The Development of Hyperactive–Impulsive Behaviors During the Preschool Years: The Predictive Validity of Parental Assessments

Abstract

The objectives of this study were to establish the different developmental trajectories of hyperactive-impulsive behaviors on the basis of both mother and father ratings at 19, 32, 50, and 63 months, and to examine the predictive validity of these trajectories with respect to later hyperactive-impulsive behaviors, as rated by teachers in the first 2 years of school. Hyperactive-impulsive behaviors were assessed in a population-based sample of 1,112 twins (565 boys and 547 girls) at 19, 32, 50, and 63 months of age. The results revealed a differentiated and consistent view of developmental trajectories of hyperactive-impulsive behaviors derived from these repeated assessments, with 7.1% of children seen by mothers (7% for fathers) as displaying high and stable hyperactive-impulsive behaviors. According to mother ratings, children on a high-chronic trajectory were more likely than other children to display hyperactive-impulsive behaviors at 72 and 84 months according to their teachers. Repeated measures over time and father-based trajectories significantly added to the prediction teacher later ratings of hyperactive-impulsive behaviors. These results support the predictive validity of parental assessment of hyperactive-impulsive behaviors during the preschool years and their use to identify children at risk for further evaluation and possible intervention.

Comorbid Development of Disruptive Behaviors from age 1½ to 5 Years in a Population Birth-Cohort and Association with School Adjustment in First Grade

“…Overall, these results are consistent with reports of homotypic and heterotypic continuity from the preschool to the elementary school years for H-I symptoms and ADHD (Bufferd et al 2012;Leblanc et al 2008). The results from this study are also consistent with previous reports that DB appear during the preschool years.…”

“…Some studies found a higher prevalence, severity or stability of DB in boys (Bendiksen et al 2014;Keenan et al 2011;Leblanc et al 2008;Wichstrøm et al 2012), whereas others observed only weak or no gender differences Basten et al 2015;Bufferd et al 2012;Wichstrøm et al 2012). In addition, sex differences did not always refer to the same DB in the different studies.…”

“…There is also evidence that the comorbidity observed in school age children is already present in early childhood (Bendiksen et al 2014;Bufferd et al 2012;Egger & Angold, 2006;Gadow & Nolan, 2002;Wichstrøm et al 2012). Moreover, preschool DB symptoms related to ADHD, ODD and CD have been associated with adjustment problems in the first years of school attendance (Brennan et al 2014;Campbell et al 2006;Cherkasova et al 2013;Lavigne et al 2001;Leblanc et al 2008;Shaw, Bell & Gilliom, 2000). Although some studies did not observe this association or reported significant variations between DB in the preschool to early school period (Alatupa et al 2001;Bunte et al 2014), failure to account for the comorbidity between DB might partly explain the discrepant results.…”

“…For ADHD, previous studies have highlighted the unreliability of early measures of inattention (Curchack-Lichtin, Chacko & Halperin, 2014) and concluded that general hyperactivity-impulsivity symptoms are the best qualifier of ADHD for young children prior to school entry (Lahey et al 2005). We therefore focused on hyperactivity and impulsivity symptoms for creating the Hyperactivity-Impulsivity (H-I) scale, using five items from previous studies (Leblanc et al 2008): can't stand still, is agitated; fidgety; impulsive, acts without thinking; difficulty waiting for his/her turn; difficulty remaining quiet. For CD symptoms, it was important to avoid symptoms that rely on the understanding of complex rules or language skills, which are not yet developed very well in young children (Keenan & Wakschlag, 2002).…”

The effects of group daycare in the context of paid maternal leave and high-quality provision

“…Second, as is often the case in studies of very young children, all measures in this study were obtained from the same informant-the mother. However, maternal ratings in slightly older age groups have shown agreement with teacher ratings (see, e.g., Leblanc et al, 2008), and mothers are likely to know most about their young children's behaviour (Phares, 1997). Nevertheless, maternal preconceptions could bias reporting and the fact that maternal ratings had to be used for both predictor and outcome measures makes causal inferences uncertain.…”