Joint trajectories of internalizing and externalizing problems in early childhood: testing theories of symptom covariation
Year: 2019
Type: article
Abstract: Covariation between internalizing and externalizing problems is typically summarized using correlations. This assumes the same covariation pattern holds for all children, but there are empirical and theoretical rationales for qualitatively different patterns over time. In this study, growth mixture modeling of 8 waves of mother-reported internalizing and externalizing symptoms (ages 2-11; N=1,222) from the NICHD Study of Early Child Care were used to test four theories of internalizing/externalizing covariation. Growth mixture modeling probabilistically links developmental courses of internalizing and externalizing symptoms, while capturing heterogeneity in the expression of each. Results showed that stable covariation occurred at all levels of behavior (high, moderate, and low), for all functional forms of behavior (decreasing, persisting, or low-stable), and for the majority of children. Unique patterns of differentiation with development (among one fifth of boys) and rising internalizing (among one fifth of girls) evidenced in this study would have been obscured using correlational analyses.
DOI: 10.17615/11s4-5g66
Author: Sterba, Sonya Kourany
Institution: University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill
Language: English
Subfield: Clinical Psychology
Field: Psychology
Domain: Social Sciences
Open Access status: green
OpenAlex ID: W2955059398