Source-specific oppositional defiant disorder among inner-city children: prospective prediction and moderation.

We examined prospective prediction from parent- and teacher-reported oppositional defiant disorder (ODD) symptoms to parent-reported ODD, conduct disorder (CD), major depressive disorder (MDD), and generalized anxiety disorder symptoms and whether child executive functioning abilities moderated these relations among an urban, low-income sample of first- to third-grade children (N = 87). Time 1 parent-reported ODD predicted each Time 2 outcome. Time 1 teacher-reported ODD predicted Time 2 CD and MDD symptoms. After controlling for Time 1 co-occurring symptoms, only prediction from Time 1 teacher-reported ODD to CD and MDD symptoms remained significant. Child executive functioning abilities moderated relations between Time 1 parent-reported ODD and Time 2 ODD, and Time 1 teacher-reported ODD and Time 2 CD and MDD. Among children with better executive functioning abilities, higher Time 1 ODD was associated with higher Time 2 symptoms.

Autonomic functioning moderates the relations between contextual factors and externalizing behaviors among inner-city children.

Although previous research has identified various child-specific and contextual risk factors associated with externalizing behaviors, there is a dearth of literature examining child x context interactions in the prospective prediction of externalizing behaviors. To address this gap, we examined autonomic functioning as a moderator of the relation between contextual factors (i.e., neighborhood cohesion and harsh parental behaviors) and externalizing behaviors. Participants were an ethnic minority, inner-city sample of first through fourth grade children (N = 57, 50% male) and their primary caregivers who participated in two assessments approximately 1 year apart. Results indicated that baseline sympathetic functioning moderated the relation between (a) neighborhood cohesion and externalizing behaviors and (b) harsh parental behaviors and externalizing behaviors. Post-hoc probing of these interactions revealed that higher levels of neighborhood cohesion prospectively predicted (a) higher levels of externalizing behaviors among children with heightened baseline sympathetic functioning, and (b) lower levels of externalizing behaviors among children with attenuated baseline sympathetic functioning. In addition, among children with heightened baseline sympathetic functioning, higher levels of harsh parental behaviors prospectively predicted higher levels of externalizing behaviors.

Affective decision-making and externalizing behaviors: the role of autonomic activity.

We tested a conceptual model involving the inter-relations among affective decision-making (indexed by a gambling task), autonomic nervous system (ANS) activity, and attention-deficit/hyperactivity disorder (ADHD) and oppositional defiant disorder (ODD) symptoms in a largely impoverished, inner city sample of first through third grade children (N=63, 54% male). The present study hypothesized that impaired affective decision-making and decreased sympathetic and parasympathetic activation would be associated with higher levels of ADHD and ODD symptoms, and that low sympathetic and parasympathetic activation during an emotion-inducing task would mediate the relation between affective decision-making and child externalizing symptoms. In support of our model, disadvantageous decision-making on a gambling task was associated with ADHD hyperactivity/impulsivity symptoms among boys, and attenuated sympathetic activation during an emotion-inducing task mediated this relation. Support for the model was not found among girls.

Co-occurrence of ODD and Anxiety: Shared Risk Processes and Evidence for a Dual-Pathway Model.

Although oppositional defiant disorder (ODD) and anxiety disorders (ADs) often co-occur, the literature is mixed regarding the effects of such co-occurrence. For example, there is evidence that AD symptoms may mitigate ODD symptoms (buffer hypothesis) or exacerbate ODD symptoms (multiple problem hypothesis). A dual-pathway model incorporates previous research and addresses both hypotheses. We describe several possible etiological or risk processes that may underlie each of these ODD-AD pathways, including child temperament, aggression, limbic system processes, executive functioning abilities, and social information-processing biases, and suggest an integrated model. We conclude with implications for the model and directions for future research involving co-occurring ODD and ADs.

Co-occurring anxiety and disruptive behavior disorders: the roles of anxious symptoms, reactive aggression, and shared risk processes.

The current review uses a developmental perspective to examine processes that may underlie and partially account for the association between anxiety disorders and disruptive behavior disorders among children and adolescents. We propose that one way to understand development of comorbid anxiety and disruptive behavior disorders is to examine symptoms that are precursors for or part of these syndromes, such as anxious symptoms and reactive aggression. We use a framework that considers these issues first at the syndrome or disorder level (e.g., anxiety disorders, disruptive behavior disorders), then at the symptom level (e.g., anxious symptoms and reactive aggression), and finally at the risk factor level (e.g., factors associated with anxious symptoms and/or reactive aggression). We apply various frameworks that have been put forth for understanding comorbidity of psychological syndromes to the co-occurrence of anxiety and disruptive behavior disorders and to the co-occurrence of reactive aggression and anxious symptoms where possible. We then identify gaps in the literature with regard to anxiety and reactive aggression, as well as anxiety and disruptive behavior disorders more generally. Finally, we provide a conceptual model describing how the relation of anxiety and reactive aggression may develop into clinically identifiable, comorbid anxiety and disruptive behavior disorders.

Keeping It Short and Sweet: Brief, Ungraded Writing Assignments Facilitate Learning.

Can short, ungraded, free-writing assignments promote learning of course material? We randomly assigned introductory psychology recitation sections (N = 978 students) to writing or thinking conditions. For all sections, teaching assistants presented students with a discussion topic based in current coursework. Students either wrote or thought about the topic for 5 min. All sections then discussed the topic for approximately 10 min. Exams included questions related to the discussion topics. Students in the writing condition attended class more often and performed better on factual and conceptual multiple-choice exam questions than students in the thinking condition, even after controlling for measures of student quality. The results suggested that brief free writing improved factual and conceptual learning.