Obsessive-compulsive behaviour in children and adolescents: a cross-sectional Australian study.
OBJECTIVE
To examine the reliability of the survey form of the Leyton Obsessional Inventory-Child Version (LOI-CV), ascertain the prevalence of self-reported obsessive-compulsive behaviour together with age and sex differences and identify the most common obsessive-compulsive behaviours and their associated level of interference.


METHODS
The survey form of the LOI-CV was administered to a large sample of children and adolescents attending regular schools. Participants were aged between 8 and 16 years (n = 1602).


RESULTS
We found the survey instrument to have adequate internal consistency and test-retest reliability. There was an age-related decline in self-reported obsessive-compulsive behaviour and girls reported a higher level of obsessive-compulsive behaviour than boys. The most common obsessive-compulsive behaviours included: repeated thoughts or words, having trouble making decisions, having to do certain things and doing things in the exact manner and having a bad conscience. For the most part, these behaviours were associated with low levels of interference. However, for a significant minority of youth (5 to 14%), these behaviours did cause problems and significantly interfered with their lives.


CONCLUSIONS
Although many obsessive-compulsive behaviours are part of normal development, they may still be problematic for some children and adolescents.
King
N J
NJ
Faculty of Education, Monash University, Clayton, Victoria, Australia.
Myerson
N N
NN
Inglis
S
S
Jenkins
M
M
Ollendick
T H
TH
D000293:Adolescent; D017677:Age Distribution; D001315:Australia / Q000453:epidemiology; D002648:Child; D003430:Cross-Sectional Studies; D005260:Female; D006801:Humans; D008297:Male; D009771:Obsessive-Compulsive Disorder / Q000453:epidemiology* / Q000523:psychology*; D011159:Population Surveillance; D015995:Prevalence; D011569:Psychiatric Status Rating Scales / Q000592:standards; D015203:Reproducibility of Results; D017678:Sex Distribution