Sustained impact of inattention and hyperactivity-impulsivity on peer problems: mediating roles of prosocial skills and conduct problems in a community sample of children

Child Psychiatry Hum Dev. 2014 Jun;45(3):318-28. doi: 10.1007/s10578-013-0402-x.

Abstract

This prospective 2-year longitudinal study tested whether inattentive and hyperactive/impulsive symptom dimensions predicted future peer problems, when accounting for concurrent conduct problems and prosocial skills. A community sample of 492 children (49 % female) who ranged in age from 6 to 10 years (M = 8.6, SD = .93) was recruited. Teacher reports of children's inattention, and hyperactivity/impulsivity symptoms, conduct problems, prosocial skills and peer problems were collected in two consecutive school years. Elevated inattention and hyperactivity/impulsivity in Year-1 predicted greater peer problems in Year-2. Conduct problems in the first and second years of the study were associated with more peer problems, and explained a portion of the relationship between inattention and hyperactivity/impulsivity with peer problems. However, prosocial skills were associated with fewer peer problems in children with elevated inattention and hyperactivity/impulsivity. Inattention and hyperactivity/impulsivity have negative effects on children's peer functioning after 1-year, but concurrent conduct problems and prosocial skills have important and opposing impacts on these associations.

Publication types

  • Research Support, Non-U.S. Gov't

MeSH terms

  • Attention Deficit Disorder with Hyperactivity / psychology*
  • Child
  • Conduct Disorder / psychology*
  • Female
  • Humans
  • Impulsive Behavior / physiology
  • Interpersonal Relations*
  • Longitudinal Studies
  • Male
  • Peer Group
  • Social Skills*