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Treatment Response in CP/ADHD Children with Callous/Unemotional Traits

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Abstract

The current study examines the role of callous/unemotional (CU) traits in response to treatment among children with conduct problems (CP) and attention-deficit/hyperactivity disorder (ADHD). Fifty-four children with CP/ADHD and 16 controls (age = 9.48, SD = 1.58) took part in a summer treatment and research program. Simple correlations showed that CU and CP were associated with a number of treatment outcome measures. When examined together in regression analyses, CU and CP were uniquely associated with three treatment outcomes each (CU—improvement in social skills and problem solving, negative behaviors in time-out; CP—time-outs per day, peer ratings, peer dislike). The implications for these findings with regard to treatment response in children with CP/ADHD with and without CU traits are explored.

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Acknowledgements

We would like to thank the many children, parents, teachers, and research assistants who helped make this project possible.

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Authors and Affiliations

  1. Center for Children and Families, Department of Pediatrics, University at Buffalo—SUNY, 106 Diefendorf Hall, Buffalo, NY, 14214, USA

    Sarah M. Haas & Daniel A. Waschbusch

  2. Dalhousie University, Halifax, NS, Canada

    Daniel A. Waschbusch & Brendan F. Andrade

  3. Center for Children and Families, Departments of Pediatrics and Psychology, University at Buffalo–SUNY, Buffalo, NY, USA

    William E. Pelham Jr.

  4. IWK Health Centre, Dalhousie University, Halifax, NS, Canada

    Sara King & Normand J. Carrey

  5. Peel Children’s Centre, Toronto, ON, Canada

    Brendan F. Andrade

Authors
  1. Sarah M. Haas
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  2. Daniel A. Waschbusch
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  3. William E. Pelham Jr.
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  4. Sara King
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  5. Brendan F. Andrade
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  6. Normand J. Carrey
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Corresponding author

Correspondence to Sarah M. Haas.

Appendix

Appendix

figure a

Note.a Severe conduct problem behaviors (M = 4.18; SD = 0.31, α = 0.82); b Rule-following behavior (M = 4.72; SD = 0.67, α = 0.92); c Social skills (M = 4.94; SD = 0.70, α = 0.95); d Sports behavior (M = 5.24; SD = 0.56, α = 0.76). e Items were excluded from the current study. Items without a subscript were analyzed individually. Average intraclass correlations between counselor ratings (per summer, per group) were 0.77.

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Haas, S.M., Waschbusch, D.A., Pelham, W.E. et al. Treatment Response in CP/ADHD Children with Callous/Unemotional Traits. J Abnorm Child Psychol 39, 541–552 (2011). https://doi.org/10.1007/s10802-010-9480-4

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