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Inattention symptoms predict level of depression in early childhood

Khushmand Rajendran1, Sarah O'Neill, Jeffrey M Halperin

  • 1Queens College, The City University of New York, New York, NY, USA. khushmand.rajendran@qc.cuny.edu

Postgraduate Medicine
|February 9, 2013
PubMed

Insights

Child inattention is a significant risk factor for developing depression in early childhood. Early intervention for inattention symptoms is crucial to prevent worsening emotional problems.

Area of Science:

  • Child psychology
  • Developmental neuroscience
  • Pediatric mental health

Background:

  • Inattention and depression are common childhood disorders.
  • Understanding their relationship is vital for early intervention.
  • Bidirectional links require further investigation.

Purpose of the Study:

  • To examine the longitudinal, bidirectional relationship between inattention severity and depression severity in early childhood.
  • To determine if inattention predicts future depression.
  • To assess if depression predicts future inattention.

Main Methods:

  • Longitudinal study of 216 children from ages 3-4 to 6-7 years.
  • Inattention assessed via Kiddie-Schedule for Affective Disorders and Schizophrenia and Behavior Assessment System for Children, Second Edition (BASC-2) parent/teacher reports.
  • Depression severity measured using BASC-2 parent/teacher reports.

Main Results:

  • Child inattention severity at earlier time points predicted increased depression severity at later time points.
  • No significant longitudinal association was found between early child depression and later child inattention.

Conclusions:

  • Childhood inattention is a risk factor for developing depression.
  • Clinicians should assess for depression in children with inattention.
  • Early treatment of inattention may prevent severe emotional problems.
Abstract

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