Child Psychiatry & Human Development最新文献

Adolescence is a critical period for developing obsessive-compulsive disorder (OCD) symptoms, highlighting the need for preventive strategies. GGOC-AD is a newly adapted module for adolescents within the OCD.app mobile platform, aimed at addressing maladaptive beliefs. This pilot study evaluated the feasibility, acceptability, usability, and preliminary efficacy of GGOC-AD in the adolescent general population. A parallel two-arm pilot trial was conducted with 36 students (55.6% male; M_age = 16.25, SD = 0.5), of which 18 were assigned to the experimental group (using the GGOC-AD app, 14 days) and 18 to the control group (using the neutral GGN-AD app, 14 days). Participants from the experimental group were assessed after using the app for study feasibility, acceptability, and usability through self-reports and an ad-hoc interview. Furthermore, all participants were evaluated at baseline and post-intervention for OCD-related maladaptive beliefs, OC and emotional symptoms, and self-esteem. Quantitative and qualitative data were analyzed.The study concluded that the protocol used was feasible. Participants who used the GGOC-AD app rated it as both acceptable and usable. The preliminary efficacy results of GGOC-AD did not reveal a significant intervention effect on OC symptoms, maladaptive beliefs, emotional symptoms, or self-esteem. These findings provide valuable data for optimizing the study protocol and designing a future randomized controlled trial. This pilot study is an essential step given the critical role of usability and acceptability in driving engagement with mHealth interventions.

Phasic and tonic irritability are highly correlated clinical constructs yet differentially associated with developmental trajectories and treatment response. However, limited research has identified their shared and unique underlying behavioral mechanisms. In a sample of youths enriched for irritability (N = 141, age range 7-18, age M[SD] = 12.60[2.54], 48.23% female), we investigated whether inhibitory control is differentially associated with phasic versus tonic irritability. Replicating prior work, tonic and phasic irritability were estimated via independent confirmatory factor analyses (CFAs) using items and/or subscales from multi-informant questionnaires. A latent factor of inhibitory control was extracted from four behavioral tasks. Initial multiple linear regression analysis found that phasic, not tonic, irritability was significantly associated with impaired inhibitory control. However, results were no longer significant after accounting for shared associations with age. In addition, when adding commonly co-occurring symptoms such as attention-deficit/hyperactivity disorder (ADHD) symptoms and oppositionality, age and ADHD were significant predictors of inhibitory control, but phasic irritability was not. Results suggest that inhibitory control alone may not be a salient mechanism for disambiguating phasic and tonic irritability. Future work leveraging longitudinal methods and consideration of other potential contextual factors is needed.

Despite ample evidence linking self-stigma of mental illness with many negative outcomes, little is known how self-stigma may manifest during psychotherapy, especially among adolescents. In this investigation, seventy-one adolescents (ages 12-17), predominately female and White, who recently began treatment at an outpatient psychology clinic, completed surveys assessing self-stigma and symptom severity at five time points over a sixteen-week period. Multilevel modeling was utilized to assess outcomes in self-stigma. Results indicated that self-stigma did not decline over time, nor was there evidence of variable rate-of-change in our sample. Higher average psychological symptomatology was strongly associated with higher self-stigma. Additionally, when participants reported higher-than-usual symptoms, their self-stigma was also greater. Initial psychological symptomatology did not moderate rate of change in self-stigma. Findings of this study provide a novel understanding of adolescent mental illness self-stigma following the initiation of psychotherapy and highlight the need for clinicians to further consider self-stigma in treatment.

Pollution exposure is often present in high levels in disadvantaged neighborhoods and may independently confer risk for antisocial behavior (AB) and exacerbate relations between maternal depression and AB. The present study used multinomial logistic regression to test whether pollution exposure in early childhood (ages 0-2) and middle childhood (ages 5-12) was associated with trajectories of mother-reported AB (ages 5-11) in a sample of low-income boys (N = 218), controlling for established contextual risk factors. We also tested whether pollution moderated the association between maternal depression and AB. Pollution exposure was not directly associated with AB but did exacerbate the effects of maternal depression on AB. Results indicate pollution may impact behavioral outcomes for boys from low-income families in the context of maternal depression and suggest that more precise measures of pollution exposure are critical to use in future studies.

Children of parents with eating disorders (EDs) are at greater risk of developing an ED, likely due to an interplay of genetic and environmental factors. The familial high-risk (FHR) study design offers a valuable framework for studying development of EDs in individuals at increased risk over time. The study aimed to (1) to explore mothers' with EDs perspectives on the intergenerational transmission of EDs and (2) to explore mothers' with EDs perspective on FHR research related to EDs. Three focus group interviews were conducted in October and November 2023 with a total of eight mothers with a current ED, comprising groups of two, three, and three participants, respectively. All participants had a child of at least five years. Data were analyzed using thematic framework analysis. The first theme focused on navigating motherhood with an ED including experiences and reflections on how having an ED can impact children and had the subtheme: Communicating with children about EDs. The second theme was advancing prevention and early detection of EDs incorporating the promising impact of research on early detection of EDs and targeted preventive interventions and had two subthemes: Protecting children's emotional well-being and willingness to participate in research. Overall, mothers with EDs were deeply concerned about intergenerational transmission and the implications of disclosing their ED to their children, yet they remained highly motivated to participate in prevention research, offering valuable insights into how to engage families more effectively in ED research.

Racial disparities in ADHD diagnoses may be attributable to parent-teacher discrepancies in symptom ratings, as teachers rate Black children as more symptomatic than non-Black children. Implicit racial biases may be a contributor to these parent-teacher differences. This study examined specific forms of racial biases among White teachers and Black parents, and their association with ratings of Black and White children's ADHD behaviors. Participants watched short videoclips and rated children's ADHD symptoms, and completed measures of implicit and explicit racial attitudes and ADHD stereotypes. Results showed that White teachers demonstrated more implicit biases than did Black parents. Implicit racial attitudes toward Black boys were associated with biased ratings of Black boys' ADHD symptoms, and explicit racial attitudes were associated with biased ratings of Black girls' ADHD symptoms. These findings demonstrate a potential role of teachers' implicit racial biases in ratings of Black children's externalizing behaviors, including ADHD.

We examined the factor structure and psychometric properties of the Parent-Child Sleep Interactions Scale (PSIS) in families with children adopted from foster care. Data were collected from adoptive parents of 240 preschool-aged children, ages 3-6 years, (M = 4.24 years, SD = 1.06; 41.67% female) from across the U.S. Parents completed questionnaires assessing demographics, child sleep problems, and child depressive and anxiety symptoms. We randomly split the sample and conducted an exploratory factor analysis (EFA) in sample one, followed by a confirmatory factor analysis (CFA) in sample two. Internal consistency reliability and convergent validity of the final PSIS from the CFA were assessed. The EFA revealed the same three factors identified in the original 12-item measure: Sleep Reinforcement, Sleep Conflict, and Sleep Dependence. However, two items' factor loadings did not meet retention criteria. After removing these items, the three-factor solution was maintained, with good model fit. Internal consistency reliability for all PSIS subscales was good and all subscales were negatively correlated with sleep quality and positively correlated with total child sleep problems and symptoms of separation anxiety. Findings provide evidence for the reliability and validity of the revised PSIS for assessing sleep-related parent-child interactions among preschoolers with a history of placement in foster care.

Attachment- and emotion-focused parenting interventions (AE) and behavioral parenting training (BPT) are evidence-based approaches for reducing child mental health problems and have been widely disseminated across many countries. Notwithstanding this, popular media suggests a potential implementation drift from BPT, though there is a lack of empirical research supporting this claim. Given that providers are often gatekeepers to the quality and types of programs available to parents, this study aimed to provide an updated account of psychologists' perspectives and attitudes regarding AE and BPT. Twenty-four psychologists, with various levels of training in parenting interventions, participated in semi-structured interviews. Interviews explored psychologists' use and acceptability of AE and BPT for treating child mental health problems, including potential factors that may influence their acceptability. Through reflexive thematic analysis, we identified six main themes influencing psychologists' implementation of parenting interventions. These included their professional training; affective experiences; values of safety and parent-child connection; societal parenting trends; beliefs about research and treatment tailoring; and systemic barriers. These findings provide a contemporary understanding on psychologists' perceptions of AE and BPT. Although participants described an awareness of a perceived polarization between AE and BPT amongst psychologists in practice, many participants did not personally hold this view. Our results highlight the importance of considering provider-level factors-such as attitudes, affective experiences, and values-in future research and training on parenting interventions.

Non-suicidal self-injury (NSSI) has become a significant public health issue, garnering attention from across society. While it has been established that family economic hardship serves as a risk factor for adolescent NSSI, the underlying mechanisms connecting these two factors remain to be fully elucidated. Based on a gene-environment interaction perspective, this research explored whether peer victimization acts as a mediator in the link between family economic hardship and adolescent NSSI, and whether the COMT rs4680 polymorphism moderates this indirect path. A total of 477 Chinese adolescents (M_age=12.81 years, SD = 0.48 years, 47.80% girls) participated in two surveys conducted six months apart. After controlling for age, gender, and NSSI at Time 1, peer victimization significantly mediated the relationship between family economic hardship and adolescent NSSI. Furthermore, the impact of family economic hardship on peer victimization was only significant in adolescents with the A allele of the COMT rs4680 polymorphism. Additionally, the positive association between peer victimization and NSSI was much stronger for adolescents with the A allele than for those with the GG genotype. These findings shed light on the risk factors for NSSI in adolescents experiencing family economic hardship. They provide a strong theoretical basis and practical insights for targeted interventions aiming to prevent adolescent NSSI.

Weak parental monitoring has been identified as a risk factor for self-injurious behavior. However, there remains a dearth of research identifying mechanisms underpinning this relationship. Variance in dual systems model cognitive development (impulse control, sensation-seeking) was tested as a set of mediators of this relationship. The Adolescent Brain Cognitive Development data were analyzed. Generalized structural equation modeling was used to test for direct and indirect effects of interest. Weak parental monitoring predicted increased risk for self-injurious behavior at follow-up. Low impulse control significantly mediated this relationship, whereas sensation-seeking was not a significant mediator. These findings indicated the importance of strengthening parental monitoring and fostering healthy impulse control development to prevent self-injurious behavior. A multi-arm program could address these factors at the parent and child level.