Abstract
We investigated the effects of background anger, provocation, and methylphenidate on emotional, physiological, and behavioral responding in children with attentiondeficit hyperactivity disorder (ADHD) with and without concurrent aggression. Our study revealed that ADHD boys showed more emotional and physiological distress when exposed to an interaction in which an administrator chastised each boy's favorite counselor, compared to a friendly interaction between the two adults. The background anger manipulation did not affect the aggressive behavior of the boys against an opponent in an aggressive game. High-aggressive (HA) ADHD boys were more likely to respond to provocation with aggression than low-aggressive (LA) ADHD boys, but only LA boys showed increased physiological reactivity with increasing provocation. Methylphenidate resulted in increased heart rates under all conditions and did not interact with any of the other findings.
This is a preview of subscription content, log in via an institution to check access.
Similar content being viewed by others
References
Allison, P. D., & Furstenberg, F. F. (1989). How marital dissolution affects children's variations by age and sex.Developmental Psychology, 25, 540–549.
American Psychiatric Association. (1987).Diagnostic and statistical manual of mental disorders (3rd ed.-Revised). Washington, DC: Author.
Atkins, M. S., & Stoff, D. M. (1990).Instrumental and hostile aggression in childhood disruptive behavior disorders. Manuscript submitted for publication.
Beiderman, J., Munir, K., & Knee, D. (1987). Conduct and oppositional disorder in clinically referred children with attention deficit disorder: A controlled family study.Journal of the American Academy of Child and Adolescent Psychiatry, 26, 724–727.
Cherek, D. R., Steinberg, J. L., Kelly, T. H., & Robinson, D. E. (1986). Effects of d-amphetamine on human aggressive behavior.Psychopharmacology, 88, 381–386.
Compas, B. E., Howell, D. C., Phares, V., Williams, R. A., & Ledoux, N. (1989). Parent and child stress and symptoms: An interactive analysis.Developmental Psychology, 25, 550–559.
Conners, C. K. (1973). Conners parent and teacher questionnaire.Psychopharmacology Bulletin Special Issue: Pharmacotherapy of children (Publication No. HSM 73-9002). Washington, DC: NIMH.
Cummings, E. M. (1987). Coping with background anger in early childhood.Child Development, 58, 976–984.
Cummings, E. M., Lannotti, R. J., & Zahn-Waxier, C. (1985). The influence of conflict between adults on the emotions and aggression of young children.Developmental Psychology, 21, 495–507.
Cummings, E. M., Vogel, D., Cummings, J. S., & El-Sheikh, M. (1989). Children's responses to different forms of expression of anger between adults.Child Development, 60, 1392–1404.
Cummings, E. M., Zahn-Waxier, C., & Radke-Yarrow, M. (1984). Developmental changes in children's reactions to anger in the home.Journal of Child Psychology and Psychiatry, 25, 63–74.
Dodge, K. A., & Coie, J. D. (1987). Social-information-processing factors in reactive and proactive aggression in children's peer groups.Journal of Personality and Social Psychology, 53, 1146–1158.
El-Sheikh, M., Cummings, E. M., & Goetsch, V. L. (1989). Coping with adult's angry behavior: Behavioral, physiological, and verbal responses in preschoolers.Developmental Psychology, 25, 490–498.
Emery, R. E. (1982). Interparental conflict and the children of discord and divorce.Psychological Bulletin, 92, 310–330.
Eron, L. D., Walder, L. O., & Lefkowitz, M. M. (1971).Learning of aggression in children. Boston: Little, Brown.
Gittelman, R., & Kanner, A. (1986). Psychopharmacotherapy. In H. C. Quay and J. S. Werry (Eds.),Psychopathological disorders of childhood (3rd ed., pp. 455–494). New York: Wiley.
Gottman, J. M., & Katz, L. F. (1989). Effects of marital discord on young children's peer interaction and health.Developmental Psychology, 25, 373–381.
Hinshaw, S. P., Buhrmester, D., & Heller, T. (1989). Anger control in response to verbal provocation: Effects of stimulant medication for boys with ADHD.Journal of Abnormal Child Psychology, 17, 393–407.
Hinshaw, S. P., Henker, B., Whalen, C. K., Erhardt, D., & Dunnington, R. E. (1989). Aggressive, prosocial, and nonsocial behavior in hyperactive boys: Dose effects of methylphenidate in naturalistic settings.Journal of Consulting and Clinical Psychology, 57, 636–643.
Lahey, B. B., Hartdagen, S. E., Frick, P. J., McBurnett, K., Connor, R., & Hynd, G. W. (1988). Conduct disorder: Parsing the confounded relation to parental divorce and antisocial personality.Journal of Abnormal Psychology, 97, 334–337.
Lang, A. R., Pelham, W. E., Johnston, C., & Gelernter, S. (1989). Levels of adult alcohol consumption induced by interactions with child confederates exhibiting normal versus externalizing behaviors.Journal of Abnormal Psychology, 98, 294–299.
Loney, J. (1987). Hyperactivity and aggression in the diagnosis of attention deficit disorder. In B. B. Lahey & A. E. Kazdin (Eds.),Advances in clinical child psychology (Vol. 10, pp. 99–135). New York: Plenum Press.
Loney, J., Kramer, J., & Milich, R. S. (1981). The hyperactive child grows up: Predictors of symptoms, delinquency and achievement at followup. In K. D. Gadow & J. Loney (Eds.),Psychosocial aspects of drug treatment for hyperactivity (pp. 381–415). Boulder, CO: Westview Press.
Loney, J., & Milich, R. (1982). Hyperactivity, inattention, and aggression in clinical practice. In M. Wolraich & D. K. Routh (Eds.),Advances in developmental and behavioral pediatrics, (Vol. 2, pp. 113–147). Greenwich, CT: JAI Press.
Lytton, H. (1990). Child and parent effects in boys' conduct disorder: A reinterpretation.Developmental Psychology, 26, 683–697.
Mackinnon, C. E., Lamb, M. E., Belsky, J., & Baum, C. (1990). An affective-cognitive model of mother-child aggression.Development and Psychopathology, 2, 1–13.
Mash, E. J., & Johnston, C. (1983). Parental perceptions of child behavior problems, parenting self-esteem, and mothers' reported stress in younger and older hyperactive and normal children.Journal of Consulting and Clinical Psycholog, 51, 86–99.
Milich, R. & Dodge, K. A. (1984). Social information processing in child psychiatric populations.Journal of Abnormal Child Psychology, 12, 471–490.
Milich, R., & Kramer, J. (1984). Reflections on impulsivity: An empirical investigation of impulsivity as a construct.Advances in Learning and Behavioral Disabilities, 3, 57–94.
Milich, R., & Landau, S. (1989). The role of social status variables in differentiating subgroups of hyperactive children. In J. Swanson & L. Bloomingdale (Eds.).Attention deficit disorders IV: Emerging trends in attentional and behavioral disorders of childhood (pp. 1–16). London: Pergamon Press.
Murphy, D. A., Pelham, W. E., & Lang, A. R. (1990).Aggression in boys with attention deficithyperactivity disorder: Methylphenidate effects on naturalistically observed aggression,response to provocation, and social information processing. Unpublished manuscript.
Patterson, G. R. (1986). Performance models for antisocial boys.American Psychologist, 41, 432–444.
Pelham, W. E. (1990, January). Relationships among different measures of aggression. In M. Kreusi (Chair),Measurements of aggression in children. Symposium presented at the annual meeting of the Society for Research in Child and Adolescent Psychopathology, Costa Mesa, CA.
Pelham, W. E., & Bender, M. E. (1982). Peer relationships in hyperactive children: Description and treatment. In K. D. Gadow & I. Bialer (Eds.),Advances in learning and behavioral disabilities, (Vol. 2, pp. 366–436). Greenwich, CT: JAI Press.
Pelham, W. E., & Hoza, J. (1987). Behavioral assessment of psychostimulant effects on ADD children in a Summer Day Treatment Program. In R. Prinz (Ed.).Advances in behavioral assessment of children and families (Vol. 3, pp. 3–33). Greenwich, CT: JAI Press.
Pelham, W. E., Lang, A. R., Atkeson, B., Murphy, D. A., Gnagy, E. M., Greiner, A. R., Greenslade, K. E., & Vodde-Hamilton, M. (1990).Stress-induced alcohol consumption in parents interacting with deviant children: Effects of offspring psychopathology and family history of alcohol problems. Unpublished manuscript.
Pelham, W. E., Milich, R., Murphy, D. A., & Murphy, H. A. (1989). Normative data on the IOWA Conners teacher rating scale.Journal of Clinical Child Psychology, 18, 259–262.
Peterson, R. (1971). Aggression as a function of retaliation and aggression level of target and aggressor.Developmental Psychology, 5, 161–166.
Quay, H. C. (1988). The behavioral reward and inhibition systems in childhood behavior disorder. In L. M. Bloomingdale (Ed.),Attention deficit disorder (Vol. 3, pp. 176–186). Oxford: Pergamon Press.
Raine, A., Venables, P. H., & Williams, M. (1990). Relationships between central and autonomic measures of arousal at age 15 years.Archives of General Psychiatry, 47, 1003–1007.
Roberts, M. A. (1990). A behavioral observation method for differentiating hyperactive and aggressive boys.Journal of Abnormal Child Psychology, 18, 131–142.
Schacher, R., & Wachsmuth, R. (1990). Hyperactivity and parental psychopathology.Journal of Child Psychology and Psychiatry and Applied Disciplines, 31, 381–392.
Taylor, S. P. & Gammon, C. B. (1975). Effects of type and dose of alcohol on human physical aggression.Journal of Personality and Social Psychology, 32, 169–175.
Wahler, R. G. & Dumas, J. E. (1989). Attentional problems in dysfunctional mother-child interactions: An interbehavioral model.Psychological Bulletin, 105, 116–130.
Whalen, C. K., Henker, B., Swanson, J. M., Granger, D., Kliewer, W., & Spencer, J. (1987). Natural social behaviors in hyperactive children: Dose effects of methylphenidate.Journal of Consulting and Clinical Psychology, 55, 187–193.
Zeichner, A., & Pihl, R. O. (1979). Effects of alcohol and behavior contingencies on human aggression.Journal of Abnormal Psychology, 88, 153–160.
Zillmann, D. & Bryant, J. (1974). Effect of residual excitation on the emotional response to provocation and delayed aggressive behavior.Journal of Personality and Social Psychology, 30, 782–791.
Author information
Authors and Affiliations
Additional information
This project was conducted while the first author had the support of National Institute of Alcohol Abuse and Alcoholism grant AA 06267.
The authors wish to thank the staff members of the 1987 Summer Day Treatment Program who assisted in conducting this project. The authors also express their appreciation to Karen Guthrie for coordinating the medication assessment and to Hart Blanton for computer programming.
Rights and permissions
About this article
Cite this article
Pelham, W.E., Milich, R., Cummings, E.M. et al. Effects of background anger, provocation, and methylphenidate on emotional arousal and aggressive responding in attention-deficit hyperactivity disordered boys with and without concurrent aggressiveness. J Abnorm Child Psychol 19, 407–426 (1991). https://doi.org/10.1007/BF00919086
Revised:
Issue Date:
DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/BF00919086