Memory and anxiety in prepubertal boys at risk for delinquency.
OBJECTIVE
To examine the association between memory and anxiety symptoms in young urban-dwelling boys.


METHODS
A series of 111 boys, aged 7 to 11 years, at risk for disruptive psychopathology received standardized assessments of psychopathology and neuropsychological abilities, including verbal and design memory ability. While neuropsychological ability was rated at an initial study wave, psychopathology was rated at both an initial and a follow-up study wave, separated by approximately 18 months.


RESULTS
Anxiety symptoms were more strongly correlated with poor memory ability than with reduced intelligence. Disruptive symptoms, in contrast, were more strongly correlated with reduced intelligence than with poor memory ability. Finally, boys with an anxiety disorder exhibited reduced memory abilities relative to other boys in the sample. Relationships generally appeared strongest in longitudinal analyses, such that poorer memory ability at study intake predicted increased anxiety at follow-up.


CONCLUSIONS
Anxiety is associated with reduced memory ability in young urban boys at risk for disruptive psychopathology.
Pine
D S
DS
Department of Child and Adolescent Psychiatry, New York State Psychiatric Institute, NY 10032, USA. pined@child.cpmc.columbia.edu
Wasserman
G A
GA
Workman
S B
SB
D001008:Anxiety Disorders / Q000523:psychology*; D019958:Attention Deficit and Disruptive Behavior Disorders / Q000453:epidemiology* / Q000523:psychology; D002648:Child; D006801:Humans; D007604:Juvenile Delinquency / Q000517:prevention & control; D016015:Logistic Models; D008297:Male; D008568:Memory; D015999:Multivariate Analysis; D009519:New York City / Q000453:epidemiology; D011446:Prospective Studies