Trajectories of Pure and Co-Occurring Internalizing and Externalizing Problems from Age 2 to Age 12: Findings from the NICHD Study of Early Child Care

According to previous research, internalizing and externalizing problems tend to be comorbid or co-occur at different ages in development (Angold, Costello, & Erkanli, 1999). The question that this dissertation addresses is how and why internalizing and externalizing problems, two disorders that represent separate forms of psychopathology, co-occur in children. This is an important question for the developmental psychopathology perspective because an appreciation of the concept of co-occurrence is essential for explaining the development and taxonomy of internalizing and externalizing psychopathology, and for understanding the etiology and course of these symptoms (Achenbach, 1990). Attempts to explain co-occurrence have proposed that co-occurring psychopathology might represent distinct, meaningful syndromes (Angold & Costello, 1992; O’Connor et al., 1998), and in support of this idea, evidence of the existence of pure and co-occurring internalizing and externalizing problems has been found (Keiley et al., 2003). However, no previous study has identified heterogeneous developmental patterns of pure or combined internalizing and externalizing problems within a dynamic framework by taking trajectories of change into account. This dissertation uses data from the NICHD study of Early Child Care to explore the co-occurrence between internalizing and externalizing problems from age 2 to 12 with the use of Latent Class Growth Analysis. The sample included 1232 children (52% male). Different groups of children exhibiting low/normative, pure internalizing, pure externalizing, and co-occurring internalizing and externalizing problems across the 10 year period were identified. The higher risk groups deviated from the low/normative group in terms of antecedents, SES risk, medical risk, difficult temperament, and home environment. Moreover, children who exhibited pure moderate externalizing problems, and children who exhibited chronic externalizing problems, with and without co-occurring internalizing problems, engaged in more risky behaviors and were more likely to have friends who also engaged in risky behaviors. Furthermore, the pure chronic externalizing group and the groups scoring high on internalizing problems, with and without co-occurring externalizing problems, were more asocial with peers. Finally, children exhibiting chronic co-occurring externalizing and internalizing problems were more excluded by peers in comparison to the rest of the sample’s population

The Parent-Adolescent Relationship and College Adjustment over the Freshman Year

This study investigates whether the parent-adolescent relationship is related to the academic, social, and personal-emotional expectations of adjustment and actual adjustment to college during the transition to college. The mother-adolescent relationship was more consistently linked to college adjustment than the father-adolescent relationship both cross-sectionally and longitudinally, and students identified their parents and especially their mother amongst the first people who they go to for support. More African Americans than students from other ethnic backgrounds and more dormitory residents than commuters identified their mother as their first supportive figure, suggesting that the students’ living arrangements and their cultural backgrounds need to be taken under consideration when studying this transitional period

FROM THE NICHD STUDY OF EARLY CHILD CARE by

According to previous research, internalizing and externalizing problems tend to be comorbid or co-occur at different ages in development (Angold, Costello, & Erkanli, 1999). The question that this dissertation addresses is how and why internalizing and externalizing problems, two disorders that represent separate forms of psychopathology, co-occur in children. This is an important question for the developmental psychopathology perspective because an appreciation of the concept of co-occurrence is essential for explaining the development and taxonomy of internalizing and externalizing psychopathology, and for understanding the etiology and course of these symptoms (Achenbach, 1990). Attempts to explain co-occurrence have proposed that co-occurring psychopathology might represent distinct, meaningful syndromes (Angold & Costello, 1992; O’Connor et al., 1998), and in support of this idea, evidence of the existence of pure and co-occurring internalizing and externalizing problems has been found (Keiley et al., 2003). However, no previous study has identified heterogeneous developmental patterns of pure or combined internalizing and externalizing problems within a dynamic framework by taking trajectories of change into account

Inventory of Callous-Unemotional Traits (ICU) Factor Structure and Measurement Invariance in an Adolescent Multinational Sample

OBJECTIVE: The Inventory of Callous-Unemotional Traits (ICU) is a widely used, comprehensive measure of callous-unemotional (CU) traits. While the ICU total score is used frequently in research, the scale\u27s factor structure remains highly debated. Inconsistencies in past factor structure research appear to be largely due to the use of small non-representative samples and failure to control for method variance (i.e., item wording direction). METHOD: The current study used a multitrait-multimethod (MTMM) confirmatory factor analysis (CFA) approach that considers both trait and method variance to test the factor structure of a 22-item version of the self-report ICU in a multinational community sample of 4,683 adolescents (ages 11-17). RESULTS: Results showed that a hierarchical four-factor model (i.e., one overarching CU factor, four latent trait factors) that controlled for method variance (i.e., by allowing residuals from positively worded items to covary) provided the best fit ( = 2797.307,  = 160, RMSEA=.059, CFI=.922, TLI=.888, SRMR=.045). CONCLUSIONS: After controlling for method variance, the best-fitting factor structure is consistent with how the ICU was developed and corresponds to the four symptoms of Limited Prosocial Emotions (LPE) specifier in the DSM-5 criteria for Conduct Disorder (CD). In addition, measurement invariance of this factor structure across age (i.e., younger versus older adolescents) and sex was supported. As a result, mean differences in ICU total score across age and sex can be interpreted as reflecting true variations in these traits. Further, we documented that boys generally scored higher than girls on the ICU, and this sex difference was larger in later adolescence

Latent variable modeling of item-based factor scales: Comment on Triarchic or septarchic?-Uncovering the Triarchic Psychopathy Measure's (TriPM) Structure, by Roy et al

We critique Roy et al.'s (2020; this issue) approach to characterizing the item-level factor structure of the three scales of the Triarchic Psychopathy Measure (TriPM), in light of the manner in which the TriPM scales were developed, the purposes they were designed to serve, and the growing body of evidence supporting their construct validity. We focus on three major points: (1) The TriPM scales are item-based factor scales - i.e., item sets designed to index broad factors of larger multi-scale (parent) inventories; (2) item-level structural analysis can be useful for representing broad dimensions tapped by such scales, but it cannot be expected to provide an accurate picture of narrower subdimensions (facets) assessed by their parent inventories; and (3) it is critical to consider the nomological networks of the TriPM scales (and other triarchic scale measures) in appraising their effectiveness as operationalizations of the triarchic model constructs. We illustrate the first and second of these points by applying Roy et al.'s analytic approach to the trait scales of the NEO-FFI, which were developed to index broad personality dimensions of the multi-scale NEO-PI-R. We address the third point with reference to the growing body of literature supporting the construct validity of the TriPM scales and demonstrating their utility for advancing an integrative understanding of psychopathy