Rapson Gomez

DSM‐IV AD/HD: Confirmatory Factor Models, Prevalence, and Gender and Age Differences Based on Parent and Teacher Ratings of Australian Primary School Children

Based on parent and teacher ratings of primary school children on a scale comprising the 18 DSM-IV AD/HD symptoms, this study used confirmatory factor analysis to compare three models: all items in one factor; inattention in one and hyperactivity and impulsivity items in a separate factor; and inattention, hyperactivity, and impulsivity items in three separate factors. It also examined the prevalence rates of the three AD/HD Types, and gender and age differences. Results supported both the two- and three-factor models, with the three-factor model only slightly better than the two-factor model. Based on parent-teacher agreement, the prevalence rates were 1.6, 0.2 and 0.6% for the Inattentive, Hyperactive-Impulsive, and Combined Types, respectively. Overall, the male to female ratio was 5: 1, and boys were rated higher than girls by both parents and teachers. Age differences were minimal. The implications of the findings in relation to some of the assumptions made in DSM-IV for AD/HD are discussed.

Domains of spiritual well-being and development and validation of the Spiritual Well-Being Questionnaire

Abstract Fisher (1998) proposed a spiritual well-being model, comprising the domains of personal, communal, environmental and transcendental well-being, and a single global spiritual well-being dimension. This paper reports on four studies aimed at testing Fisher’s theoretical model, and establishing the validity and reliability of a new self-rating questionnaire (Spiritual Well-Being Questionnaire; SWBQ), developed to reflect this model. All four studies supported Fisher’s model. The SWBQ showed good reliability (Cronbach’s alpha, composite reliability and variance extracted), and validity (construct, concurrent, discriminant, predictive and factorial independence from personality). The SWBQ has the advantage over other existing spiritual well-being measures in that it is based on a broader and more empirically based conceptualization of spiritual well-being, and has well established psychometric properties.

Personality traits of the behavioural approach and inhibition systems: associations with processing of emotional stimuli

Abstract This study examined the relationships of the traits associated with Grays behavioural approach system (BAS) and behavioural inhibition system (BIS) with cognitive processing of emotional information. Initially, participants completed questionnaires covering trait impulsivity and anxiety, and BAS and BIS sensitivities. They were then tested individually. After completing a questionnaire of current positive and negative moods, they completed three tasks measuring processing of pleasant, unpleasant and neutral information. Consistent with Gray’s theory, the results showed that impulsivity and BAS sensitivity were associated with the processing of pleasant information, while anxiety and BIS sensitivity were associated with the processing of unpleasant information. These findings imply that Gray’s BAS–BIS theory can be extended to cognitive processing of emotional information.

A Multitrait-Multisource Confirmatory Factor Analytic Approach to the Construct Validity of ADHD Rating Scales

Confirmatory factor analysis was used to model a multitrait-multisource design to evaluate the construct validity of attention-deficit/hyperactivity disorder (ADHD) rating scales. The 2 trait factors were the ADHD inattention and hyperactivity/impulsivity dimensions. The 2 source factors were parents and teachers. In Study 1, parents and teachers rated 1,475 Australian elementary school children on the ADHD symptoms. In Study 2, parents and teachers rated 285 Brazilian elementary school children on the ADHD symptoms. Similar results occurred in both studies with most of the ADHD symptoms containing more source than trait variance, thus providing weak evidence for the convergent and discriminant validity of the symptoms as measured by rating scales. The study outlines the implications of such strong source effects for understanding ADHD.

Susceptibility to positive and negative mood states: test of Eysenck’s, Gray’s and Newman’s theories

The study examined the relationships of extraversion and neuroticism with trait anxiety and impulsivity, and how extraversion and neuroticism, and impulsivity and anxiety are related to negative and positive mood states. Subjects completed questionnaires covering extraversion, neuroticism, anxiety and impulsivity, and were divided randomly into two mood induction groups: positive (N=50) and negative (N=48). The positive mood induction group was provided with money, progressively, during performance of a go/no-go task, while for the negative mood induction group, money was progressively withdrawn during task performance. Results showed that negative mood induction was predicted by neuroticism and extraversion×neuroticism, while positive mood induction was predicted by extraversion. Anxiety and impulsivity also predicted negative and positive mood induction, respectively. These findings are discussed in the context of Eysenck’s, Gray’s and Newman’s theories of personality and mood.

Convergent and Discriminant Validity of Trait and Source Effects in ADHD-Inattention and Hyperactivity/Impulsivity Measures Across a 3-Month Interval

Confirmatory factor analysis was used to model a multitrait (ADHD-inattention and hyperactivity/ impulsivity) by multisource (teachers and parents) design across a 3-month interval in a sample of 360 Australian elementary school children. The purpose was to evaluate the convergent and discriminant validity of the ADHD-inattention (IN) and hyperactivity/impulsivity (H/I) measures. Although similar traits and similar sources showed stronger correlations across time than dissimilar traits and dissimilar sources, the amount of source variance in the ADHD-IN and ADHD-H/I measures was substantial and consistent across the interval (M = 59%; range = 35–84%). This large amount of source variance raises the possibility that the correlations of the IN and H/I rating scales with other constructs (e.g., social competence, conduct problems) represent mostly source rather than trait effects. Multitrait by multisource analyses provide a means to answer this question and further advance understanding of ADHD.

Australian parent and teacher ratings of the DSM-IV ADHD symptoms: differential symptom functioning and parent-teacher agreement and differences.

Objective: The aims of the study were to examine differential symptom functioning (DSF) and agreement across parent and teacher ratings for the DSM-IV ADHD inattention (IA) and hyperactivity/impulsivity (HI) symptoms, listed in the Disruptive Behavior Rating Scale (DBRS). Method: DSF was examined using a parametric technique involving ordinal logistic regression, and also a nonparametric technique known as kernel smoothing implemented in the program TestGraf. To accomplish the aims, Australian parents and teachers completed the DBRS for 213 children, between 6 and 11 years of age. Results: The results of both analytical procedures showed no DSF across all the IA and HI symptoms. Additional results indicated low parent-teacher agreement. Conclusion: The absence of DSF suggests that previous reports of low parent-teacher agreement are likely to reflect a true state of affairs and that parent and teacher ratings can be compared. In this context, the low parent-teacher agreement can be interpreted as indication that the attention deficit hyperactivity disorder (ADHD) symptoms are situation specific. (J. of Att. Dis. 2007; 11(1) 17-27)

The effects of reward and punishment on response disinhibition, moods, heart rate and skin conductance level during instrumental learning

Abstract The study examined the effects of reward and punishment on response disinhibition, happy and nervous moods, heart rate and skin conductance levels during performance of an instrumental learning task. For one group of subjects (the reward group), correct responses were reinforced with a small monetary reward, while for another group (the punishment group), incorrect responses led to a small loss of money. Results indicated that subjects in the punishment group made fewer disinhibitory responses, were more nervous and less happy, and had a higher skin conductance level compared with subjects in the reward group. For both groups, these measures (and heart rate) did not correlate with each other, or with trait impulsivity or trait anxiety. These findings are discussed in relation to Grays theory of behavioural inhibition system (BIS) and behavioural approach system (BAS).

Neuroticism and extraversion as predictors of coping styles during early adolescence

Abstract This study examined how neuroticism, extraversion and neuroticism×extraversion predict cognitive approach, behavioral approach and avoidance coping styles. A group of 268 (138 males and 130 females) 12- and 13-year old adolescents completed questionnaires covering these measures. The results indicated that in males, extraversion predicted all three coping styles positively. In this group, neuroticism also predicted avoidance coping positively, and it exacerbated the effect of extraversion on all three coping styles. In females, extraversion predicted both the approach coping styles positively, while neuroticism predicted avoidance coping positively. For females, there was no neuroticism×extraversion interaction. These findings are discussed in terms of the effects of gender, neuroticism and extraversion on adolescent coping styles during early adolescence.

Measurement and Structural Invariance of Parent Ratings of ADHD and ODD Symptoms across Gender for American and Malaysian Children.

The purpose of this study was to examine the measurement (configural, metric, scalar, and residual) and structural (factor variance, factor covariance, and factor means) invariance of parent ratings of the attention-deficit/hyperactivity disorder - inattention (ADHD-IN), ADHD - hyperactivity/impulsivity (ADHD-HI), and oppositional defiant disorder (ODD) symptoms as described in the Diagnostic and Statistical Manual of Mental Disorders (4th ed.; American Psychiatric Association, 1994) across boys and girls. In an American pediatric sample (N = 1,015) and a Malaysian elementary school-age sample (N = 928), there was strong support for configural, metric, scalar, residual, factor variance, and covariance invariance across gender within each sample. Both American and Malaysian boys had significantly higher scores on the ADHD-IN and ADHD-HI factor means than did girls, whereas only in the American sample did boys score significantly higher on the ODD factor than did girls. The implications of the results for the study of gender, ethnic, and cultural differences associated with ADHD and ODD are discussed.