Developmental trajectories of social cognition from preschool to adolescence.

This longitudinal study aims to define the developmental trajectories of social cognition (SC) in a community sample (N = 378) assessed from preschool (3 years old) to preadolescence (12 years old). Parents and teachers reported on a SC measure at ages 5, 10, and 12. We tested the existence of different trajectories and whether they discriminated outcomes in early adolescence. The data were collected from different sources, the children, the parents, and teachers, by means of different methods. Using Growth Mixture Modeling (GMM), we identified three distinct social cognition trajectories: persistently mild difficulties reported by parents and teachers (7.9% of the children), stable low problems reported by parents and increased difficulties reported by teachers (10.5% of the sample), and stable low problems reported by both informants for most of the participants (81.5%). Comparison of the psychological outcomes between classes using regression models showed that the two trajectories including children with any level of problems differ from the normative one as regards their association with psychological problems, daily functioning, and variables, such as aggressive behavior and callousness. The two non-normative trajectories also differ from each other in terms of the personal characteristics of the adolescents included in them. Adolescents in the increasing problematic class in the school have a tougher and more problematic style of social relating, while children with persistent and non-context-dependent difficulties are more anxious. These results might help to better detect and design specific interventions for children with deficits in SC that might respond to different personal characteristics leading to different outcomes.

Source-Specific Information on Social Cognition: A Matter of Context or Concept?

This work tackles the measurement invariance of the social cognition construct when different observers, age and participant's age are considered. This is a prior question that needs to be answered before attributing discrepancies in information coming from diverse sources just to the varying behavior occurring across setting, and mainly interpret the discrepancies as indicative of cross-contextual variability. The article also studies the link between discrepancies and source-specific information and the validity of that information to predict several outcomes. The measurement invariance across sex, time and informant of a social cognition measure applied to children's parents and teachers was longitudinally tested in a Spanish general population sample, at ages 5 (N = 581) and 10 (N = 438). Full or partial metric and scalar equivalence were found across sex and over time within informants. Partial scalar invariance was not obtained across informants. Latent class analysis identified 2 classes of difficulties in social cognition for both informants at both ages: low social cognition and high social cognition. Comparison of classes resulting predicting outcomes yielded differential predictions due not only to varying context but also to a different concept of social cognition across informants. In general, significant differences between raters were informant dependent. We conclude that it is important to consider both teachers' and parents' observations to fully understand the construct of social cognition.

Co-developmental Trajectories of Defiant/Headstrong, Irritability, and Prosocial Emotions from Preschool Age to Early Adolescence.

This study ascertains how the proposed subtypes and specifiers of oppositional defiant disorder (ODD) based on irritability and prosocial emotions co-develop and describes the clinical characteristics of the resultant classes. A sample of 488 community children was followed up from ages 3 to 12 years and assessed with categorical and dimensional measures answered by parents and teachers. Latent class growth analysis for three parallel processes [defiant/headstrong, irritability, and limited prosocial emotions (LPE)] identified a 4-class model with adequate entropy (.912) and posterior probabilities of class membership (≥ .921). Class 1 (n = 38, 7.9%) was made up of children with defiant/headstrong with chronic irritability and LPE. Class 2 (n = 128, 26.3%) was comprised of children with defiant/headstrong with chronic irritability and typical prosocial emotions. Class 3 (n = 101, 20.7%) clustered children with LPE without defiant/headstrong and without irritability. Class 4 (n = 220, 45.1%) included children with the lowest scores in all the processes. The classes were distinguishable and showed different clinical characteristics through development. These findings support the validity of ICD-11 ODD subtypes based on chronic irritability and may help to guide clinicians' decision-making regarding treating oppositionality in children.

Irritability, Defiant and Obsessive-Compulsive Problems Development from Childhood to Adolescence.

Little is known about the coexistence of oppositionality and obsessive-compulsive problems (OCP) in community children and how it affects their development until adolescence to prevent possible dysfunctions. The co-development of oppositional defiant dimensions and OCP is studied in 563 children (49.7% female) from ages 6 to 13 years, assessed yearly with measures answered by parents and teachers. A 4-class model based on Latent Class Growth Analysis for three parallel processes (irritability, defiant, and OCP) was selected, which showed adequate fitting indexes. Class 1 (n = 349, 62.0%) children scored low on all the measures. Class 2 (n = 53, 9.4%) contained children with high OCP and low irritability and defiant. Class 3 (n = 108, 19.2%) clustered children with high irritability and defiant and low OCP. Class 4 (n = 53, 9.4%) clustered comorbid irritability, defiant, and OCP characteristics. The classes showed different clinical characteristics through development. The developmental co-occurrence of irritability and defiant plus obsessive-compulsive behaviors is frequent and adds severity through development regarding comorbidity, peer problems, executive functioning difficulties, and daily functioning. The identification of different classes when combining oppositional problems and OCP may be informative to prevent developmental dysfunctions and to promote good adjustment through development.

Prevalence, comorbidity, functioning and long-term effects of subthreshold oppositional defiant disorder in a community sample of preschoolers.

To study the prevalence of subthreshold oppositional defiant disorder (ST ODD)-less than 4 symptoms, but nonetheless an impairing form of oppositional defiant disorder (ODD)-its coexistence with other homotypic externalizing and heterotypical internalizing problems in children and associated impairment, as well as the long-term effect of this condition. A population-based sample of 622 preschoolers (5.0% boys) was followed up from preschool to preadolescence. Parents were interviewed when the children were 3, 6 and 9 years old with the Diagnostic Interview for Preschoolers/Children and Adolescents versions following DSM-5 and the children's functioning was assessed by trained clinicians. ST ODD diagnosis is highly prevalent (19.4-25.5%), highly comorbid [homo- (1.9-18.4%) and heterotypical (5.8-23.7%)], resulting in functional impairment across child development in a similar way for both genders. ST is also a risk factor condition that predicts the presence of psychological problems and impairment in childhood and preadolescence from preschool age. A broader clinical assessment and intervention similar to that provided full syndrome cases is needed for children presenting subthreshold forms of ODD.

Irritability and parenting practices as mediational variables between temperament and affective, anxiety, and oppositional defiant problems.

Irritability and parenting are potential targets for transdiagnostic studies to identify the common and core dysfunctional characteristics underlying several diagnostic pictures with the goal of addressing these issues in treatment. Our objective was to investigate the different paths from temperament to child psychopathology (affective, anxiety, and oppositional problems) through irritability and parenting using a prospective design from ages 3 to 7. A sample of 614 3-year-old preschoolers was followed at ages 4, 6, and 7. Parents answered questionnaires about temperament (age 3), irritability (age 4), parenting practices (age 6), and psychopathology (age 7). Statistical analyses were carried out through structural equation modeling (SEM) to test the mediation effect of irritability and parenting practices from temperament (negative affectivity and effortful control) through to affective, anxious, and oppositional problems. The proposed model fit the data well. SEM showed (a) an indirect effect from temperament to affective problems, via irritability and positive parenting; (b) a direct effect from negative affectivity to anxiety, plus an indirect effect from both temperament dimensions, via irritability and autonomy parenting practices; and (c) an indirect effect from temperament to oppositional problems, via irritability and punitive parenting. Irritability and parenting are transdiagnostic mediational variables that should be focused on in intervention programs for affective, anxiety, and oppositional problems.

Explaining the relationship between temperament and symptoms of psychiatric disorders from preschool to middle childhood: hybrid fixed and random effects models of Norwegian and Spanish children.

BACKGROUND: Four explanations for the concurrent and prospective associations between temperament and psychopathology in children have been suggested: predisposition, complication/scar, common cause/continuity, and pathoplasty/exacerbation. Because the confounding effects of common causes have not been ruled out in prior work, the support for the various explanations is uncertain. METHODS: Screen-stratified community samples of 4-year olds in Trondheim, Norway (n = 1,042), and 3-year olds in Barcelona, Spain (n = 622), were assessed biennially for symptoms of attention-deficit/hyperactivity (ADHD), oppositional defiant (ODD), conduct (CD), anxiety, and depressive disorders through interviewer-based psychiatric interviews across four waves of data collection. The parents completed child temperament ratings. The data were analyzed with random and fixed effects regression adjusted for all time-invariant unmeasured confounders (e.g., genetics, common methods bias, item overlap). RESULTS: In both Norway and Spain and across ages, negative affect predisposed children to symptoms of all disorders except CD, low effortful control predisposed children to ADHD and ODD-symptoms, and surgency predisposed children to increased ADHD-symptoms. Complication effects were observed in the Spanish children for ADHD-symptoms, which increased surgency and diminished effortful control, and for ODD-symptoms, which decreased surgency. The common cause and pathoplasty/exacerbation explanations were not supported. CONCLUSIONS: The present results are consistent with the view that temperament plays a causal role in the development of symptoms of psychiatric disorders in children. Because temperament is malleable, interventions targeting the affective, attentional, and behavioral regulatory components of temperament may reduce psychopathology in children.

Reciprocity Between Parental Psychopathology and Oppositional Symptoms From Preschool to Middle Childhood.

OBJECTIVE: Oppositional defiant disorder (ODD) is a common disorder in preschool children. Evidence indicates that maternal and paternal psychopathology, particularly aggressive behavior and anxious and depressed symptoms, contributes to the development of this disorder. The latest research also suggests that ODD symptoms may exacerbate the mental health problems of parents. Our aim was to establish the existence of a reciprocal association between paternal and maternal psychopathology (aggression, depression, and anxiety) and child ODD at ages 3 and 8, using a longitudinal design in a community sample of preschoolers. METHOD: The sample included 331 children evaluated at ages 3 and 8 through questionnaires and a semistructured diagnostic interview with parents. Parents also informed about their own psychopathology. RESULTS: At 3 years of age, higher levels of ODD symptoms in girls were concurrently associated with maternal anxious and depressed symptoms and paternal aggressive behavior, and higher levels of ODD symptoms in boys were concurrently associated with maternal aggressive behavior. Longitudinally, for boys, higher levels of maternal anxious and depressed symptoms at child age 3 predicted increases in ODD symptoms from 3 to 8 years of age. In addition, higher levels of ODD symptoms in boys aged 3-8 years predicted increases in fathers' anxious and depressive symptoms. CONCLUSION: Children with ODD should be evaluated and treated promptly, but efforts should be extended to their parents. Mothers' and fathers' mental health must be explored because the psychopathologies of children and parents reciprocally affect each other.

Attention to emotion through a go/no-go task in children with oppositionality and callous-unemotional traits.

BACKGROUND: There is debate about whether the difficulties that children with different degrees of oppositionality (ODD) and callous-unemotional traits (CU) have in processing emotions are global or specific. The aim of this study is to identify difficulties in recognizing emotion (happiness, anger, sadness and fear) through a go/no-go task in children with different levels of ODD and CU traits. METHOD: A total of 320 8-year-old children were assessed through questionnaires filled out by teachers about oppositional defiant symptoms and CU traits and were then distributed into four groups: LowCU-HighODD, HighCU-LowODD, HighCU-HighODD and a comparison group (LowCU-LowODD). RESULTS: The analyses of variance comparing the 4 groups showed that the two groups with high ODD were less accurate than the control group in recognizing the emotion when the stimuli expressed happiness, fear or neutral emotion. The HighCU-HighODD group differed in the quality of the response (correct/wrong responses) but not in the reaction time in relation to the comparison group. The LowCU-HighODD group was faster to respond to emotions than the comparison group. IMPLICATIONS: The results show that the deficit in emotion processing is not restricted to specific distressing emotions such as fear or sadness, but they point to a global impairment in emotion processing in children scoring high in the constructs studied. The results also suggest that the difficulties that children with combined CU traits and oppositional conduct problems have in processing emotions are more of an emotional rather than an attentional nature.

The discriminative capacity of CBCL/1½-5-DSM5 scales to identify disruptive and internalizing disorders in preschool children.

This paper studies the discriminative capacity of CBCL/1½-5 (Manual for the ASEBA Preschool-Age Forms & Profiles, University of Vermont, Research Center for Children, Youth, & Families, Burlington, 2000) DSM5 scales attention deficit and hyperactivity disorder (ADHD), oppositional defiant disorder (ODD), anxiety and depressive problems for detecting the presence of DSM5 (DSM5 diagnostic and statistical manual of mental disorders, APA, Arlington, 2013) disorders, ADHD, ODD, Anxiety and Mood disorders, assessed through diagnostic interview, in children aged 3-5. Additionally, we compare the clinical utility of the CBCL/1½-5-DSM5 scales with respect to analogous CBCL/1½-5 syndrome scales. A large community sample of 616 preschool children was longitudinally assessed for the stated age group. Statistical analysis was based on ROC procedures and binary logistic regressions. ADHD and ODD CBCL/1½-5-DSM5 scales achieved good discriminative ability to identify ADHD and ODD interview's diagnoses, at any age. CBCL/1½-5-DSM5 Anxiety scale discriminative capacity was fair for unspecific anxiety disorders in all age groups. CBCL/1½-5-DSM5 depressive problems' scale showed the poorest discriminative capacity for mood disorders (including depressive episode with insufficient symptoms), oscillating into the poor-to-fair range. As a whole, DSM5-oriented scales generally did not provide evidence better for discriminative capacity than syndrome scales in identifying DSM5 diagnoses. CBCL/1½-5-DSM5 scales discriminate externalizing disorders better than internalizing disorders for ages 3-5. Scores on the ADHD and ODD CBCL/1½-5-DSM5 scales can be used to screen for DSM5 ADHD and ODD disorders in general populations of preschool children.

Prevalence of DSM-IV disorders, comorbidity and impairment in 3-year-old Spanish preschoolers.

PURPOSE: The goal is to examine the prevalence, comorbidity and impairment of DSM-IV disorders in 3-year-old children from the Spanish general population. METHOD: A sample of 1,341 3-year-old preschoolers were randomly selected and screened for a double-phase design. In total, 622 families were assessed with a diagnostic semi-structured interview and functional impairment measures. RESULTS: Prevalence of any diagnosis was 29.9%, the most prevalent disorders being primary insomnia (11.7%) and oppositional defiant disorder (ODD) (6.9%). There were no sex differences in the prevalence. One-third of the families had sought professional help for the child's symptoms, and 9.4% received treatment (4.4% psychological and 2.1% pharmacological). After controlling for other comorbidities, ADHD was significantly associated with ODD, CD, insomnia and social phobia; ODD was associated with CD, separation anxiety, specific phobia and major depression. Diagnostic categories were associated with impairment, family burden, seeking professional help and receiving treatment. A diagnosis was more frequent in children of low socioeconomic status, born outside Spain, from one-parent families, with younger parents and with parents of lower educational level. CONCLUSIONS: Psychopathology, comorbidity and associated factors are very frequent from age three, suggesting a need for efforts of detection, prevention and treatment in the different societies.

Predictive associations of executive functions and oppositional defiant problems and obsessive-compulsive problems in preschoolers.

Oppositional defiant problems (ODP) and obsessive-compulsive problems (OCP) may co-occur in children, though the way they interact is not known. The aim of the study was to examine longitudinal associations between executive functions at age 3 and ODP, ODP dimensions, and OCP at age 6. The sample consisted of 622 preschoolers (50% were boys) from the general population. Executive functions were assessed by teachers using the Behavior Rating Inventory of Executive Functioning - Preschool version questionnaire when children were 3 years old, and ODP and OCP were informed by parents and teachers at the age of 6 years. Multiple linear regression analyses indicated that higher Inhibit and Emotional Control and lower Shift deficits were associated with higher ODP reported by teachers, while higher Shift but lower Inhibit deficits were related to higher OCP. Moreover, ODP and OCP shared difficulties on the Flexibility Index, which means that the capacity to modulate emotions and behavior according to contextual and environmental demands is compromised in both disorders. The findings inform etiology and prevention, pointing out not only the executive function specificities related to each problem, but also common cognitive challenges related to Flexibility. Young children could benefit from training and programs designed to improve executive function processes at an early age to prevent later behavioral difficulties.

Psychometric properties of the Strengths and Difficulties Questionnaire(3-4) in 3-year-old preschoolers.

We provide the first validation data on the Strengths and Difficulties Questionnaire (SDQ(3-4)), a brief screening tool for behavioral and emotional problems, in preschool children. Parents of a community sample of 1341 Spanish 3-year-olds and teachers of a sample of 622 children responded to the SDQ(3-4) and different measures of psychopathology. Confirmatory factor analysis yielded adequate fit of the model to the original structure. Internal consistency (omega coefficient) for total scores was .87 for parents and .91 for teachers. Convergent validity of SDQ(3-4)-parents' reports with Achenbach's taxonomy and diagnostic interview was good, but low for SDQ(3-4)-teachers' reports. The SDQ(3-4) showed predictive accuracy for discriminating use of mental health services and functional impairment. This is the first work presenting empirical evidence of the reliability and validity of the parents' and teachers' SDQ(3-4) for preschoolers. The SDQ(3-4) presents acceptable psychometric properties for use in the identification of preschool children who might have behavioral or emotional problems.

Inventory of callous-unemotional traits in a community sample of preschoolers.

The purpose of this study was to test the factor structure of the Inventory of Callous-Unemotional Traits (ICU; Frick, 2004 ) and to study the relation between the derived dimensions and external variables in a community sample of preschool children. A total of 622 children 3 and 4 years of age were assessed with a semistructured diagnostic interview, the ICU, and other questionnaires on psychopathology, temperament, and executive functioning, completed by parents and teachers. Confirmatory factor analysis derived from teachers' ICU responses yielded three dimensions: Callousness, Uncaring, and Unemotional. Callousness and Uncaring subscale scores correlated with the specific scales related to aggressive behavior, temperament, executive functioning, and conduct problems. The ICU scale scores discriminated cross-sectionally oppositional defiant disorder (ODD) and conduct disorder (CD) diagnoses, aggressive and nonaggressive symptoms of CD, use of services, and ODD/CD-related family burden. Longitudinally, Callousness subscale score at age 3 predicted ODD or CD diagnosis at age 4. Unemotional was not associated with aggressive measures, but it was linked to anxiety disorders cross-sectionally and longitudinally. Callous-Unemotional traits contributed significantly to predicting disruptive behavior disorders controlling for sex, temperament, and executive functioning (predictive accuracy between 3 and 5%). The ICU is a promising questionnaire for identifying early Callous and Uncaring traits in preschool years that may help in the identification of a subset of preschool children who might have severe behavioral problems.

Dimensions of oppositional defiant disorder in 3-year-old preschoolers.

BACKGROUND: To test the factor structure of oppositional defiant disorder (ODD) symptoms and to study the relationships between the proposed dimensions and external variables in a community sample of preschool children. METHOD: A sample of 1,341 3-year-old preschoolers was randomly selected and screened for a double-phase design. In total, 622 families were assessed with a diagnostic semi-structured interview and questionnaires on psychopathology, temperament and executive functioning completed by parents and teachers. RESULTS: Using categorical and dimensional symptoms of ODD it was possible to confirm, cross-informant and cross-method, distinct dimensions for defining the structure of ODD: one made up of irritable and headstrong and the other of negative affect, oppositional behaviour and antagonistic behaviour. Specific associations with DSM-IV disorders were found, and irritable was associated with anxiety disorders, whereas headstrong was associated with disruptive disorders, including aggressive and non-aggressive CD symptoms. Also, negative affect was associated with anxiety disorders and non-aggressive CD symptoms, oppositional behaviour with disruptive disorders and aggressive CD symptoms, and antagonistic behaviours with disruptive disorders and, in boys, with mood disorders. The dimensions correlated with specific scales of psychopathology, temperament and executive functioning. CONCLUSIONS: Oppositional defiant disorder is a heterogeneous disorder from preschool age. Different dimensions, with moderate to acceptable reliability and convergent and discriminant validity with other psychological constructs, can be identified early in life.

Describing Callous Unemotional Traits and Stressful Life Event Trajectories: Differences on Risk Factors and Mental Health Outcomes from the Age of 3 to 10.

Callous Unemotional (CU) traits are associated with different environmental risk factors, such as negative stressful life events (SLE). The most common studied SLE associated with CU trait has been childhood maltreatment, but less is known about how other SLE impact the development of CU traits. Therefore, this work examines risk factors, personal factors (executive functioning), and mental health outcomes associated with the trajectories of Callous Unemotional (CU) traits and Stressful Life Events (SLE) in a community sample of children. A cohort of 377 preschoolers were followed up between ages 3 and 10. Several risk factors and outcomes for three trajectory groups (high CU/SLE; high CU/low SLE; and the reference group with low CU/SLE) were analyzed by using multiple post-hoc comparisons. We hypothesized that children with high CU/SLE would face more contextual risk factors, more executive functioning difficulties and more mental health problems than children with high CU/low SLE or the reference group. At the age of 3, children who showed high CU/SLE faced more early contextual adversity, including socioeconomic difficulties and maternal antisocial behavior than the other groups of children. At the age of 10, children with high CU/SLE presented more peer problems and higher psychopathology symptoms than the reference group, but no differences on mental health outcomes in comparison to the high CU/low SLE group. These results have potential implications for clinical practice and studies attempting to identify different CU subtypes in children.

Age and sex-specific cutoff scores for the teacher-report inventory of callous-unemotional traits on children.

This longitudinal study aims to provide meaningful cutoff scores for total score of the teacher-rated Inventory of Callous-Unemotional Traits (ICU) from the preschool age until early adolescence, separately by age and sex. The ICU cutoff scores were determined by using low/high trajectories of oppositional defiant problems (ODP) and conduct problems in a Spanish community sample of 620 children that were followed up between the ages of 3 and 13. Receiver operating characteristic (ROC) curves with the two trajectories as criteria and ICU total score at each age as a predictor were estimated by sex separately, and the area under the ROC curve (AUC) was obtained. Average ICU cutoff scores of 26 for boys and 22 for girls were found to be of moderate utility for the prediction of high trajectories of each of ODP and conduct problems. They identified cases with an average sensitivity of 66% and specificity of 70% for boys and an average sensitivity of 69% and specificity of 72% for girls. The obtained cutoff scores might help clinical practitioners in their decision-making process when identifying low and high-risk groups of children. (PsycInfo Database Record (c) 2022 APA, all rights reserved).

Reciprocal relations between dimensions of Oppositional defiant problems and callous-unemotional traits.

Although irritability, headstrong/defiant behavior, and callous-unemotional traits (CU traits) often co-occur, the prospective associations between them are not well known. A general population sample of 622 children was followed up yearly from ages 3 to 12 years and assessed using dimensional measures of irritability, headstrong/defiant, and CU traits with teacher provided information. A random intercept cross-lagged panel model, accounting for all unmeasured time-invariant confounding using the children as their own controls, revealed cross-lagged reciprocal associations between increased headstrong/defiant and increased CU traits at all ages and a unidirectional association from headstrong/defiant to irritability. The findings are consistent with headstrong/defiant behavior and CU traits mutually influencing each other over time and headstrong/defiant behavior enhancing irritability. School-based intervention and prevention programs should take these findings into consideration. They also suggest that irritability acts as a distinct developmental dimension of headstrong/defiant and callous-unemotional behaviors and needs to be addressed independently.

The Diagnostic Interview of Children and Adolescents for Parents of Preschool and Young Children: psychometric properties in the general population.

There is a need for reliable and well-validated diagnostic measures for studying psychopathology in preschool and young children. The goal is to study the psychometric properties of the Diagnostic Interview for Children and Adolescents for Parents of Preschool and Young Children (DICA-PPYC) in the general population. A sample of 852 Spanish school children, aged 3 to 7 years, were randomly selected and screened for a double phase design. A total of 251 families were interviewed with the DICA-PPYC and 244 participated in a test-retest design. Different measures of psychopathology and functional impairment were also administered. Test-retest agreement with a mean interval of 8.8 days ranged from excellent to slight (kappa from 1 to 0.39) for DSM-IV-TR and from good to fair (kappa from 0.77 to 0.49) for Research Diagnostic Criteria-Preschool Age diagnoses. Attenuation between test and retest was not significant for the prevalence of diagnoses, although it was significant for the number of externalising and total symptoms in the interview. The diagnoses converged moderately with the CBCL and Dominic scores. The presence of diagnoses in the DICA-PPYC significantly differentiated preschoolers and young children who had used mental health services, were more impaired, and presented more severe psychopathology measured by dimensional scales. The DICA-PPYC is a reliable and valid semi-structured interview schedule for preschool and young children, and can serve to advance the knowledge and mental health care of this population.

Prospective association of parental and child internalizing symptoms: Mediation of parenting practices and irritability.

Maternal internalizing symptoms have been linked with child internalizing symptoms, but paternal internalizing difficulties have received little attention. Our aims were to prospectively analyse the simultaneous effect of maternal and paternal internalizing symptoms on child internalizing difficulties, examining gender differences, and to verify the mediating effect of parenting practices and child irritability. The sample included 470 families assessed at child ages 3, 6, 8, and 11. Multi-group structural equation modelling was performed with Mplus8.2. Complete equivalence was found between boys and girls for all paths. Maternal internalizing symptoms at age 3 had an indirect effect on child internalizing symptoms at age 11, via irritability at age 8. Paternal internalizing symptoms at age 3 were not associated with any of the variables under study. Maternal internalizing symptoms and child irritability are targets for intervention in order to prevent child internalizing difficulties.