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Externalizing problems, attention regulation, and household chaos: a longitudinal behavioral genetic study
Zhe Wang1, Kirby Deater-Deckard, Stephen A Petrill
1Virginia Polytechnic Institute and State University, Blacksburg, VA 24061, USA.
Development and Psychopathology
|July 12, 2012
Summary
Difficulties in self-regulation are linked to externalizing problems. Genetic and environmental factors influence this link, with household chaos playing a moderating role over time.
Area of Science:
- Developmental Psychology
- Behavioral Genetics
Background:
- Self-regulation difficulties are consistently linked to externalizing problems like aggression.
- Understanding the genetic and environmental influences on this link is crucial for intervention.
Purpose of the Study:
- To investigate the longitudinal genetic and environmental covariation between externalizing problems and attention regulation.
- To examine the moderating role of household chaos on this relationship.
Main Methods:
- A longitudinal twin study design was employed with 131 monozygotic and 173 dizygotic twin pairs.
- Parental reports assessed externalizing problems; teacher and observer ratings measured attention regulation.
- Data were collected over three annual assessments.
Main Results:
- The etiological basis of the link shifted from genetic to environmental mechanisms during middle childhood.
- Household chaos moderated the genetic variance and covariance between externalizing problems and attention regulation.
- Genetic influences were stronger in chaotic households, but chaos attenuated the genetic link.
Conclusions:
- The interplay of genetic and environmental factors in externalizing problems and attention regulation evolves across development.
- Household chaos significantly influences the genetic and environmental contributions to these traits.
- Findings highlight the complexity of developmental pathways for externalizing behaviors.
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