Abstract
Background: Emotional dysregulation (ED) is a trans-nosographical condition characterized by mood instability, severe irritability, aggression, temper outburst, and hyper-arousal. Pathophysiology of emotional dysregulation and its potential biomarkers are an emerging field of interest. A Child Behaviour Checklist (CBCL) profile, defined as Dysregulation Profile (DP), has been correlated to ED in youth. We examined the association between the CBCL-DP and indices of sympathetic arousal in children with Oppositional Defiant Disorder (ODD) and healthy controls. Method: The current study sought to compare the arousal level measured via electrodermal activity in response to emotional stimuli in three non-overlapping groups of children: (1) ODD+CBCL-DP (n = 28), (2) ODD without CBCL-DP (n = 35), and (3) typically developing controls (n = 25). Results: Analyses revealed a distinct electrodermal activity profile in the three groups. Specifically, children with ODD+CBCL-DP presented higher levels of sympathetic arousal for anger and sadness stimuli compared to the other two groups. Limitations: The relatively small sample and the lack of assessing causality limit the generalizability of this study which results need to be replicated in larger, different samples. Conclusion: The CBCL-DP was associated to higher levels of arousal for negative emotions, consistently with previous reports in individuals with depression and anxiety. Further work may identify potential longitudinal relationships between this profile and clinical outcomes.
| Original language | English |
|---|---|
| Pages (from-to) | 207-213 |
| Number of pages | 7 |
| Journal | Journal of Affective Disorders |
| Volume | 257 |
| DOIs | |
| Publication status | Published - Oct 1 2019 |
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ASJC Scopus subject areas
- Clinical Psychology
- Psychiatry and Mental health
Cite this
Sympathetic arousal in children with oppositional defiant disorder and its relation to emotional dysregulation. / Tonacci, Alessandro; Billeci, Lucia; Calderoni, Sara; Levantini, Valentina; Masi, Gabriele; Milone, Annarita; Pisano, Simone; Muratori, Pietro.
In: Journal of Affective Disorders, Vol. 257, 01.10.2019, p. 207-213.Research output: Contribution to journal › Article
}
TY - JOUR
T1 - Sympathetic arousal in children with oppositional defiant disorder and its relation to emotional dysregulation
AU - Tonacci, Alessandro
AU - Billeci, Lucia
AU - Calderoni, Sara
AU - Levantini, Valentina
AU - Masi, Gabriele
AU - Milone, Annarita
AU - Pisano, Simone
AU - Muratori, Pietro
PY - 2019/10/1
Y1 - 2019/10/1
N2 - Background: Emotional dysregulation (ED) is a trans-nosographical condition characterized by mood instability, severe irritability, aggression, temper outburst, and hyper-arousal. Pathophysiology of emotional dysregulation and its potential biomarkers are an emerging field of interest. A Child Behaviour Checklist (CBCL) profile, defined as Dysregulation Profile (DP), has been correlated to ED in youth. We examined the association between the CBCL-DP and indices of sympathetic arousal in children with Oppositional Defiant Disorder (ODD) and healthy controls. Method: The current study sought to compare the arousal level measured via electrodermal activity in response to emotional stimuli in three non-overlapping groups of children: (1) ODD+CBCL-DP (n = 28), (2) ODD without CBCL-DP (n = 35), and (3) typically developing controls (n = 25). Results: Analyses revealed a distinct electrodermal activity profile in the three groups. Specifically, children with ODD+CBCL-DP presented higher levels of sympathetic arousal for anger and sadness stimuli compared to the other two groups. Limitations: The relatively small sample and the lack of assessing causality limit the generalizability of this study which results need to be replicated in larger, different samples. Conclusion: The CBCL-DP was associated to higher levels of arousal for negative emotions, consistently with previous reports in individuals with depression and anxiety. Further work may identify potential longitudinal relationships between this profile and clinical outcomes.
AB - Background: Emotional dysregulation (ED) is a trans-nosographical condition characterized by mood instability, severe irritability, aggression, temper outburst, and hyper-arousal. Pathophysiology of emotional dysregulation and its potential biomarkers are an emerging field of interest. A Child Behaviour Checklist (CBCL) profile, defined as Dysregulation Profile (DP), has been correlated to ED in youth. We examined the association between the CBCL-DP and indices of sympathetic arousal in children with Oppositional Defiant Disorder (ODD) and healthy controls. Method: The current study sought to compare the arousal level measured via electrodermal activity in response to emotional stimuli in three non-overlapping groups of children: (1) ODD+CBCL-DP (n = 28), (2) ODD without CBCL-DP (n = 35), and (3) typically developing controls (n = 25). Results: Analyses revealed a distinct electrodermal activity profile in the three groups. Specifically, children with ODD+CBCL-DP presented higher levels of sympathetic arousal for anger and sadness stimuli compared to the other two groups. Limitations: The relatively small sample and the lack of assessing causality limit the generalizability of this study which results need to be replicated in larger, different samples. Conclusion: The CBCL-DP was associated to higher levels of arousal for negative emotions, consistently with previous reports in individuals with depression and anxiety. Further work may identify potential longitudinal relationships between this profile and clinical outcomes.
UR - http://www.scopus.com/inward/record.url?scp=85068503323&partnerID=8YFLogxK
UR - http://www.scopus.com/inward/citedby.url?scp=85068503323&partnerID=8YFLogxK
U2 - 10.1016/j.jad.2019.07.046
DO - 10.1016/j.jad.2019.07.046
M3 - Article
C2 - 31301625
AN - SCOPUS:85068503323
VL - 257
SP - 207
EP - 213
JO - Journal of Affective Disorders
JF - Journal of Affective Disorders
SN - 0165-0327
ER -