Toward Defining Deficient Emotional Self-Regulation in Children with Attention-Deficit/Hyperactivity Disorder Using the Child Behavior Checklist: A Controlled Study
- 1 September 2011
- journal article
- Published by Taylor & Francis Ltd in Postgraduate Medicine
- Vol. 123 (5), 50-59
- https://doi.org/10.3810/pgm.2011.09.2459
Abstract
Objective: Deficient emotional self-regulation (DESR) is characterized by deficits in self-regulating the physiological arousal caused by strong emotions. We examined whether a unique profile of the Child Behavior Checklist (CBCL) would help identify DESR in children with attention-deficit/hyperactivity disorder (ADHD). Methods: Subjects included 197 children with ADHD and 224 children without ADHD. We defined DESR if a child had an aggregate cut-off score of > 180 but < 210 on the Anxiety/Depression, Aggression, and Attention scales of the CBCL (CBCL-DESR). This profile was selected because of: 1) its conceptual congruence with the clinical concept of DESR; and 2) because its extreme (> 210) form has been previously associated with severe forms of mood and behavioral dysregulation in children with ADHD. All subjects were comprehensively assessed with structured diagnostic interviews and a wide range of functional measures. Results: Forty-four percent of children with ADHD had a positive CBCL-DESR profile versus 2% of controls (P < 0.001). The CBCL-DESR profile was associated with elevated rates of anxiety and disruptive behavior disorders, as well as significantly more impairments in emotional and interpersonal functioning. Conclusions: The CBCL-DESR profile helped identify a subgroup of children with ADHD who had a psychopathological and functional profile consistent with the clinical concept of DESR.Keywords
This publication has 27 references indexed in Scilit:
- Understanding deficient emotional self-regulation in adults with attention deficit hyperactivity disorder: a controlled studyADHD Attention Deficit and Hyperactivity Disorders, 2013
- Cross-informant agreement of the Dysregulation Profile of the Child Behavior ChecklistPsychiatry Research, 2010
- Assessment of dysregulated children using the Child Behavior Checklist: A receiver operating characteristic curve analysis.Psychological Assessment, 2010
- Risk for switch from unipolar to bipolar disorder in youth with ADHD: A long term prospective controlled studyJournal of Affective Disorders, 2009
- A controlled family study of children with DSM-IV bipolar-I disorder and psychiatric co-morbidityPsychological Medicine, 2009
- The Child Behavior Checklist-Pediatric Bipolar Disorder Profile Predicts a Subsequent Diagnosis of Bipolar Disorder and Associated Impairments in ADHD Youth Growing UpBritish Journal of Psychology, 2009
- CBCL Pediatric Bipolar Disorder Profile and ADHD: Comorbidity and Quantitative Trait Loci AnalysisJournal of the American Academy of Child & Adolescent Psychiatry, 2008
- Prevalence of the Child Behavior Checklist‐pediatric bipolar disorder phenotype in a German general population sampleBipolar Disorders, 2007
- The CBCL predicts DSM bipolar disorder in children: a receiver operating characteristic curve analysisBipolar Disorders, 2005
- Behavioral inhibition, sustained attention, and executive functions: Constructing a unifying theory of ADHD.Psychological Bulletin, 1997