Psychopathology is highly prevalent during childhood and adolescence and contributes to a variety of negative outcomes. Attempts to identify etiological factors which contribute to the development of psychopathology in youth have considered the Goodness of Fit between children's temperaments and the behaviors exhibited by their parents (Chess and Thomas, 1999; Zuckerman, 1999). Many studies have demonstrated that the interaction of children's behavioral inhibition and certain parenting behaviors influences children's psychological outcomes. However, the ability to draw firm conclusions from these studies is severely limited by methodological weaknesses. In the current study, data were analyzed from 253 youth (46% male) who completed assessments at 2-years (N=167), 3-years (N=144), 4-years (N=134), 6-years (N=110), and 9-years of age (N=192), and during adolescence (N=78; mean age=14.08 years). Measures of child behavioral inhibition, maternal warmth and control, and child psychopathology were gathered at each time point. Cross-sectional and longitudinal analyses were conducted to explore the moderating effect of maternal warmth and control on the relationship between child shyness and child/adolescent internalizing and externalizing symptoms. With a few exceptions, child shyness significantly predicted child internalizing symptoms at each time point, while maternal warmth and control, and their interaction with child shyness, did not predict child internalizing or externalizing outcomes. Longitudinally, the slope of shyness across childhood significantly predicted adolescent internalizing symptoms. The moderating effect of maternal parenting on this relationship could not be explored due to sample size and missing data restrictions. Hierarchical regression analyses indicated that the interaction between child shyness (at each time point) and maternal warmth and control did not predict adolescent psychopathology. Cross-lagged structural equation models analyzed the longitudinal, bidirectional relationships between child shyness and maternal warmth and control. However, youth shyness and maternal warmth/control were not correlated at any time point, youth shyness did not predict future displays of maternal warmth/control, and maternal warmth/control did not impact future levels of youth shyness. Compared to previous studies, the current study's design and methodology had many strengths. However, the findings were largely inconsistent with hypotheses and previous work. Possible explanations for these findings, study limitations, and directions for future research are summarized. / Doctor of Philosophy / The presence of psychological disorders is common during childhood and adolescence and contributes to a variety of negative outcomes. Attempts to determine what is causing these disorders to develop in youth have considered how children's temperaments and the behaviors exhibited by their parents may or may not fit well together. Past research has demonstrated that the interaction of children's fearfulness or shyness and certain parenting behaviors influences children's psychological outcomes. However, the ability to draw firm conclusions from this past research is limited by weaknesses within studies and inconsistencies between them. The current study attempted to address some of these weaknesses and inconsistencies by exploring the relationships among child shyness, maternal displays of warmth and control, and psychological symptoms. A total of 253 children had already participated in one or more assessment sessions when they were 2, 3, 4, 6, and 9-years-old, and, for the current study, 78 of those children completed an assessment as adolescents (average age = 14-years-old). Similar to previous research, at most of the ages, child shyness predicted the likelihood that the children would experience internalizing symptoms (i.e., symptoms of anxiety and mood disorders). Additionally, the way children's shyness scores changed over time also predicted which adolescents would experience internalizing symptoms. However, contrary to previous research, maternal warmth and control did not predict child psychological symptoms. Furthermore, the results did not indicate that certain parenting behaviors were better or worse for children with differing levels of shyness. This study also explored whether child shyness and maternal parenting behaviors were related to one another over time. Results indicated that shyness levels predicted future levels of shyness, and maternal warmth/control predicted future levels of warmth/control. However, again contrary to the findings of previous studies, child shyness and maternal parenting did not predict one another. Because the study findings were largely inconsistent with what was expected, possible explanations for these findings, study limitations, and directions for future research are discussed.

Behavioral approach sensitivity (BAS) has been found to relate to anger contrary to perspectives positing that BAS is only involved in positive emotions. The present study extends this work by examining relations between behavioral aggression and BAS and behavioral inhibition sensitivity (BIS) measures. Forty-three undergraduate participants were socially ostracized to induce anger, and then given an opportunity to behave aggressively. Higher levels of BAS relate to increased aggressive behavior, whereas higher levels of BIS related to decreased aggressive behavior.

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The current study investigates two recently identified threats to the construct validity of behavioral inhibition as a core deficit of attention-deficit/hyperactivity disorder (ADHD) based on the Stop-signal task: calculation of mean reaction time from go-trials presented adjacent to intermittent stop-trials, and non-reporting of the stop-signal delay metric. Children with ADHD (n=12) and typically developing children (TD) (n=11) were administered the standard stop-signal task and three variant stop-signal conditions. These included a No-Tone condition administered without the presentation of an auditory tone; an Ignore-Tone condition that presented a neutral (i.e., not associated with stopping) auditory tone; and a second Ignore-Tone condition that presented a neutral auditory tone after the tone had been previously paired with stopping. Children with ADHD exhibited significantly slower and more variable reaction times to go-stimuli, and slower stop-signal reaction times (SSRT) relative to TD controls. Stop-signal delay (SSD) was not significantly different between groups, and both groups' go-trial reaction times slowed following meaningful tones. Collectively, these findings corroborate recent meta-analyses and indicate that previous findings of stop-signal performance deficits in ADHD reflect slower and more variable responding to visually presented stimuli and concurrent processing of a second stimulus, rather than deficits of motor behavioral inhibition.

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Although behavioral inhibition has been found to be relatively stable, such stability has not always been shown. Moreover, although an association between parental shyness and child behavioral inhibition has been reported, this relationship is imperfect and indirect. The present study proposed that one factor that may impact these relationships is the attitudes parents hold toward having a shy, inhibited child. Although shyness is typically regarded as a negative and maladaptive trait, it is not necessarily viewed as problematic by all parents. The present study investigated a series of ten specific hypotheses that centered around the notion that variations in parental attitudes toward shyness may lead some parents to encourage and other parents to discourage behaviors typically associated with shyness in their young children. Using a longitudinal design, the present study examined the relations among the constructs of parental attitudes toward shyness, child behavioral inhibition, childrearing strategies, and parental shyness over a span of two years in a sample of 3 to 6 year-old children and their parents. Results revealed several interesting and valuable findings. Maternal attitudes toward shyness emerged as a moderator of the relationship between behavioral inhibition at Time 1 and Time 2. Maternal attitudes toward shyness also emerged as a significant moderator of the relationship between maternal shyness and child behavioral inhibition. However, childrearing strategies did not mediate the relationship between maternal attitudes toward shyness and behavioral inhibition in children as predicted. / Ph. D.

Intergenerational transmission of shyness, or the social process through which shy characteristics or behavioral patterns demonstrated by parents are passed on to their children, has received recent empirical attention and has suggested a positive relationship between levels of shyness in parents and children. One factor that may relate to this relationship is the attitudes parents hold toward having a shy child. The present study sought to illuminate several questions surrounding parental attitudes toward shyness and the presence of withdrawn, inhibited behavior in children. It was hypothesized that: a) parental attitudes toward shyness and shyness in parents would interact to influence inhibited behavior in children; and b) childrearing practices would serve as a mediator in the anticipated relationship between parental attitudes toward shyness and inhibited behavior in children. Results indicated a significant positive relationship between parental attitudes toward shyness and withdrawn, inhibited behavior in children, as well as a series of significant relationships between parental attitudes toward shyness and specific parenting strategies. No significant moderational or mediational effects were found, however. / Master of Science

Hintergrund. In klinischen und epidemiologischen Untersuchungen wurden retrospektiv Assoziationen zwischen Angst- und Alkoholstörungen bestätigt. Bei Personen, die von beiden Störungen betroffen waren, fand man restrospektiv meist einen früheren Beginn der Angststörungen im Vergleich zu den Alkoholstörungen, was kausal im Sinne der Selbstmedikationshypothese interpretiert wurde. Diese konnte bisher nicht eindeutig bestätigt werden. Zur Aufklärung notwendige prospektive Untersuchungen, die Angststörungen auf diagnostischer Ebene erfassen, zwischen verschiedenen Angststörungen unterscheiden und sich auf Jugendliche beziehen, fehlen bisher. Fragestellung. Die Bedeutung von Angststörungen für die Entwicklung von erhöhtem Alkoholkonsum und Alkoholstörungen bei Jugendlichen und jungen Erwachsenen. Methodik. Die Analysen basieren auf den Daten der prospektiv-longitudinalen EDSP-Studie (Follow-Up: insg. 4 Jahre) mit einer epidemiologischen, repräsentativen Stichprobe von 3021 Personen im Alter zwischen 14 und 24 Jahre zu T0 aus München und Umland. Zur Erhebung von DSM-IV-Diagnosen wurde das M-CIDI verwendet. Ergebnisse. Primäre Panikstörungen, Panikattacken und Soziale Phobie erwiesen sich prospektiv als spezifische Prädiktoren für Beginn und Aufrechterhaltung von Alkoholproblemen. Umgekehrt waren Alkoholprobleme mit einem erhöhten Risiko für den Beginn von Sozialer Phobie und GAS assoziiert. Bezüglich DSM-IV Diagnosekriterien fanden sich phobische Ängste sowie Episoden intensiver Angst als Risikofaktoren für den Beginn von Alkoholproblemen. Vermeidungsverhalten war mit einem verminderten Risiko für nachfolgende Alkoholprobleme verbunden. Schlussfolgerungen. Maßnahmen zur Prävention von Alkoholproblemen können sich zielgruppenorientiert an Jugendliche mit Sozialer Phobie und Paniksymptomatik richten. Bei Patienten, die sich wegen Alkoholproblemen in Behandlung begeben, ist eine umfassende Diagnostik zur Identifikation zusätzlicher Angststörungen ratsam. / Background. Many clinical and epidemiological studies have documented significant cross-sectional comorbidities between anxiety disorders and alcohol use disorders. Analysis of retrospective age-of-onset reports suggests that the anxiety disorders often start earlier than the alcohol disorders. These data have often been interpreted in terms of a self-medication-model implying a causal mechanism. Overall, in former studies this model couldn't definitely be proofed. Prospective studies that follow a sample of adolescents into adulthood assessing different anxiety disorders on an diagnostic level are needed to confirm these associations. Methods. Baseline and four-year-follow-up data from the EDSP-Study, a prospective community survey of 3021 (2548 at follow-up) adolescents and young adults aged 14 to 24 years at baseline carried out in Munich, were used. DSM-IV anxiety disorders, alcohol use and alcohol use disorders were assessed with the M-CIDI. Results. While in retrospective analyses strong associations between nearly all anxiety disorders and alcohol problems, especially harmful use and dependence, were found, prospective analyses showed that only primary panic disorder, panic attack and social phobia are specific predictors of subsequent onset and persistence of alcohol problems. Contrary, primary alcohol problems were related to subsequent onset of social phobia and GAD. Considering the different DSM-IV-criteria, phobic anxiety as well as episodes of intensive anxiety were found to be risk factors for the following onset of alcohol problems. Avoidance behavior was associated with a lower risk for subsequent alcohol problems. Conclusions. Alcohol prevention programs could be directed to target groups with social phobia and panic. Patients with alcohol problems should carefully be screened for comorbid anxiety disorders. In order to prevent relapses the treating of social phobia and panic should be part of the therapy with comorbid alcohol patients.

Objective: The strong association between ADHD and cigarette smoking and the known effects of nicotine on cognition has lead to interest in the role of cholinergic function in ADHD cognitive deficits. We have previously demonstrated that acute nicotine improves behavioral inhibition in adolescents with ADHD. This study examined acute nicotine in young adults with ADHD-Combined type on cognitive domains including behavioral inhibition, delay aversion, and recognition memory. Methods: 15 non-smoking young adults (20 ± 1.7 years) diagnosed with ADHD-C received acute nicotine (7 mg patch for 45 min) and placebo on separate days. Cognitive tasks included the Stop Signal Task, Choice Delay task, and the High-Low Imagery Task (a verbal recognition memory task). Three subjects experienced side effects and their data was excluded from analysis of cognitive measures. Results: There was a significant (p < .05) positive effect of nicotine on the Stop Signal Reaction Time measure of the Stop Signal Task. The SSRT was improved without changes in GO reaction time or accuracy. There was a trend (p = .09) for nicotine to increase tolerance for delay and a strong trend (p = .06) for nicotine to improve recognition memory. Conclusions: Non-smoking young adults with ADHD-C showed improvements in cognitive performance following nicotine administration in several domains that are central to ADHD. The results from this study support the hypothesis that cholinergic system activity may be important in the cognitive deficits of ADHD and may be a useful therapeutic target.