Hostname: page-component-78c5997874-4rdpn Total loading time: 0 Render date: 2024-11-04T19:36:46.679Z Has data issue: false hasContentIssue false

Trajectories of anxiety in a population sample of children: Clarifying the role of children's behavioral characteristics and maternal parenting

Published online by Cambridge University Press:  28 April 2010

Stéphane Duchesne*
Affiliation:
Université Laval
Simon Larose
Affiliation:
Université Laval
Frank Vitaro
Affiliation:
Université Laval Université de Montréal
Richard E. Tremblay
Affiliation:
Université Laval Université de Montréal
*
Address correspondence and reprint requests to: Stéphane Duchesne, Département d'études sur l'enseignement et l'apprentissage, Faculté des sciences de l'éducation, Local 934 2320, rue des Bibliothèques, Université Laval, Laval, QC G1V 0A6, Canada; E-mail: [email protected].

Abstract

This study pursued three goals. The first goal was to explore children's trajectories of anxiety from age 6 to 12 using a representative community sample. The second goal was to assess the link between certain behavioral characteristics assessed in kindergarten (i.e., inattention, hyperactivity, aggressiveness, and low prosociality) and these trajectories. The third goal was to determine whether certain aspects of maternal parenting (i.e., warmth and discipline) could moderate the association between these characteristics and the trajectories of anxiety. A population sample of 2,000 children (1,001 boys, 999 girls) participated in this longitudinal study. Developmental trajectory analyses allowed us to identify four trajectory groups: low, low-increasing, high-declining, and high anxiety groups. Moreover, multinomial logistic regressions revealed a profile of children at risk of developing high anxiety symptoms (i.e., high group), characterized by sociofamily adversity, inattention, and low prosociality in the classroom. Hyperactivity was also found in this profile, but only for children exposed to a mother who showed little affective warmth. Finally, mothers' high level of discipline increased the odds of belonging to the high anxiety group. The results are discussed in relation to studies examining the association among anxiety, behavioral characteristics, and parenting during childhood.

Type
Regular Articles
Copyright
Copyright © Cambridge University Press 2010

Access options

Get access to the full version of this content by using one of the access options below. (Log in options will check for institutional or personal access. Content may require purchase if you do not have access.)

References

American Psychiatric Association. (2000). Diagnostic and statistical manual of mental disorders (4th ed., text revision). Washington, DC: Author.Google Scholar
Ballash, N., Leyfer, O., Buckley, A. F., & Woodruff-Borden, J. (2006). Parental control in the etiology of anxiety. Clinical Child and Family Psychology Review, 9, 113133.CrossRefGoogle ScholarPubMed
Barber, B. K. (2002). Intrusive parenting: How psychological control affects children and adolescents. Washington, DC: American Psychological Association.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Barber, B. K., Olsen, J. E., & Shagle, S. C. (1994). Associations between parental psychological and behavioral control and youth internalized and externalized behaviors. Child Development, 65, 11201136.CrossRefGoogle ScholarPubMed
Barkley, R. A. (2005). Attention-deficit hyperactivity disorder: A handbook for diagnosis and treatment (3rd ed.).New York: Guilford Press.Google Scholar
Baumrind, D. (1971). Current patterns of parental authority. Developmental Psychology Monographs, 4, 1102.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Beidel, D. C., & Turner, S. M. (1998). Shy children, phobic adults: Nature and treatment of social phobia. Washington, DC: American Psychological Association.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Bernstein, G. A., & Borchardt, C. M. (1991). Anxiety disorders of childhood and adolescence: A critical review. Journal of Child and Adolescent Psychiatry, 30, 519532.CrossRefGoogle ScholarPubMed
Bittner, A., Egger, H. L., Erkanli, A., Costello, J. A., Foley, D. L., & Angold, A. (2007). What do childhood anxiety disorders predict? Journal of Child Psychology and Psychiatry, 48, 11741183.CrossRefGoogle ScholarPubMed
Bosquet, M., & Egeland, B. (2006). The development and maintenance of anxiety symptoms from infancy through adolescence in a longitudinal sample. Development and Psychopathology, 18, 517550.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Brady, E. U., & Kendall, P. C. (1992). Comorbidity of anxiety and depression in children and adolescents. Psychological Bulletin, 111, 244255.CrossRefGoogle ScholarPubMed
Cartwright-Hatton, S., McNicol, K., & Doubleday, E. (2006). Anxiety in a neglected population: Prevalence of anxiety disorders in pre-adolescent children. Clinical Psychology Review, 26, 817833.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Chapell, M. S., & Overton, W. F. (1998). Development of logical reasoning in the context of parental style and test anxiety. Merrill–Palmer Quarterly, 44, 141156.Google Scholar
Chen, X., & French, D. C. (2008). Children's social competence in cultural context. Annual Review of Psychology, 59, 591616.CrossRefGoogle ScholarPubMed
Cicchetti, D., & Rogosch, F. A. (2002). A developmental psychopathology perspective on adolescence. Journal of Consulting and Clinical Psychology, 70, 620.CrossRefGoogle ScholarPubMed
Coplan, R. J., & Arbeau, K. A. (2008). The stresses of a “brave new world”: Shyness and school adjustment in kindergarten. Journal of research in Childhood Education, 22, 377389.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Costello, E. J., Mustillo, S., Erkanli, A., Keeler, G., & Angold, A. (2003). Prevalence and development of psychiatric disorders in childhood and adolescence. Archives of General Psychiatry, 60, 837844.CrossRefGoogle ScholarPubMed
Côté, S., Tremblay, R. E., Nagin, D., Zoccolillo, M., & Vitaro, F. (2002). The development of impulsivity, fearfulness, and helpfulness during childhood: Patterns of consistency and change in the trajectories of boys and girls. Journal of Child Psychology and Psychiatry, 43, 609618.CrossRefGoogle ScholarPubMed
Crystal, D. S., Ostrander, R., Chen, R. S., & August, G. J. (2001). Multimethod assessment of psychopathology among DSM-IV subtypes of children with attention deficit/hyperactivity disorder: Self-, parent, and teacher reports. Journal of Abnormal Child Psychology, 29, 189205.CrossRefGoogle ScholarPubMed
Cummings, E. M., Davies, P. T., & Campbell, S. B. (2000). Developmental psychopathology and family process. New York: Guilford Press.Google Scholar
DiBartolo, P. M., & Helt, M. (2007). Theoretical models of affectionate versus affectionless control in anxious families: A critical examination based on observations of parent–child interactions. Clinical Child and Family Psychology Review, 10, 253274.CrossRefGoogle ScholarPubMed
Duchesne, S., Larose, S., Guay, F., Tremblay, R. E., & Vitaro, F. (2005). The transition from elementary to high school: The pivotal role of family and child characteristics in explaining trajectories of academic functioning. International Journal of Behavioral Development, 29, 409417.Google Scholar
Duchesne, S., Vitaro, F. Larose, S., & Tremblay, R. E. (2008). Trajectories of anxiety during elementary-school years and the prediction of high school noncompletion. Journal of Youth and Adolescence, 37, 11341146.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Duda, M., & Minick, V. (2006) Easing the transition to kindergarten: Demonstrating partnership through service-learning. Mentoring and Tutoring 14, 111121.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Dumas, J. E., LaFrenière, P. J., & Serketich, W. J. (1995). “Balance of power”: A transactional analysis of control in mother–child dyads involving socially competent, aggressive, and anxious children. Journal of Abnormal Psychology, 104, 104113.CrossRefGoogle ScholarPubMed
DuPaul, G. J., Volpe, R. J., Jitendra, A. K., Lutz, G., Lorah, K. S., & Gruber, R. (2004). Elementary school students with AD/HD: Predictors of academic achievement. Journal of School Psychology, 42, 285301.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Eccles, J. S., & Roeser, R. W. (2003). Schools as developmental contexts. In Adams, G. R, & Berzonsky, M. D. (Eds.), Blackwell handbook of adolescence (pp. 129148). Oxford: Blackwell Publishing Ltd.Google Scholar
Eisenberg, N., & Fabes, R. A. (1998). Prosocial development. In Eisenberg, N. (Ed.), Handbook of child psychology: Vol. 3. Social, emotional, and personality development (pp. 701778). New York: Wiley.Google Scholar
Eisenberg, N., & Mussen, P. (1989). The roots of prosocial behavior in children. Cambridge: Cambridge University Press.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Epkins, C. C. (1995). Teachers' ratings of inpatient children's depression, anxiety, and aggression: A preliminary comparison between inpatient-facility and community-based teachers' ratings and their correspondence with children's self-reports. Journal of Clinical Psychology, 24, 6370.Google Scholar
Falender, C. A., & Mehrabian, A. (1980). The emotional climate for children as inferred from parental attitudes: A preliminary validation of three scales. Educational and Psycholological Measurement, 40, 10331042.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Faraone, S. V., Biederman, J., Weber, W., & Russell, R. L. (1998). Psychiatric, neuropsychological, and psychological features of DSM-IV subtypes of attention-deficit/hyperactivity disorder: Results from a clinically referred sample. Journal of the American Academy of Child & Adolescent Psychiatry, 37, 185193.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Feng, X., Shaw, D. S., & Silk, J. S. (2008). Developmental trajectories of anxiety symptoms among boys across early and middle childhood. Journal of Abnormal Psychology, 117, 3247.CrossRefGoogle ScholarPubMed
Fergusson, D. M., & Horwood, L. J. (1992). Attention deficit and reading achievement. Journal of Child Psychology and Psychiatry and Allied Disciplines, 33, 375385.CrossRefGoogle ScholarPubMed
Flom, P. L., & Strauss, S. M. (2003). Some graphical methods for interpreting interactions in logistic and OLS regression. Multiple Linear Regression Viewpoints, 29, 17.Google Scholar
Ford, T., Goodman, R., & Meltzer, H. (2003). The British child and adolescent mental health survey: The prevalence of DSM-IV disorders. Journal of the American Academy of Child & Adolescent Psychiatry, 42, 12031211.CrossRefGoogle ScholarPubMed
Fox, H. A., Henderson, H. A., Marshall, P. J., Nichols, K. E., & Ghera, M. M. (2005). Behavioral inhibition: Linking biology and behaviour within a developmental framework. Annual Review of Psychology, 56, 235262.CrossRefGoogle ScholarPubMed
Galambos, N. L., Barker, E. T., & Almeida, D. M. (2003). Parents do matter: Trajectories of change in externalizing and internalizing problems in early adolescence. Child Development, 74, 578594.CrossRefGoogle ScholarPubMed
Godde, M., & Engfer, A. (1994). Children's social networks and the development of social competence: A longitudinal analysis. In Nestmann, F. & Hurrelmann, K. (Eds.), Social networks and social support in childhood and adolescence (pp. 191216). Berlin: Walter de Gruyter.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Jones, B., Nagin, D. S., & Roeder, K. (2001). A SAS procedure based on mixture models for estimating developmental trajectories. Sociological Methods and Research, 29, 374393.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Kendall, P. C., Hedtke, K. A., & Aschenbrand, S. G. (2006). Anxiety disorders. In Wolfe, D. & Mash, E. J. (Eds.), Behavioral and emotional disorders in adolescents: Nature, assessment, and treatment. New York: Guilford Press.Google Scholar
Kendall, P. C., & Suveg, C. (2006). Treating anxiety disorders in youth. In Kendall, P. C. (Ed.), Child and adolescent therapy (3rd ed., pp. 243296). New York: Guilford Press.Google Scholar
Kolko, D. J., Baumann, B. L., Bukstein, O. G., & Brown, E. J. (2007). Internalizing symptoms and affective reactivity in relation to the severity of aggression in clinically referred, behaviour-disordered children. Journal of Child and Family Studies, 16, 745759.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Kroes, M., Kalff, A. C., Kessels, A., Steyaert, J., Feron, F., Van Someren, A., et al. (2001). Child psychiatric diagnoses in a population of Dutch schoolchildren aged 6–8 years. Journal of the American Academy of Child & Adolescent Psychiatry, 40, 14011409.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Last, C. G., Perrin, S., Hersen, M., & Kazdin, A. E. (1996). A prospective study of childhood anxiety disorders. Journal of the American Academy of Child and Adolescent Psychiatry, 35, 15021510.CrossRefGoogle ScholarPubMed
Layne, A. E., Bernstein, G. A., & March, J. S. (2006). Teacher awareness of anxiety symptoms in children. Child Psychiatry and Human Development, 36, 383392.CrossRefGoogle ScholarPubMed
Little, T. D., Brauner, J., Jones, S. M., Nock, M. K., & Hawley, P. H. (2003). Rethinking aggression: A typological examination of the functions of aggression. Merrill–Palmer Quarterly, 49, 343363.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Lonigan, C. J., Vasey, M. W., Phillips, B. M., & Hazen, R. A. (2004). Temperament, anxiety, and the processing of threat-relevant stimuli. Journal of Clinical Child and Adolescent Psychology, 33, 820.CrossRefGoogle ScholarPubMed
Maccoby, E. E., & Martin, J. A. (1983). Socialization in the context of the family: Parent–child interaction. In Hetherington, E. M. (Ed.), Mussen, P. H. (Series Ed.), Handbook of child psychology: Vol. 4. Socialization, personality, and social development (pp. 1101). New York: Wiley.Google Scholar
Masia, C. L., & Morris, T. L. (1998). Parental factors associated with social anxiety: Methodological limitations and suggestions for integrated behavioral research. Clinical Psychology: Science and Practice, 5, 211228.Google Scholar
Mattanah, J. F. (2001). Parental psychological autonomy and children's academic competence and behavioral adjustment in late childhood: More than just limit-setting and warmth. Merrill–Palmer Quarterly, 47, 355376.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
McLeod, B. D., Wood, J. J., & Weisz, J. R. (2007). Examining the association between parenting and childhood anxiety: A meta-analysis. Clinical Psychology Review, 27, 155172.CrossRefGoogle ScholarPubMed
Moore, P., Whaley, S., & Sigman, M. (2004). Interactions between mothers and children: Impacts of maternal and child anxiety. Journal of Abnormal Psychology, 113, 471476.CrossRefGoogle ScholarPubMed
Morgan, J., & Banerjee, R. (2006). Social anxiety and self-evaluation of social performance in a nonclinical sample of children. Journal of Clinical Child and Adolescent Psychology, 35, 292301.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Nagin, D. S. (1999). Analyzing developmental trajectories: A semi-parametric, group-based approach. Psychological Methods, 4, 139177.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Nagin, D. S. (2005). Group-based modeling of development. Cambridge, MA: Harvard University Press.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Olson, S. L., & Rosenblaum, K. (1998). Preschool antecedents of internalizing problems in children beginning school: The role of social maladaptation. Early Education & Development, 9, 117129.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Öncü, B., Öner, Ö., Öner, P., Erol, N., Aysev, A., & Canat, S. (2004). Symptoms defined by parents' and teachers's ratings in attention-deficit hyperactivity disorder: Changes with age. Canadian Journal of Psychiatry, 49, 487491.CrossRefGoogle ScholarPubMed
Power, T. J., Costigan, T. E., Eiraldi, R. B., & Leff, S. S. (2004). Variations in anxiety and depression as a function of ADHD subtypes defines by DSM-IV: Do subtype difference exist or not? Journal of Abnormal Child Psychology, 32, 2737.CrossRefGoogle ScholarPubMed
Rubin, K. H., Bukowski, W., & Parker, J. G. (1998). Peer interactions, relationships, and groups. In Eisenberg, N. (Ed.), Handbook of child psychology: Vol. 3. Social, emotional, and personality development (pp. 619700). New York: Wiley.Google Scholar
Rutter, M. (2002). Nature, nurture, and development: From evangelism through science toward policy and practice. Child Development, 73, 121.CrossRefGoogle ScholarPubMed
Scott, W. A., Scott, R., & McCabe, M. (1991). Family relationships and children's personality: A cross-cultural, cross-source comparison. British Journal of Social Psychology, 30, 120.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Serbin, L. A., Moskowitz, K. S., Schwartzman, A. E., & Ledingham, J. E. (1991). Aggressive, withdrawn, and aggressive/withdrawn children in adolescence: Into the next generation. In Pepler, D. J. & Rubin, K. H. (Eds.), The development and treatment of childhood aggression (pp. 5570). Hillsdale, NJ: Erlbaum.Google Scholar
Strauss, C. C., Lahey, B. B., Frick, P., Frame, C. L., & Hynd, G. W. (1988). Peer social status of children with anxiety disorders. Journal of Consulting and Clinical Psychology, 56, 137141.CrossRefGoogle ScholarPubMed
Strauss, C. C., Lease, C. A., Kazdin, A. E., Dulcan, M. K., & Last, C. G. (1989). Multimethod assessment of the social competence of children with anxiety disorders. Journal of Clinical Child Psychology, 18, 184189.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Tannock, R. (2000). Attention-deficit/hyperactivity disorder with anxiety disorders. In Brown, T. E. (Ed.), Attention deficit disorders and comorbidities in children, adolescents, and adults (pp. 125170). Washington, DC: American Psychiatric Press.Google Scholar
Tomb, M., & Hunter, L. (2004). Prevention of anxiety in children and adolescents in a school setting: The role of school-based practitioners. Children and Schools, 26, 87101.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Tremblay, R. E. (2000). The development of aggressive behaviour during childhood: What have we learned in the past century? International Journal of Behavioral Development, 24, 129141.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Tremblay, R. E., Loeber, R., Gagnon, C., Charlebois, P., Larivée, S., & LeBlanc, M. (1991). Disruptive boys with stable and unstable high fighting behavior patterns during junior elementary school. Journal of Abnormal Child Psychology, 19, 285300.CrossRefGoogle ScholarPubMed
Van Acker, R., & Mayer, M. J. (2009). Cognitive–behavioral interventions and the social context of the school: A stranger in a strange land. In Mayer, M. J., Van Acker, R., Lochman, J. E., & Gresham, F. M. (Eds.), Cognitive–behavioral interventions for emotional and behavioral disorders: School-based practice (pp. 82108). New York: Guilford Press.Google Scholar
Vasey, M. W., & Dadds, M. R. (2001). An introduction to the developmental psychopathology of anxiety. In Vasey, M. W. & Dadds, M. R. (Eds.), The developmental psychopathology of anxiety (pp. 326). New York: Oxford University Press.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Vasey, M. W., & MacLeod, C. (2001). Information-processing factors in childhood anxiety: A review and developmental perspective. In Vasey, M. W. & Dadds, M. R. (Eds.), The developmental psychopathology of anxiety (pp. 253277). New York: Oxford University Press.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Visser, J. H., van der Ende, J., Koot, H. M., & Verhulst, F. C. (1999). Continuity of psychopathology in youths referred to mental health services. Journal of the American Academy of Child & Adolescent Psychiatry, 38, 15601568.CrossRefGoogle ScholarPubMed
Vitaro, F., & Brendgen, M. (2005). Proactive and reactive aggression: A developmental perspective. In Tremblay, R. E., Hartup, W. W., & Archer, J. (Eds.), Developmental origins of aggression (pp. 178201). New York: Guilford Press.Google Scholar
Vitaro, F., Brendgen, M., Larose, S., & Tremblay, R. E. (2005). Kindergarten disruptive behaviors, protective factors, and educational achievement by early adulthood. Journal of Educational Psychology, 97, 617629.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Walker, H. M., Ramsey, E., & Gresham, F. M. (2004). Assessment and classification of social competence deficits among antisocial youths. In Walker, H. M., Ramsey, E., & Gresham, F. M. (Eds.), Antisocial behavior in school: Evidence-based practices (pp. 178204). Belmont, CA: Thomson Learning.Google Scholar
Wood, J. J., McLeod, B. D., Sigman, M., Hwang, W., & Chu, B. C. (2003). Parenting and childhood anxiety: Theory, empirical findings, and future directions. Journal of Child Psychology and Psychiatry, 44, 134151.CrossRefGoogle ScholarPubMed
Zahn-Waxler, C., Klimes-Dougan, B., & Slattery, M. J. (2000). Internalizing problems of childhood and adolescence: Prospects, pitfalls, and progress in understanding the development of anxiety and depression. Development and Psychopathology, 12, 443466.CrossRefGoogle ScholarPubMed
Zoccolillo, M. (1992). Co-occurrence of conduct disorder and its adult outcomes with depressive and anxiety disorders: A review. Journal of the American Academy of Child & Adolescent Psychiatry, 31, 547556.CrossRefGoogle ScholarPubMed
Zoccolillo, M., Vitaro, F., & Tremblay, R. E. (1999). Problem drug and alcohol use in a community sample of adolescents. Journal of the American Academy of Child & Adolescent Psychiatry, 38, 900907.CrossRefGoogle Scholar