child Challenge Task, designed to assess the self‐regulation and coregulation of affect, goal‐directed behaviour, and physiology in parents and their preschoolers in response to an experimental perturbation. Concurrent and predictive validity was examined via relations with children's externalizing behaviours. Mothers used only their words to guide their 3‐year‐old children to complete increasingly difficult puzzles in order to win a prize (N = 96). A challenge condition was initiated midway through the task with a newly introduced time limit. The challenge produced decreases in parental teaching and dyadic behavioural variability and increases in child negative affect and dyadic affective variability, measured by dynamic systems‐based methods. Children rated lower on externalizing showed respiratory sinus arrhythmia (RSA) suppression in response to challenge, whereas those rated higher on externalizing showed RSA augmentation. Additionally, select task changes in affect, behaviour, and physiology predicted teacher‐rated externalizing behaviours four months later. Findings indicate that the Parent–Child Challenge Task was effective in producing regulatory changes and suggest its utility in assessing biobehavioural self‐regulation and coregulation in parents and their preschoolers. Copyright © 2016 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.     

Gray's Reinforcement Sensitivity Model and Child Psychopathology: Laboratory and Questionnaire Assessment of the BAS and BIS

The Behavioral Approach System (BAS) and Behavioral Inhibition System (BIS) are widely studied components of Gray's sensitivity to reinforcement model. There is growing interest in integrating the BAS and BIS into models of risk for psychopathology, however, few measures assess BAS and BIS functioning in children. We adapted a questionnaire measure and reaction time task from adult studies to assess the BAS and BIS in a sample of 9-12 year olds (N = 63; 42% female). A continuous performance task was also administered to assess physiological correlates of the BAS and BIS. Factor analysis supported 3 subdimensions of the BAS (Drive, Reward Responsivity, and Impulsivity/Fun seeking), and one dimension of the BIS (sensitivity to punishment). Results supported the utility of the questionnaire measures and reaction time task as assessments of BAS and BIS functioning. Moreover, these measures were associated with internalizing and externalizing problem behavior as expected. High levels of impulsivity/fun seeking, but not drive or reward responsivity, were associated with high levels of externalizing problems, whereas high levels of sensitivity to punishment were associated with high levels of internalizing behavior problems. The relation between physiological indices and caregiver reports of the BAS, BIS, and problem behavior were complex and not consistent with expectation.