Outcome predictors in a longitudinal study of high-risk boys

This study of "high risk" investigated a 3-year follow-up sample of boys in the University of Rochester Child and Family Study of intact families in which at least one parent had been hospitalized for a psychiatric disorder. These families and their sons were studied in order to identify predictive factors for child outcome. Best-functioning (n = 17) and worst-functioning (n = 13) groups of boys (from a total N = 94) were differentiated successfully by time 1 parent and family interaction predictors. These variables included several measures of parent deviant communication and balanced/warm family interaction, chronicity and level of parent pathology, and socioeconomic class. Parent diagnosis was not associated significantly with outcome.