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Objective To conduct the first meta-analysis evaluating the internal and external validity of the sluggish cognitive tempo (SCT) construct as related to or distinct from attention-deficit/hyperactivity disorder (ADHD) and as associated with functional impairment and neuropsychological functioning. Method Electronic databases were searched through September 2015 for studies examining the factor structure and/or correlates of SCT in children or adults. The search procedures identified 73 papers. The core SCT behaviors included across studies, as well as factor loadings and reliability estimates, were reviewed to evaluate internal validity. Pooled correlation effect sizes using random effects models were used to evaluate SCT in relation to external validity domains (i.e., demographics, other psychopathologies, functional impairment, and neuropsychological functioning). Results Strong support was found for the internal validity of the SCT construct. Specifically, across factor analytic studies including over 19,000 individuals, 13 SCT items loaded consistently on an SCT factor as opposed to an ADHD factor. Findings also support the reliability (i.e., internal consistency, test-retest reliability, inter-rater reliability) of SCT. In terms of external validity, there is some indication that SCT may increase with age (r = 0.11) and be associated with lower socioeconomic status (r = 0.10). Modest (potentially negligible) support was found for SCT symptoms being higher in males than females in children (r = 0.05) but not adults. SCT is more strongly associated with ADHD inattention (r = 0.63 in children, r = 0.72 in adults) than with ADHD hyperactivity-impulsivity (r = 0.32 in children, r = 0.46 in adults), and it likewise appears that SCT is more strongly associated with internalizing symptoms than with externalizing symptoms. SCT is associated with significant global, social, and academic impairment (rs = 0.38–0.44). Effects for neuropsychological functioning are mixed, although there is initial support for SCT being associated with processing speed, sustained attention, and metacognitive deficits. Conclusion This meta-analytic review provides strong support for the internal validity of SCT and preliminary support for the external validity of SCT. In terms of diagnostic validity, there is not currently enough evidence to describe SCT in diagnostic terms. Key directions for future research are discussed, including evaluating the conceptualization of SCT as a transdiagnostic construct and the need for longitudinal research.

Sluggish cognitive tempo (SCT) is a construct that some researchers believe may be extremely useful in understanding the inattentive subtype of attention-deficit/hyperactivity disorder, and may even help define a completely new disorder. However, the construct of SCT is as yet inadequately operationally or theoretically defined. The authors took the first steps toward developing an empirically supported measure of SCT in children. In Study 1, potential items to measure SCT were identified from a literature review, content validity of the items was evaluated by a group of experts, and a preliminary set of SCT items were selected. In Study 2, ratings completed by parents and teachers of 335 children (ages 4-13) were used to further develop and evaluate the SCT items by computing factor analyses, item-level analyses, reliability analyses, and preliminary validity analyses. The final SCT scale (14 items) produced a total scale score and 3 subscale scores: Slow, Sleepy, and Daydreamer. These scales were constructed with good content validity and were found to have strong reliability. Future directions include replication, extension into a clinical population, and further examination of validity.

This study examined parental behaviors as mediators in links between depressive symptoms in mothers and fathers and child adjustment problems. Participants were 4,184 parents and 6,048 10- to 15-year-olds enrolled in the 1998 and 2000 cycles of the Canadian National Longitudinal Survey of Children and Youth. Mothers and fathers self-reported symptoms of depression at Times 1 and 2 and their children assessed parental nurturance, rejection, and monitoring and self-reported internalizing and externalizing problems and prosocial behavior at Time 2. Hierarchical linear modeling showed evidence of mediation involving all three domains of parental behavior. Findings supported the hypothesis that the quality of the child's rearing environment is one mechanism that carries risk to children of depressed parents. Interventions for parents whose symptoms of depression interfere with parenting responsibilities could help reduce the risk of some childhood disorders.

Brief assessments of parenting practices can provide important information about the development of disruptive behavior disorders in children. We examined the factor structure of a widely used assessment of parenting practices, the Alabama Parenting Questionnaire, and produced a 9-item short scale around its three supported factors: Positive Parenting, Inconsistent Discipline and Poor Supervision. The short scale was then validated in independent community samples using confirmatory factor analysis and measures of disruptive behavioral disorders in children. The scale showed good fit to a three-factor model and good convergent validity by differentiating parents of children with disruptive behavioral disorders and parents of children without such disorders. Results indicated that this new measure is an informative tool for researchers and clinicians whom require brief assessments of parenting practices relating to disruptive behavioral disorders in children.Theories of social development posit that there is a relationship between the quality and consistency of parenting practices and emotional and behavioral problems in children. Previous research shows that deficiencies in parent's discipline and nurturance might be

Objective This study examined several questions about the diagnosis of attention-deficit/hyperactivity disorder (ADHD) in young adults using data from a childhood-diagnosed sample of 200 individuals with ADHD (age M = 20.20 years) and 121 demographically similar non-ADHD controls (total N = 321). Method We examined the use of self-versus informant ratings of current and childhood functioning and evaluated the diagnostic utility of adult-specific items versus items from the Diagnostic and Statistical Manuel of Mental Disorders (DSM). Results Results indicated that although a majority of young adults with a childhood diagnosis of ADHD continued to experience elevated ADHD symptoms (75%) and clinically significant impairment (60%), only 9.6%–19.7% of the childhood ADHD group continued to meet DSM–IV–TR (DSM, 4th ed., text rev.) criteria for ADHD in young adulthood. Parent report was more diagnostically sensitive than self-report. Young adults with ADHD tended to underreport current symptoms, while young adults without ADHD tended to overreport symptoms. There was no significant incremental benefit beyond parent report alone to combining self-report with parent report. Non-DSM-based, adult-specific symptoms of ADHD were significantly correlated with functional impairment and endorsed at slightly higher rates than the DSM-IV-TR symptoms. However, DSM-IV-TR items tended to be more predictive of diagnostic group membership than the non-DSM adult-specific items due to elevated control group item endorsement. Conclusions Implications for the assessment and treatment of ADHD in young adults are discussed (i.e., collecting informant reports, lowering the diagnostic threshold, emphasizing impairment, and cautiously interpreting retrospective reports).

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Decreased success at work and educational attainment by adulthood are of concern for children with ADHD given their widely documented academic difficulties; however there are few studies that have examined this empirically and even fewer that have studied predictors and individual variability of these outcomes. The current study compares young adults with and without a childhood diagnosis of ADHD on educational and occupational outcomes and the predictors of these outcomes. Participants were from the Pittsburgh ADHD Longitudinal Study (PALS), a prospective study with yearly data collection. Significant group differences were found for nearly all variables such that educational and occupational attainment was lower for adults with compared to adults without histories of childhood ADHD. Despite the mean difference, educational functioning was wide-ranging. High school academic achievement significantly predicted enrollment in post-high school education and academic and disciplinary problems mediated the relationship between childhood ADHD and post-high school education. Interestingly, ADHD diagnosis and disciplinary problems negatively predicted occupational status while enrollment in post-high school education was a positive predictor. Job loss was positively predicted by a higher rate of academic problems and diagnosis of ADHD. This study supports the need for interventions that target the child and adolescent predictors of later educational and occupational outcomes in addition to continuing treatment of ADHD in young adulthood targeting developmentally appropriate milestones, such as completing post-high school education and gaining and maintaining stable employment.