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Oppositional Behavior and Anxiety in Boys and Girls: A Cross-sectional Study in Two Community Samples

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Abstract

Studies have repeatedly shown that oppositional behavior is linked to anxiety in clinical samples of children. This study explored whether these variables were similarly related in nonclinical samples of elementary and middle school students (N =  302). Despite greater self-reported oppositional behavior among boys in these samples, anxiety outweighed gender as a predictor of oppositional behavior. These findings suggest that the relationship between anxiety and oppositional behavior is not exclusive to clinical samples and that oppositional behavior that is clinical or developmental has common underlying variables across childhood.

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Authors and Affiliations

  1. Behavioral Sciences Department, Johnson State College, 337 College Hill, Johnson, VT, 05656, USA

    Gina Mireault, Siri Rooney, Kristen Kouwenhoven & Carolyn Hannan

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  1. Gina Mireault
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  2. Siri Rooney
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  3. Kristen Kouwenhoven
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  4. Carolyn Hannan
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Correspondence to Gina Mireault.

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Mireault, G., Rooney, S., Kouwenhoven, K. et al. Oppositional Behavior and Anxiety in Boys and Girls: A Cross-sectional Study in Two Community Samples. Child Psychiatry Hum Dev 39, 519–527 (2008). https://doi.org/10.1007/s10578-008-0106-9

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  • DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/s10578-008-0106-9

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