title: Child behaviour checklist emotional dysregulation profiles in youth with disruptive behaviour disorders: clinical correlates and treatment implications.
abstract: Two Child Behaviour Checklist (CBCL) profiles were correlated to poor self-regulation, Deficient Emotional Self-Regulation (DESR) (elevation between 1 and 2 Standard Deviations (SD) in Anxiety/Depression, Aggression, Attention subscales), and Dysregulation Profile (DP) (elevation of 2 Standard Deviations or more). We explored youths with Oppositional Defiant Disorder (ODD) and Conduct Disorder (CD) whether these profiles are associated with specific clinical features. The sample included 57 patients with DESR profile and 41 with DP profile, ages 9 to 15 years, all assigned to a non-pharmacological Multimodal Treatment Program. No differences resulted between groups in demographic features, diagnosis ratio, and comorbidities with Attention Deficit Hyperactivity Disorder (ADHD), Bipolar Disorder (BD), and Anxiety Disorder. The DP group was associated with higher scores in Withdrawn, Social Problem, Thought, Rule Breaking, and Somatic CBCL subscales, and higher scores in Narcissism and Impulsivity (but not Callous-Unemotional (CU)), according to the Antisocial Process Screening Device (APSD). After treatment, patients with DESR improved their personality traits (Narcissistic and Callous-Unemotional, but not Impulsivity), while changes in CBCL scales were modest. Patients with DP improved scales of Attention, Aggression, Anxiety-Depression, Rule Breaking, Withdrawal, Social Problem and Thought, while personality features did not change. These results suggest diagnostic implications of CBCL profiles, and indications for targeted treatment strategies.
authors.affiliation: IRCCS Stella Maris, Scientific Institute of Child Neurology and Psychiatry, Calambrone, Pisa, Italy. Electronic address: gabriele.masi@inpe.unipi.it.
authors.forename: Gabriele
authors.initials: G
authors.lastname: Masi
authors.affiliation: IRCCS Stella Maris, Scientific Institute of Child Neurology and Psychiatry, Calambrone, Pisa, Italy.
authors.forename: Pietro
authors.initials: P
authors.lastname: Muratori
authors.affiliation: IRCCS Stella Maris, Scientific Institute of Child Neurology and Psychiatry, Calambrone, Pisa, Italy.
authors.forename: Azzurra
authors.initials: A
authors.lastname: Manfredi
authors.affiliation: Department of Mental and Physical Health and Preventive Medicine, Child and Adolescent Psychiatry Division, Second University of Naples, Italy.
authors.forename: Simone
authors.initials: S
authors.lastname: Pisano
authors.affiliation: IRCCS Stella Maris, Scientific Institute of Child Neurology and Psychiatry, Calambrone, Pisa, Italy.
authors.forename: Annarita
authors.initials: A
authors.lastname: Milone
mesh_terms: D000293:Adolescent; D000374:Aggression / Q000523:psychology; D001008:Anxiety Disorders / Q000453:epidemiology; D001289:Attention Deficit Disorder with Hyperactivity / Q000523:psychology; D019958:Attention Deficit and Disruptive Behavior Disorders / Q000175:diagnosis* / Q000523:psychology; D001714:Bipolar Disorder / Q000175:diagnosis* / Q000523:psychology; D057189:Checklist / Q000706:statistics & numerical data*; D002648:Child; D019955:Conduct Disorder / Q000175:diagnosis* / Q000523:psychology; D003866:Depressive Disorder / Q000175:diagnosis* / Q000523:psychology; D005260:Female; D006801:Humans; D007175:Impulsive Behavior; D008297:Male; D009289:Narcissism; D011379:Prognosis; D011594:Psychometrics / Q000706:statistics & numerical data; D015203:Reproducibility of Results; D012927:Social Control, Informal; D013223:Statistics as Topic
keywords: Callous–unemotional trait; Conduct disorder; Deficient emotional self-regulation; Dysregulation profiles; Multimodal treatment; Oppositional defiant disorder