Posted
June, 2011
The
CBCL Dysregulation Profile at Age 8 Predicts Substance Use,
Suicidality, and Functional Impairment Among German Adults
A
CBCL profile pattern characterized by extreme elevations of
the Anxious/Depressed, Attention Problems, and Aggressive
Behavior syndromes has been interpreted as reflecting severe
affective and behavioral dysregulation. To determine whether
this pattern predicts adult psychopathology, Holtmann et al.
(2011) used the Structured Clinical Interview for DSM-IV (SCID)
and several other instruments to compare age 19 psychopathology
among 325 participants in a German longitudinal study whose
age 8 CBCL profiles were classified as fitting versus not
fitting the dysregulation pattern. At age 8, the CBCL dysregulation
pattern was significantly associated with psychiatric disorders
among the children and with low family SES. After controlling
for these and other possible risk factors, Holtmann et al.
found that the dysregulation profile pattern significantly
predicted elevated rates of substance use disorders, nicotine
dependence, suicidal ideation, and suicide attempts. The authors
concluded that--rather than functioning as a one-to-one precursor
of particular psychiatric disorders--"severe dysregulation
seems to represent an early risk marker of a persisting deficit
of self-regulation of affect and behavior underlying different
psychiatric disorders" (pp. 143-144).
Reference:
Holtmann, M., Buchmann, A.F., Esser, G., Schmidt, M.H., Banaschewski,
T., & Laucht, M. (2011). The Child Behavior Checklist-Dysregulation
Profile predicts substance use, suicidality, and functional
impairment: a longitudinal analysis. Journal of Child Psychology
and Psychiatry, 52, 139-147.
