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Tonic and phasic irritability in 6-year-old children: differential correlates and outcomes

Jamilah Silver1, Daniel M Mackin1, Sara J Bufferd2

  • 1Department of Psychology, Stony Brook University, Stony Brook, NY, USA.

Journal of Child Psychology and Psychiatry, and Allied Disciplines
|August 27, 2022
PubMed

Insights

Tonic and phasic irritability in young children are distinct, with different links to temperament, parenting, and later mental health issues. Understanding these differences can improve research and treatments for childhood irritability.

Area of Science:

  • Child and Adolescent Psychiatry
  • Developmental Psychology
  • Behavioral Science

Background:

  • Irritability is a common issue in children and adolescents, linked to later psychopathology.
  • Irritability presents as tonic (mood) and phasic (outbursts), with differing outcomes in adolescents.
  • Empirical distinction and correlates of tonic and phasic irritability in young children remain unexamined.

Purpose of the Study:

  • To determine if tonic and phasic irritability are empirically distinguishable in 6-year-old children.
  • To examine the distinct correlates and outcomes of tonic and phasic irritability in early childhood.

Main Methods:

  • Longitudinal study of 452 community-based 6-year-olds, followed to age 15.
  • Confirmatory factor analysis (CFA) using diagnostic interview and parent-report data.
  • Assessment of temperament, parenting styles, and psychopathology at ages 6 and 15.

Main Results:

  • CFA confirmed distinct dimensions of tonic and phasic irritability.
  • Tonic irritability associated with negative affectivity, internalizing/externalizing disorders, and predicted adolescent internalizing psychopathology and suicidal ideation.
  • Phasic irritability associated with negative affectivity, surgency, low effortful control, maladaptive parenting, externalizing disorders, and predicted adolescent externalizing psychopathology.

Conclusions:

  • Tonic and phasic irritability are distinguishable constructs in 6-year-olds.
  • Distinct temperament and parenting correlates and psychopathological outcomes exist for each irritability type.
  • Differentiating irritability components is crucial for etiological research, pathophysiology studies, and treatment development.
Abstract

Keywords:
Early childhoodirritabilityoutcomesphasictonic

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