Within-person Relations between Domains of Socio-emotional Development during Childhood and Adolescence

Abstract

Adolescence is a critical period in the development of mental health with nearly 1 in 5 adolescents suffering from mental health problems and more than 40 percent of these experiencing at least one co-occurring mental health disorder. This study investigates whether there are differences in the relations between key dimensions of child and adolescent mental health in adolescence compared to childhood. Mental health and related socio-emotional traits were measured longitudinally at ages 4, 7, 8, 9, 11, 13, and 16 in the Avon Longitudinal Study of Parents and Children (N = 11279) using the Strengths and Difficulties Questionnaires. Graphical Vector Autoregression models were used to analyse the temporal within-person relations between conduct problems, emotional problems, hyperactivity/inattention, peer problems and prosociality across childhood (ages 4 to 9) and adolescence (11 to 16). Results suggest that adolescence is characterised by an increase in the number and strength of temporal relations between socio-emotional difficulties. In particular, in adolescence there were bidirectional connections between peer problems and emotional problems, between conduct problems and hyperactivity/inattention and between prosociality and conduct problems as well as hyperactivity/inattention. In childhood, conduct problems and prosociality were reciprocally related. Results also suggested peer problems as a potential mediating factor between conduct and emotional problems in childhood. Overall, this study suggests that different domains of socio-emotional development influence each other over development. Adolescence is characterised by an increase in temporal connections, which may be one factor underlying the increased vulnerability to the onset of mental health problems during that period.

Longitudinal Invariance of the Strengths and Difficulties Questionnaire Across Ages 4 to 16 in the ALSPAC Sample

“…Any observed changes in covariances or means could be reflective of changes in their measurement over time rather than reflective of true changes that may help illuminate the mechanisms underlying mental health problems. Current results suggest that, if modeled within a latent variable model as well as using observed scores, the SDQ can indeed be used to study the development of co-occurring mental health issues, for instance using graphical vector autoregression or random-intercept cross-lagged panel models which rely on comparing covariances over time ( Russell et al, 2018 ; Speyer et al, 2022 ). Furthermore, the SDQ can also be used to examine changes in (latent) means over time, for example, allowing for examination of trajectories of mental health problems in the ALSPAC cohort, as well as predictors and outcomes of individual differences in trajectories ( Barker & Maughan, 2009 ; Speyer et al, 2021 ).…”

“…The SDQ has also been a measure of choice in longitudinal studies tracking children’s mental health over development ( Anderson et al, 2007 ; Connelly & Platt, 2014 ; Hirota et al, 2022 ; O’Neill et al, 2019 ; Wang et al, 2021 ). For instance, its scores have been used to examine predictors of heterogeneity in hyperactivity/inattentive behaviors over development ( Murray, Hall, et al, 2021 ), to investigate the effect of video game playing on the development of peer problems and prosocial behaviors during late childhood and early adolescence ( Lobel et al, 2019 ) and to gain insights into the developmental relations between emotional and conduct problems over childhood and adolescence ( Speyer et al, 2022 ).…”

An integrated model: marital effect on adolescent behavioral problems through siblings

“…Adolescence is a critical time for the onset and development of behavioral problems, including internalizing problems, such as depressive symptoms, and externalizing problems, such as aggressive behavior ( Blain-Arcaro and Vaillancourt, 2017 ; Murray et al, 2022 ). Depressive symptoms and aggressive behavior are two of the most common mental health difficulties in adolescents that often co-occur ( Wolff and Ollendick, 2006 ; Speyer et al, 2022 ). Moreover, they may contribute to poor academic performance, problematic substance use, and even suicidality ( Erath et al, 2006 ; Kraft et al, 2023 ).…”

“…10. 3389/fpsyg.2023.1282092 mental health difficulties in adolescents that often co-occur (Wolff and Ollendick, 2006;Speyer et al, 2022). Moreover, they may contribute to poor academic performance, problematic substance use, and even suicidality (Erath et al, 2006;Kraft et al, 2023).…”

Creatividad, habilidades sociales y comportamiento prosocial en adolescentes: diferencias según sexo

“…La adolescencia es un periodo vital que se caracteriza por el desarrollo de diversos ámbitos como el psicológico y el social, donde los jóvenes tienen que formar su propia identidad y los mecanismos necesarios para afrontar situaciones y establecer relaciones sociales propias de la edad adulta (Barragán et al, 2021). Diversos estudios indican como esta etapa de desarrollo se encuentra vinculada con mayores problemas de salud mental, ya que se estima que uno de cada cinco adolescentes sufre algún tipo de trastorno mental y que la mayoría de los trastornos mentales que son detectados a lo largo de la vida tienen su inicio en la adolescencia (Speyer et al, 2022). Al igual, existe un aumento progresivo en las investigaciones realizadas acerca de los problemas de agresión entre iguales, ya que estos se tienden a realizar durante la etapa de la adolescencia tanto por medio de las tecnologías de la información como en el ámbito educativo (Feijóo et al, 2021).…”