ABSTRACT
The associations between attachment style, ADHD symptoms, and social adjustments were examined in a community sample of adolescents. Five hundred and eight junior high school students completed questionnaires pertaining to attachment style, ADHD symptoms (inattention and hyperactivity), and rejection sensitivity, and were rated by homeroom teachers on social adjustment. Analyses supported a 3-profile pattern of attachment styles: secure, dismissing, and preoccupied. The 3 attachment profiles showed differential risk on adolescents' social adjustment, as well as on ADHD symptoms. The secure profile showed the most adaptive outcomes on all of the examined adjustment outcomes, compared with the other 2 profiles. In contrast, the preoccupied attachment profile showed the highest levels of ADHD problems, angry and anxious expectations, while displaying a similar level of maladjustment to the dismissing profile. In addition, structural equation modeling was used and supported a model that tested an indirect link between attachment security and adolescent adjustment via an ADHD latent factor. Findings suggest that clinicians and educators should pay attention to relational patterns (attachment styles) in adolescence, as these may serve as a developmental precursor for ADHD and a range of adjustment problems in school.
Subject(s)
Attention Deficit Disorder with Hyperactivity/psychology , Interpersonal Relations , Object Attachment , Rejection, Psychology , Social Adjustment , Adolescent , Child , Female , Humans , Male , Risk FactorsABSTRACT
Neuropsychological functioning of 30 siblings of children with autism (AU-S), 28 siblings of children with mental retardation of (MR-S), and 30 siblings of children with developmental language delay (DLD-S) was compared. Two siblings, both AU-S, received diagnoses of pervasive developmental disorder (PDD). More siblings with cognitive disabilities were found in DLD-S than in AU-S. However, these differences disappeared after excluding diagnosed siblings or after accounting for family membership. In sum, despite the elevated incidence of PDD among AU-S, the neuropsychological functioning of the remaining siblings did not convey specific characteristics related to the genetic risk associated with autism, in contrast to the cognitive functioning of the DLD-S, which did reflect a genetic risk.
Subject(s)
Autistic Disorder/genetics , Intellectual Disability/genetics , Language Development Disorders/genetics , Neuropsychological Tests , Siblings , Adolescent , Autistic Disorder/diagnosis , Autistic Disorder/psychology , Child , Cognition Disorders/diagnosis , Female , Humans , Intellectual Disability/diagnosis , Intellectual Disability/psychology , Intelligence Tests , Language Development Disorders/diagnosis , Language Development Disorders/psychology , MaleABSTRACT
AIMS: To compare siblings of children with autism (SIBS-A) and siblings of children with typical development (SIBS-TD) at 4 and 14 months of age. METHODS: At 4 months, mother-infant interactional synchrony during free play, infant gaze and affect during the still-face paradigm, and infant responsiveness to a name-calling paradigm were examined (n = 21 in each group). At 14 months, verbal and nonverbal communication skills were examined as well as cognition (30 SIBS-A and 31 SIBS-TD). RESULTS: Most SIBS-A were functioning as well as the SIBS-TD at 4 and 14 months of age. However, some differences in early social engagement and later communicative and cognitive skills emerged. Synchrony was weaker in the SIBS-A dyads, but only for infant-led interactions. Infant SIBS-A revealed more neutral affect during the still-face procedure and were less upset by it than was true for the SIBS-TD. A surprising result was that significantly more SIBS-A responded to their name being called by their mothers compared to SIBS-TD. At 14 months, SIBS-A made fewer nonverbal requesting gestures and achieved lower language scores on the Bayley Scale. Six SIBS-A revealed a language delay of 5 months and were responsible for some of the significant differences between SIBS-A and SIBS-TD. Furthermore, infant SIBS-A who showed more neutral affect to the still face and were less able to respond to their name being called by their mothers initiated fewer nonverbal joint attention and requesting behaviors at 14 months, respectively. DISCUSSION: Focused on the genetic liability for the broad phenotype of autism as well as the possible influence of having a sibling with autism.
Subject(s)
Autistic Disorder/psychology , Child Development/physiology , Cognition/physiology , Communication , Siblings/psychology , Social Behavior , Age Factors , Analysis of Variance , Autistic Disorder/genetics , Female , Genetic Predisposition to Disease , Humans , Infant , Infant Behavior/psychology , Male , Mother-Child RelationsABSTRACT
BACKGROUND: Social and emotional adjustment of siblings of children with autism was examined, to explore their risk or resilience to effects of genetic liability and environmental factors involved in having a sibling with autism. METHOD: Social-emotional adjustment, behavior problems, socialization skills, and siblings' relationships were compared among 30 siblings of children with autism, 28 siblings of children with mental retardation of unknown genetic etiology (MR), and 30 siblings of children with developmental language disorders (DLD). Groups were matched by probands' gender, siblings' chronological age, gender, IQ, and birth order, and by family size, ethnicity, and parental income, employment, and stress level. RESULTS: Four siblings of children with autism, three siblings of children with MR, and seven siblings of children with DLD received DSM-IV diagnoses. Nevertheless, most of the siblings were well adjusted. CONCLUSIONS: The adjustment of siblings of children with autism is in sharp contrast to the severe social and emotional disabilities characteristic of autism, and is noteworthy considering the stress involved in having a sibling with autism.
Subject(s)
Adaptation, Psychological , Autistic Disorder/genetics , Autistic Disorder/psychology , Emotions , Siblings/psychology , Social Behavior , Child , Child, Preschool , Female , Humans , Male , Risk FactorsABSTRACT
BACKGROUND: Language abilities of siblings of children with autism were examined to explore the possibility that language abilities are behavioral markers specific to the genetic liability for autism, as part of the broader phenotype. METHOD: Language abilities were compared among 27 siblings of children with autism, 23 siblings of children with mental retardation of unknown etiology (MR), and 22 siblings of children with developmental language disorders (DLD). Groups were matched by siblings' age, gender, birth order, family size, ethnicity, family income and by probands' gender and mental age. RESULTS: Siblings of children with autism achieved higher scores than siblings of children with DLD on receptive, expressive, and total language scales of the Children's Evaluation of Language Fundamentals and on verbal IQ. Moreover, within the DLD group, school problems in the domains of reading and arithmetic were more prevalent than within the other two groups. Only 2 siblings of children with autism received clinical diagnoses based on DSM-IV criteria compared to 3 siblings of children with MR and 7 siblings of children with DLD. CONCLUSIONS: After excluding data of the diagnosed siblings, no differences in language abilities could be discerned among the groups, except that more siblings in the DLD group were identified as having language difficulties. In summary, although language deficits characterize autism, siblings of children with autism were not found to demonstrate deficits in language skills assessed by formal language tests, IQ, or academic skills.
Subject(s)
Autistic Disorder/genetics , Language Development Disorders/genetics , Siblings , Adolescent , Analysis of Variance , Autistic Disorder/diagnosis , Child , Female , Humans , Language Development Disorders/diagnosis , Male , Risk , Wechsler ScalesABSTRACT
Although the etiology of autism remains to be elucidated, genetic elements significantly contribute to this disorder, and genes on the X chromosome are of special interest because there is a 4:1 predominance of male probands in autism. In the current study, we therefore examined, using the robust transmission disequilibrium test (TDT), possible preferential transmission of variants of a functional monoamine oxidase A (MAO A) promoter region polymorphism for linkage to autism. In the 49 families examined (33 families with one proband and 15 families with two affected siblings), we did not find preferential transmission of MAO A from 33 heterozygous mothers to affected child (TDT chi-square = 0.29, NS). Nor was any significant difference in MAO A allele frequency observed between 43 male autism subjects versus a group of 108 non-autism control subjects (chi-square = 1.23, P = 0.27, NS). However, a trend was observed for an association between IQ in the probands and the MAO A genotype that just attained significance (F = 3.5, P = 0.046, N = 28) in the small group of autism subjects recruited from families with two affected siblings.
