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Preschoolers' observed temperament and psychiatric disorders assessed with a parent diagnostic interview
Lea R Dougherty1, Sara J Bufferd, Gabrielle A Carlson
1Department of Psychology, University of Maryland, College Park, MD 20794, USA. ldougherty@psyc.umd.edu
Abstract:
Evidence supports the role of temperament in the origins of psychiatric disorders. However, there are few data on associations between temperament and psychiatric disorders in early childhood. A community sample of 541 three-year-old preschoolers participated in a laboratory temperament assessment, and caregivers were administered a structured diagnostic interview on preschool psychopathology. In bivariate analyses, temperamental dysphoria and low exuberance were associated with depression; fear, low exuberance, and low sociability were associated with anxiety disorders; and disinhibition and dysphoria were associated with oppositional defiant disorder. Although there were no bivariate associations between temperament and attention-deficit/hyperactivity disorder, disinhibition emerged as a unique predictor in multivariate analyses. Findings indicate that the pattern of relations between temperament and psychopathology in older youth and adults is evident as early as age 3.
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