Clinical Implications of a Dimensional Approach: The Normal:Abnormal Spectrum of Early Irritability.

ABSTRACT:

Objective

The importance of dimensional approaches is widely recognized, but an empirical base for clinical application is lacking. This is particularly true for irritability, a dimensional phenotype that cuts across many areas of psychopathology and manifests early in life. We examine longitudinal, dimensional patterns of irritability and their clinical import in early childhood.

Method

Irritability was assessed longitudinally over an average of 16 months in a clinically enriched, diverse community sample of preschoolers (N = 497; mean = 4.2 years; SD = 0.8). Using the Temper Loss scale of the Multidimensional Assessment Profile of Disruptive Behavior (MAP-DB) as a developmentally sensitive indicator of early childhood irritability, we examined its convergent/divergent, cli

SUBMITTER: Wakschlag LS 

PROVIDER: S-EPMC4515952 | biostudies-literature | 2015 Aug

REPOSITORIES: biostudies-literature