Relative Immaturity in Childhood and Attention-Deficit/Hyperactivity Disorder Symptoms From Childhood to Early Adulthood: Exploring Genetic and Environmental Overlap Across Development

Isabell Brikell; Ralf Kuja-Halkola; Jan-Olov Larsson; Benjamin B Lahey; Jonna Kuntsi; Paul Lichtenstein; Per-Anders Rydelius; Henrik Larsson

doi:10.1016/j.jaac.2016.06.014

Relative Immaturity in Childhood and Attention-Deficit/Hyperactivity Disorder Symptoms From Childhood to Early Adulthood: Exploring Genetic and Environmental Overlap Across Development

J Am Acad Child Adolesc Psychiatry. 2016 Oct;55(10):886-95. doi: 10.1016/j.jaac.2016.06.014. Epub 2016 Aug 3.

Authors

Isabell Brikell¹, Ralf Kuja-Halkola², Jan-Olov Larsson², Benjamin B Lahey³, Jonna Kuntsi⁴, Paul Lichtenstein², Per-Anders Rydelius⁵, Henrik Larsson⁶

Affiliations

¹ Karolinska Institutet, Stockholm. Electronic address: isabell.brikell@ki.se.
² Karolinska Institutet, Stockholm.
³ University of Chicago.
⁴ King's College London, MRC Social, Genetic and Developmental Psychiatry Centre, Institute of Psychiatry, Psychology and Neuroscience, London.
⁵ Karolinska Institutet, Stockholm; Center for Research on Child and Adolescent Mental Health, Karlstad University, Karlstad, Sweden.
⁶ Karolinska Institutet, Stockholm; School of Medical Sciences, Örebro University, Örebro, Sweden.

PMID: 27663944
DOI: 10.1016/j.jaac.2016.06.014

Abstract

Objective: Attention-deficit/hyperactivity disorder (ADHD) has been linked to immaturity relative to peers in childhood, yet it is unclear how such immaturity is associated with ADHD across development. This longitudinal twin study examined the genetic and environmental contributions to the association between parents' perception of their child's immaturity relative to peers (RI) in childhood and ADHD symptoms across development.

Method: 1,302 twin pairs from the Swedish Twin Study of Child and Adolescent Development were followed prospectively from childhood to early adulthood. Parent ratings of RI were collected at 8 to 9 years and parent and self-ratings of ADHD symptoms were collected at 8 to 9, 13 to 14, 16 to 17, and 19 to 20 years using the Child Behavior Checklist Attention Problems scale. In addition, ADHD symptoms corresponding to DSM criteria were used for sensitivity analysis. Analyses were conducted using longitudinal structural equation modeling with multiple raters.

Results: RI-related etiologic factors, predominantly influenced by genes, explained 10-14% of the variance in ADHD symptoms from 8 to 9 up to 16 to 17 years. The influence of these RI-related factors on ADHD symptoms attenuated to 4% by 19 to 20 years of age. The remaining variance in ADHD symptoms was primarily explained by genetic factors independent of RI, which remained relatively stable across development, explaining 19% to 30% of the variance in ADHD symptoms from 13 to 14 up to 19 to 20 years.

Conclusion: The results show that RI is significantly associated with ADHD symptoms, particularly during childhood and adolescence, and that the association is primarily explained by a shared genetic liability. Nevertheless, the magnitude of associations across development was modest, highlighting that RI is merely one aspect contributing to the complex etiology of ADHD symptoms.

Keywords: ADHD; development; immaturity; longitudinal twin analysis.

Publication types

Twin Study
Research Support, Non-U.S. Gov't

MeSH terms

Adolescent
Adolescent Development
Adult
Attention Deficit Disorder with Hyperactivity / epidemiology
Attention Deficit Disorder with Hyperactivity / genetics*
Attention Deficit Disorder with Hyperactivity / psychology*
Child
Female
Gene-Environment Interaction
Humans
Longitudinal Studies
Male
Sweden / epidemiology
Twins