The Limits of Child Effects: Evidence for Genetically Mediated Child Effects on Corporal Punishment but Not on Physical Maltreatment.

Research on child effects has demonstrated that children's difficult and coercive behavior provokes harsh discipline from adults. Using a genetically sensitive design, the authors tested the limits of child effects on adult behavior that ranged from the normative (corporal punishment) to the nonnormative (physical maltreatment). The sample was a 1994-1995 nationally representative birth cohort of 1,116 twins and their families who participated in the Environmental Risk Longitudinal Study. Results showed that environmental factors accounted for most of the variation in corporal punishment and physical maltreatment. However, corporal punishment was genetically mediated in part, and the genetic factors that influenced corporal punishment were largely the same as those that influenced children's antisocial behavior, suggesting a child effect. The authors conclude that risk factors for maltreatment are less likely to reside within the child and more likely to reside in characteristics that differ between families. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

Moving against the world: Life-course patterns of explosive children.

Do ill-tempered children become ill-tempered adults? What are the life-course consequences of such an explosive interactional style? What processes can account for the persistence of maladaptive behavior across time and circumstance? To answer these questions, this study used data from the Berkeley Guidance Study (Macfarlane, Allen, & Honzik, 1954) to identify children with a pattern of temper tantrums in late childhood (ages 8–10) and to trace the continuities and consequences of this behavioral style across the subsequent 30 years of their lives. Life-course continuities in this behavioral style were found for both sexes. Men with histories of childhood tantrums experienced downward occupational mobility, erratic work lives, and were likely to divorce. Women with such histories married men with lower occupational status, were likely to divorce, and became ill-tempered mothers. It is proposed that maladaptive behaviors are sustained through the progressive accumulation of their own consequences (cumulative continuity) and by evoking maintaining responses from others during reciprocal social interaction (interactional continuity). (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

The content validity of juvenile psychopathy: An empirical examination.

This study examined the content validity of a juvenile psychopathy measure, the Childhood Psychopathy Scale (CPS; D. R. Lynam, 1997), based on a downward translation of an adult instrument, the Hare Psychopathy Checklist-Revised (PCL-R; R. D. Hare, 1991). The CPS was compared with two other indices of juvenile psychopathy: (a) an index derived from expert ratings and (b) an empirical index based on correlations with adult psychopathy. The 100 items of the Common Language Q-Sort (CLQ; A. Caspi et al., 1992) provided a common metric for the comparison. Psychopathy and personality were assessed at age 13 years with the mother-reported CPS and the CLQ. Psychopathy was assessed at age 24 years with the interviewer-rated Psychopathy Checklist: Screening Version (PCL:SV; S. D. Hart, D. N. Cox, & R. D. Hare, 1995). Data from over 250 participants of the middle sample of the Pittsburgh Youth Study were used to examine these relations. Item content analyses demonstrated considerable overlap among the three indices, indicating that the downward translation utilizes criteria similar to those of experts and the empirically-derived measure. In addition, these indices, even after removing overlapping items, demonstrated considerable convergence, also supporting the content validity of the downward translation. These results suggest that the downward translation method is adequate for understanding the juvenile psychopathy construct. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

Genetic influences on the overlap between low IQ and antisocial behavior in young children.

The well-documented relation between the phenotypes of low IQ and childhood antisocial behavior could be explained by either common genetic influences or environmental influences. These competing explanations were examined through use of the Environmental Risk Longitudinal Twin Study 1994-1995 cohort (Moffitt & the E-Risk Study Team, 2002) of 1,116 twin pairs and their families. Children's IQ was assessed via individual testing at age 5 years. Mothers and teachers reported on children's antisocial behavior at ages 5 and 7 years. Low IQ was related to antisocial behavior at age 5 years and predicted relatively higher antisocial behavior scores at age 7 years when antisocial behavior at age 5 years was controlled. This association was significantly stronger among boys than among girls. Genetic influences common to both phenotypes explained 100% of the low IQ-antisocial behavior relation in boys. Findings suggest that specific candidate genes and neurobiological processes should be tested in relation to both phenotypes. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

Vehicle velocity estimation using nonlinear observers

Nonlinear observers for estimation of lateral and longitudinal velocity of automotive vehicles are proposed. The observers are based on a sensor suite that is standard in many new cars, consisting of acceleration and yaw rate measurements in addition to wheel speed and steering angle measurements. Two approaches are considered: first, a modular approach where the estimated longitudinal velocity is used as input to the observer for lateral velocity, and second, a combined approach where all states are estimated in the same observer. Both approaches use a tire-road friction model, which is assumed to be known. It is also assumed that the road is flat. Stability of the observers is proven in the form of input-to-state stability of the observer error dynamics, under a structural assumption on the friction model. The assumption on the friction model is discussed in detail, and the observers are validated on experimental data from cars.     

Are associations between parental divorce and children's adjustment genetically mediated? An adoption study.

The hypothesis that the association between parental divorce and children's adjustment is mediated by genetic factors was examined in the Colorado Adoption Project, a prospective longitudinal study of 398 adoptive and biological families. In biological families, children who experienced their parents' separation by the age of 12 years exhibited higher rates of behavioral problems and substance use, and lower levels of achievement and social adjustment, compared with children whose parents' marriages remained intact. Similarly, adopted children who experienced their (adoptive) parents' divorces exhibited elevated levels of behavioral problems and substance use compared with adoptees whose parents did not separate, but there were no differences on achievement and social competence. The findings for psychopathology are consistent with an environmentally mediated explanation for the association between parent divorce and children's adjustment; in contrast, the findings for achievement and social adjustment are consistent with a genetically mediated explanation involving passive genotype–environment correlation. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

The interaction between impulsivity and neighborhood context on offending: The effects of impulsivity are stronger in poorer neighborhoods.

This research blends 2 traditions of theorizing on the causes of crime, one focused on the role of individual differences and the other focused on structural and contextual variables. Two related studies examined the relations among impulsivity, neighborhood context, and juvenile offending. The first, cross-sectional study uses a large sample of 13-yr-old inner-city boys, whereas the second, longitudinal study offers a conceptual replication using 17-yr-old inner-city boys who are a subset of the original sample. Across both studies, results indicate that the effects of impulsivity on juvenile offending are stronger in poorer neighborhoods. Furthermore, nonimpulsive boys in poor neighborhoods were at no greater risk for delinquency than nonimpulsive boys in better-off neighborhoods. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

Comorbid mental disorders: Implications for treatment and sample selection.

Disorders from the Diagnostic and Statistical Manual of Mental Disorders (3rd ed., rev.; American Psychiatric Association, 1987) were assessed in a birth cohort of 961 young adults. Comorbid cases exceeded single-disordered cases in chronic history of mental illness, use of treatments, physical health problems, functional interference in daily life, and impaired adaptation across domains such as work, education, health, and social-support networks. Single-disorder cases were also more impaired than nondisordered cases, but comorbid cases were the most severely impaired. Our findings suggest that (a) samples that underrepresent comorbidity (pure single-disorder cases or student samples) will underestimate effect sizes for relations between a disorder and its correlates, whereas samples that overrepresent comorbidity (clinical or adjudicated samples) will overestimate effect sizes, (b) comorbidity is accompanied by complications that challenge treatment planning, compliance, and coordination of service delivery, and (c) comorbidity is associated with physical, educational, and economic problems that make it a broad societal concern. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

Intergenerational Relationships in Young Adulthood and Their Life Course, Mental Health, and Personality Correlates.

To evaluate effects of life-course events and experiences of young adults, as well as personality and mental-health history on intergenerational relationships in young adulthood, the authors examined dyadic relationship data drawn from a sample of more than 900 New Zealand 26-year-olds and their mothers and fathers. Results indicated that intergenerational relations were more positive when young adults were childless, not unemployed, married, and living away from home, but these factors did not interact with family relationship history in predicting relationship outcomes. Intergenerational relationships were less positive when children scored low on positive emotionality and constraint and high on negative emotionality and mental disorders, though these attributes did not account for the effect of life-course factors. Results are discussed in terms of the openness of the parent-child relationship in adulthood to further development. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

When parents have a history of conduct disorder: How is the caregiving environment affected?

Individuals with early-emerging conduct problems are likely to become parents who expose their children to considerable adversity. The current study tested the specificity of and alternative explanations for this trajectory. The sample included 246 members of a prospective, 30-year cohort study and their 3-year-old children. Parents who had a history of conduct disorder were specifically at elevated risk for socioeconomic disadvantage and relationship violence, but suboptimal parenting and offspring temperament problems were common to parents with any history of disorder. Recurrent disorder, comorbidity, and adversity in the family of origin did not fully account for these findings. The cumulative consequences of early-onset conduct disorder and assortative mating for antisocial behavior may explain the long-term effects of conduct disorder on young adult functioning. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)