Creating a developmental scale to chart the development of psychopathology with different informants and measures across time

Reactive and control processes in the development of internalizing and externalizing problems across early childhood to adolescence

Reactive and control processes - e.g., negative emotionality and immediacy preference - may predict distinct psychopathology trajectories. However, externalizing and internalizing problems change in behavioral manifestation across development and across contexts, thus necessitating the use of different measures and informants across ages. This is the first study that created developmental scales for both internalizing and externalizing problems by putting scores from different informants and measures onto the same scale to examine temperament facets as risk factors. Multidimensional linking allowed us to examine trajectories of internalizing and externalizing problems from ages 2 to 15 years (N = 1,364) using near-annual ratings by mothers, fathers, teachers, other caregivers, and self report. We examined reactive and control processes in early childhood as predictors of the trajectories and as predictors of general versus specific psychopathology in adolescence. Negative emotionality at age 4 predicted general psychopathology and unique externalizing problems at age 15. Wait times on an immediacy preference task at age 4 were negatively associated with age 15 general psychopathology, and positively associated with unique internalizing problems. Findings demonstrate the value of developmental scaling for examining development of psychopathology across a lengthy developmental span and the importance of considering reactive and control processes in development of psychopathology.

A Developmentally Informed Systematic Review and Meta-Analysis of the Strength of General Psychopathology in Childhood and Adolescence

Considerable support exists for higher-order dimensional conceptualizations of psychopathology in adults. A growing body of work has focused on understanding the structure of general and specific psychopathology in children and adolescents. No prior meta-analysis has examined whether the strength of the general psychopathology factor (p factor)-measured by explained common variance (ECV)-changes from childhood to adolescence. The primary objective of this multilevel meta-analysis was to determine whether general psychopathology strength changes across development (i.e. across ages) in childhood and adolescence. Several databases were searched in November 2021; 65 studies, with 110 effect sizes (ECV), nested within shared data sources, were identified. Included empirical studies used a factor analytic modeling approach that estimated latent factors for child/adolescent internalizing, externalizing, and optionally thought-disordered psychopathology, and a general factor. Studies spanned ages 2-17 years. Across ages, general psychopathology explained over half (~ 56%) of the reliable variance in symptoms of psychopathology. Age-moderation analyses revealed that general factor strength remained stable across ages, suggesting that general psychopathology strength does not significantly change across childhood to adolescence. Even if the structure of psychopathology changes with development, the prominence of general psychopathology across development has important implications for future research and intervention.

Cost-Effectiveness a Parenting Skills Program Implemented in Public PreK Schools in Disadvantaged Urban Communities

BACKGROUND

Little is known about the cost-effectiveness of parent training programs when offered universally in U.S. elementary schools in disadvantaged urban communities.

OBJECTIVE

To estimate the cost-effectiveness of a universal school-based implementation study of the Chicago Parent Program (CPP).

METHODS

CPP was offered universally from 2014 to 2017 to parents of PreK students in 12 Baltimore City Title 1 schools (n = 380; 61.1% Black/African American, 24.1% Hispanic). CPP program implementation and operating costs were estimated using microcosting methods and data drawn from study records. A Complier Average Causal Effects (CACE) framework was used to estimate an Incremental Cost Effectiveness Ratio (ICER) for CPP's average cost per child per 1% decrease in conduct problem prevalence at follow-up. This ICER was then compared with comparable ICERs for four parenting interventions that have been implemented and evaluated in Europe: Connect, Incredible Years, COPE, and Comet.

RESULTS

CPP cost $937.51 per child (95% CI: $902.09 to $971.92). Adjusted CACE estimates indicated that CPP resulted in a 31.4% reduction (95% CI: -39.7% to -23.9%) in conduct problem prevalence at follow-up among children whose parents attended CPP. The mean ICER for CPP was $29.86 per each 1% reduction in prevalence (95% CI: $21.05 to $50.71). CPP's ICER was similar to ICERs for Connect ($25.50) and COPE ($29.72), and less than ICERs for Incredible Years ($50.36) and Comet ($59.69).

CONCLUSION

School-based CPP offered universally to parents of children transitioning to Kindergarten in extremely disadvantaged U.S. urban communities was found to offer relatively good value compared with similar parenting programs that are widely used in Europe.

Reexamining developmental continuity and discontinuity in the 21st century: Better aligning behaviors, functions, and mechanisms

Developmental science aims to explain development across the lifespan. Jerome Kagan observed that the same behavior can occur for different reasons, and differing behaviors can occur for the same reason. To help account for persistence, desistence, and transformation of behavior across development, Kagan introduced various types of continuity and discontinuity of forms and functions of behavior. This framework provides opportunities for identifying explanatory mechanisms in behavior development. However, misconceptions remain in applying the concepts that Kagan introduced. Much of the literature assumes developmental continuity in constructs without examining whether assumptions are supported, leading to faulty developmental inferences. For instance, the use of the same measure across time to assess development assumes that the behavior occurs for the same reason across time (homotypic continuity). In addition, just because one behavior predicts a different behavior at a later time does not necessarily indicate that age-differing behaviors occur for the same reason (heterotypic continuity). This review aims to advance conceptualizations of continuity and discontinuity from a contemporary perspective with aims to improve mechanistic understanding of behavior development across the lifespan. To better align behaviors, functions, and mechanisms, research should (a) examine (dis)continuity of individual behaviors rather than merely syndromes, (b) identify the function(s) of the given behavior(s), and (c) identify the cognitive and biological processes that underlie the behavior-function pairs. Incorporating examples from research on development of humans and nonhuman animals, I discuss challenges from work that has followed Kagan's ideas and ways to advance understanding of continuity and discontinuity across development. (PsycInfo Database Record (c) 2023 APA, all rights reserved).