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The Structure of Psychopathology in a Community Sample of Preschoolers

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Abstract

Despite growing interest in the development of alternative diagnostic classification systems for psychopathology in young children, little is known about the adequacy of the DSM symptom structure for describing psychopathology in this population. This paper examines the fit of the DSM-IV emotional (ED) and disruptive behavior disorder (DD) symptom structure in a community sample of 796 4-year-old children. Using the parent-report Child Symptom Inventory (CSI), the best model fit for ED included separate factors for Social Phobia, Separation Anxiety Disorder, Generalized Anxiety Disorder, and Major Depressive Disorder. For DD, the best model included separate Attention Deficit Hyperactivity Disorder-Inattentive type (ADHD-I), Attention Deficit Hyperactivity Disorder-Hyperactive/Impulsive type (ADHD-HI), and Oppositional Defiant Disorder diagnoses. These findings support using DSM-IV nosology to classify EDs in a community sample of preschool children, and suggest differentiation of ADHD into ADHD-I and ADHD-HI.

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Authors and Affiliations

  1. College of Psychology, Illinois Institute of Technology, 3105 South Dearborn, Suite 252, Chicago, IL, 60616, USA

    Jennifer Strickland & Joyce Hopkins

  2. Feinberg School of Medicine, Northwestern University, Chicago, IL, USA

    Jennifer Keller, John V. Lavigne & Karen Gouze

  3. Department of Child and Adolescent Psychiatry, Children’s Memorial Hospital, Chicago, IL, USA

    John V. Lavigne & Karen Gouze

  4. Mary Ann and J. Milburn Smith Child Health Research Program, Children’s Memorial Hospital, Chicago, IL, USA

    John V. Lavigne, Karen Gouze & Susan LeBailly

  5. Children’s Memorial Research Center, Children’s Memorial Hospital, Chicago, IL, USA

    John V. Lavigne, Karen Gouze & Susan LeBailly

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  1. Jennifer Strickland
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  2. Jennifer Keller
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  3. John V. Lavigne
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  4. Karen Gouze
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  5. Joyce Hopkins
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  6. Susan LeBailly
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Correspondence to Jennifer Strickland.

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Authorship order of Jennifer Strickland and Jennifer Keller was determined by a coin-toss.

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Strickland, J., Keller, J., Lavigne, J.V. et al. The Structure of Psychopathology in a Community Sample of Preschoolers. J Abnorm Child Psychol 39, 601–610 (2011). https://doi.org/10.1007/s10802-011-9487-5

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  • DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/s10802-011-9487-5

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