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An analysis of data from the Fragile Families and Child Wellbeing Study found that negative emotionality—the tendency to experience frequent and intense negative emotions—in infancy was associated with maltreatment at ages 5 and 9. Children with higher negative emotionality as infants also tended to exhibit more severe ADHD symptoms at age 9. This research was published in Development and Psychopathology.
Attention-deficit/hyperactivity disorder (ADHD) is a neurodevelopmental condition characterized by persistent patterns of inattention, hyperactivity, and impulsivity that interfere with daily functioning or development. It typically begins in childhood but can continue into adulthood. Symptoms of inattention include difficulty focusing, organizing tasks, and following through on instructions, while hyperactivity and impulsivity manifest as restlessness, excessive talking, or acting without thinking.
ADHD affects between 6% and 7% of children and is more common in boys. While ADHD has high heritability, multiple environmental factors might influence the risk of developing the disorder. One such factor is childhood maltreatment—specifically experiences of abuse and neglect, particularly during early childhood.
Study authors Dennis Golm and Valerie Brandt hypothesized that infants with difficult temperaments might be more likely to experience maltreatment, which in turn could increase the risk of ADHD later in life. Additionally, ADHD symptoms, once developed, might further increase the likelihood of maltreatment.
The researchers note that previous studies have already established associations between children’s temperament, parental stress, and harsh parenting. This is particularly evident when negative emotionality is considered a key aspect of the child’s temperament. Negative emotionality is a personality trait characterized by a tendency to experience frequent and intense negative emotions, such as anxiety, sadness, irritability, or anger, in response to stress or challenges.
The researchers analyzed data from the Fragile Families and Child Wellbeing Study, which followed a birth cohort of 4,898 children born between 1998 and 2000. This study intentionally included a large proportion of unmarried mothers (3,600). Study participants were recruited from 75 hospitals across 20 cities in the United States.
The data used for this analysis included assessments of negative emotionality in infancy (measured using three items from the Emotionality, Activity, and Sociability Temperament Survey), childhood maltreatment in middle childhood (using selected items from the Conflict Tactics Scale), and ADHD symptoms (measured with the Child Behavior Checklist).
Results showed that children with higher negative emotionality at 1 year of age were more likely to experience maltreatment at ages 5 and 9. They also tended to exhibit more severe ADHD symptoms at age 5, but not at age 9. Furthermore, ADHD symptoms at age 5 were predictive of maltreatment experiences at age 9. In other words, children with more severe ADHD symptoms at age 5 were slightly more likely to experience maltreatment at age 9. Finally, children who experienced more maltreatment at age 9 tended to show more severe ADHD symptoms at the same age.
“The bidirectional relationship between ADHD and experiences of maltreatment highlights the need to identify early shared risk factors to prevent negative downstream effects of maltreatment and ADHD symptoms. Understanding these risk factors would enable social and clinical services to better support families at risk,” the study authors concluded.
The study sheds light on the links between temperament, ADHD, and childhood maltreatment. However, given the high heritability of ADHD, it is possible that parental ADHD influences the dimensions of temperament related to this disorder in their children, thereby contributing to the observed associations.
The paper, “The longitudinal association between infant negative emotionality, childhood maltreatment, and ADHD symptoms: A secondary analysis of data from the Fragile Families and Child Wellbeing Study,” was authored by Dennis Golm and Valerie Brandt.