title: The effects of diagnostic group and gender on challenging behaviors in infants and toddlers with cerebral palsy, Down syndrome or seizures.
abstract: Challenging behaviors are frequently studied in individuals with various developmental disabilities, although specific conditions are rarely compared to one another. Such data would be informative to clinicians who assess and develop treatment plans for children with these disabilities. For that reason, the current study's aim was to analyze problem behavior deficits in infants and toddlers diagnosed with cerebral palsy (CP), Down syndrome (DS), and a history of seizures/seizure disorder. Seventy six children participated in this study and were administered the Baby and Infant Screen for Children with aUtIsm Traits-Part 2 (BISCUIT-Part 2). Inspection of the Tantrum/Conduct Behavior subscale of this measure revealed that children with a history of seizures/seizure disorder exhibited significantly higher scores, indicating greater impairment, than those with CP or DS. Children with DS and those diagnosed with CP did not significantly differ from one another. Additionally, there was no significant main effect by gender. The CP and DS groups also had fewer endorsements on all 18 items of the subscale as compared to the seizures group. Implications of these results are discussed.
authors.affiliation: Louisiana State University, Baton Rouge, LA 70803, USA.
authors.forename: Megan A
authors.initials: MA
authors.lastname: Hattier
authors.forename: Johnny L
authors.initials: JL
authors.lastname: Matson
authors.forename: Brian
authors.initials: B
authors.lastname: Belva
authors.forename: Ali
authors.initials: A
authors.lastname: Kozlowski
mesh_terms: D000818:Animals; D002547:Cerebral Palsy / Q000175:diagnosis*; D002675:Child, Preschool; D004314:Down Syndrome / Q000175:diagnosis*; D005260:Female; D006801:Humans; D007223:Infant; D008297:Male; D011569:Psychiatric Status Rating Scales; D012640:Seizures / Q000175:diagnosis*; D012737:Sex Factors