Conduct disorder (CD) symptoms often emerge during the preschool years, but it is not clear whether they predict later symptoms. The present study examined whether age 3 CD symptoms predict age 6 CD symptoms beyond oppositional defiant disorder (ODD) and attention-deficit/hyperactivity disorder—hyperactive/impulsive (ADHD HI) symptoms. Participants were 216 preschool children (MAge = 44.19 months), including an externalizing sample (n = 161) and a comparison group (n = 55). Parents were administered a diagnostic interview when children were 3 years old and again three years later. The externalizing sample exhibited more CD symptoms than the comparison sample. In the externalizing sample, initial CD symptoms predicted later CD symptoms above and beyond ODD and ADHD HI symptoms; this relation was stronger for boys than girls. Stealing, property destruction, and fighting independently predicted later CD symptoms. CD symptoms also predicted subsequent ADHD HI symptoms and predicted ODD symptoms at level that approached significance. Results support the predictive validity of CD symptoms in preschool.
Relational aggression is associated with negative psychosocial consequences, but more information is needed about connections between relational aggression and other problems. this review and meta-analysis examines the association between relational aggression and internalizing symptoms in 24,622 children between the ages of 5 and 17 years old, gathered from 42 studies. In addition to evaluating the overall relation between these constructs, this review examines the state of the literature with respect to six potentially important moderators of the relation: age, type of internalizing symptom (depression versus anxiety), sex, ethnicity, reporter, and type of aggression (relational versus indirect). the overall association was significant (average r = .24). Findings were inconclusive with respect to age as a moderator of this relation. there was no difference in relational aggression's association in boys compared to girls. the relation was slightly stronger for indirect versus relational aggression and for anxiety than depression. almost no data address how associations vary as a function of ethnicity. associations were substantially stronger when the same informant was used to assess both constructs. Findings point to the importance of identifying and addressing relational aggression in childhood, and the importance of collecting data from multiple informants.
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