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Margot Prior

Publications and source records attributed to Margot Prior.

16 recordsLinked to original sources
PubMed2007

Repetitive behaviour in children with high functioning autism and obsessive compulsive disorder.

Children with Autism Spectrum Disorders (ASD) and children with Obsessive Compulsive Disorder (OCD) were compared on a range of repetitive behaviours. Parents reported similar levels of sameness behaviour and repetitive movements in the clinical groups, although children with OCD engaged in more repetitive behaviour focussed around routines and rituals. Children with OCD reported more compulsions and obsessions than children with ASD; both groups reported more compulsions and obsessions than a typically developing comparison group. Types of compulsions and obsessions tended to be less sophisticated in children with ASD than those with OCD. Sameness behaviour was more prevalent in younger children with OCD, but for children with ASD, age was not significantly related to sameness behaviour, repetitive movements, compulsions, or obsessions.

Autistic Disorder↗
PubMed2006

The latent structure of attention-deficit/hyperactivity disorder: a taxometric analysis.

OBJECTIVE: To test whether the latent structure of attention deficit/hyperactivity disorder (ADHD) is best understood as categorical or dimensional in samples of 1774 children (aged 6-12 years) and 1222 adolescents (aged 13-17 years) drawn from an Australian epidemiological study. METHOD: Two taxometric procedures (MAXEIG and MAMBAC) examined ADHD symptom measures assessed by diagnostic interview and parental ratings. RESULTS: Consistent with behavioural genetic research, findings fail to support the view that a latent category underpins ADHD. CONCLUSIONS: ADHD is best modelled as a continuum among both children and adolescents, and no discrete dysfunction can therefore be assumed to cause it. The placement of the diagnostic threshold should therefore be decided on pragmatic grounds (e.g. impairment or need for treatment).

Adolescent↗
PubMed2006

Growth of infant communication between 8 and 12 months: a population study.

AIM: To describe changes in infant prelinguistic communication skills between 8 and 12 months, and identify factors associated with those skills. METHODS DESIGN: Parent questionnaire data for a prospective population-based cohort of infants in metropolitan Melbourne, Australia. PARTICIPANTS: 1911 infants born November 2002-August 2003. OUTCOME: Infant communication (Communication and Symbolic Behaviour Scales (CSBS)) at 8 and 12 months. Potential risk factors: sex; prematurity; multiple birth; sociodemographic indicators; maternal mental health, vocabulary and education; non-English speaking background; and family history of speech-language difficulties. Linear regression models were fitted to total standardised CSBS scores at 8 and 12 months. RESULTS: Social communication, especially the use of gesture, developed rapidly from 8 to 12 months. Female sex, twin birth, and family history were strongly associated with CSBS scores. The combined model accounted for 5% and 6% of the total variation at 8 and 12 months, respectively. CSBS score at 8 months strongly predicted CSBS score at 12 months (coefficient = 0.56, partial R(2) = 37.0). CONCLUSIONS: There is a dramatic increase in communication skills between 8 and 12 months, particularly the development of gesture, which (as in previous studies) predates and predicts future language development. Risk factors explained little variation in early communication trajectories and therefore, based on our findings, this developmental course is more likely to be biologically predetermined. Rather than focusing on risk factors, we suggest that language promotion activities in otherwise healthy young infants should either be universal or, if targeted, be based on the level of communication skills displayed.

Australia↗
PubMed2006

The past decade.

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Autistic Disorder↗
PubMed2005

Behavioural problems in Sri Lankan schoolchildren: associations with socio-economic status, age, gender, academic progress, ethnicity and religion.

Little is known about behavioural and emotional adjustment in children in Sri Lanka, and this study is the first attempt to assess mental health problems in this population. Using the Strengths and Difficulties Questionnaire (Goodman R (1994) A modified version of the Rutter parent questionnaire including items on children's strengths: a research note. J Child Psychol Psychiatry 35:1483-1494) with parent, teacher and child informants, in a large sample of 10- to 13-year-old school children from Colombo, we found rates and types of problems consistent with other international studies of child mental health. Problem rates were higher in boys and were associated with lower SES and poorer academic performance. Relationships between behavioural adjustment and Tamil ethnicity and Hindu religion emerged in this sample and could possibly be associated with the experience of longstanding ethnic conflict in Sri Lanka. The study confirms the need for development of child and adolescent health services in Sri Lanka.

Achievement↗
PubMed2005

Effect of Turner's syndrome and X-linked imprinting on cognitive status: analysis based on pedigree data.

The effects of a monosomy of either the maternally or paternally derived X chromosome in Turner's syndrome (TS) on general neurocognitive status and some executive abilities were assessed using the maximum likelihood estimators for pedigree data. This method increases the power of analysis by accounting for the effect of background heritable variation on a trait. The sample comprised 42 females with regular non-mosaic X monosomy and their non-affected relatives. Wechsler neurocognitive scores and several executive function tests' scores, including the Behaviour Dyscontrol Scale (BDS-2), the Wisconsin Card Sorting Test (WCST), and the Rey Complex Figure Test (RCFT), were considered in the analysis. Results showed a significant effect of TS on all Wechsler index and subtest scores, with greatest deficits observed in Arithmetic, Block Design, Object Assembly and Picture Arrangement, and on the total BDS, RCFT and WCST scores, regardless of parental origin of the single X-chromosome. Our data also showed a significantly higher effect of a paternally derived X chromosome in diminishing the performance on several Wechsler scores relevant to verbal skills, which might suggest X-linked imprinting loci relevant to these skills. Possible reasons for the inconsistency of the results concerning X-linked imprinting of cognitive loci using TS patients are discussed, and the relevance of pedigree analysis to future studies of this problem is emphasized.

Adolescent↗
PubMed2005

A longitudinal study of adolescent adjustment following family transitions.

BACKGROUND: This study examined the impact of family transitions, that is, parental separation, divorce, remarriage and death, upon the lives of Australian children and adolescents in a longitudinal study of temperament and development. METHODS: Using longitudinal and concurrent questionnaire data, outcomes for young people experiencing transitions were compared with those of a random comparison group whose biological parents remained together. RESULTS: No significant group differences were found with regard to behavioural and emotional adjustment concurrently or across time, nor on academic outcomes and social competence. Significant differences between the groups were revealed in measures of parent-teen conflict and parent-child attachment. A number of gender differences were found, with female participants displaying both greater adaptive and maladaptive behaviours. Particular dimensions of temperament, as well as the parent's overall rating of their child as easy or difficult, were found to be important predictors of adjustment status for both transitions and comparison groups. CONCLUSIONS: Despite some methodological limitations, this study illustrated the resilience of children experiencing family disruption across childhood and adolescence.

Adaptation, Psychological↗
PubMed2004

Children on the borderlands of autism: differential characteristics in social, imaginative, communicative and repetitive behaviour domains.

A sample of 37 children aged 4-7 years who all showed some autistic features was investigated. Children with a primary diagnosis of autism were compared with those diagnosed with a language disorder, on behaviours within four domains; social behaviour, imaginative activities, repetitive behaviour and communication. The aim was to identify potentially differentiating features of the two groups using observational ratings and questionnaire measures provided by parents and teachers. Information on participants' intelligence and language skills was also collected. The children with autism showed greater deficits in joint attention, functional play and pragmatic language, and engaged in more repetitive behaviours, than the language disordered children. However, the groups did not differ significantly on formally assessed language skills. A cluster analysis produced three groups of children varying in level of functioning and parent-rated behaviours. The results are informative for clinicians dealing with the challenge of differential diagnosis.

Attention↗
PubMed2003

The reach-to-grasp movement in children with autism spectrum disorder.

Autism is associated with a wide and complex array of neurobehavioural symptoms. Examination of the motor system offers a particularly appealing method for studying autism by providing information about this syndrome that is relatively immune to experimental influence. In this article, we considered the relationship between possible movement disturbance and symptoms of autism and introduced an experimental model that may be useful for rehabilitation and diagnostic purposes: the reach-to-grasp movement. Research is reviewed that characterizes kinematically the reach-to-grasp movement in children with autism compared with age-matched 'controls'. Unlike the age-matched children, autistic children showed differences in movement planning and execution, supporting the view that movement disturbances may play a part in the phenomenon of autism.

Autistic Disorder↗
PubMed2002

Lack of association of a single-nucleotide polymorphism of the mu-opioid receptor gene with anxiety-related traits: results from a cross-sectional study of adults and a longitudinal study of children.

There is evidence from animal experiments that the mu- and delta-opioid receptors may play a role in anxiety and depression. It might therefore be expected that functional polymorphisms of these genes in humans are associated with anxiety and depression. We investigated a single-nucleotide polymorphism (Asn40Asp) of the mu-opioid receptor gene (OPRM1). This association was investigated in two samples: 1) a cross-sectional survey of 867 community-living adults aged 18-79 years who were assessed for anxiety and depression symptoms and related personality traits; and 2) a longitudinal study of childhood temperament in which 660 children were followed from infancy to the mid-teens and assessed for anxiety-related temperament and behavior problems. The data did not support a role for the Asn40Asp polymorphism in anxiety and depression, despite adequate statistical power to detect small effects.

Adolescent↗
PubMed2002

Association of polymorphisms of the estrogen receptor gene with anxiety-related traits in children and adolescents: a longitudinal study.

Anxiety problems and associated temperamental traits are multifactorial, determined by the interaction of genetic and environmental factors. Genetic effects may involve both neurotransmitters and hormones. A good candidate gene for association with anxiety-related traits is the estrogen receptor (ESRalpha). Estrogen exerts an effect on mood and behavior in humans through gene regulation on binding to estrogen receptor protein. Association between ESRalpha polymorphism and anxiety-related traits was investigated in a cohort of 680 Australian adolescents studied from 4-8 months to 15-16 years of age. Genotype frequencies were estimated for polymorphic PvuII and XbaI restriction sites in intron 1 and a microsatellite [(TA)(n)] locus 5' of ESRalpha. There was strong linkage disequilibrium between the three loci and a significant sex difference was observed in allele (for (TA)(n), PvuII) and genotype (for XbaI) frequencies. There were no significant allelic or genotypic differences in anxiety-related traits for the three loci tested. However, some significant associations were found for PvuII/(TA)(n) and XbaI/(TA)(n) two-locus genotypes and anxiety, accounting for between 1.6% and 2.8% of the total variance for anxiety in this population. The discordance in Hardy-Weinberg proportions at the XbaI locus between the sexes is an important finding, perhaps indicating a sex-specific role for ESRalpha in fetal survival.

Adolescent↗
PubMed2002

The relationship between executive function abilities, adaptive behaviour, and academic achievement in children with externalising behaviour problems.

BACKGROUND: Specific domains of adaptive behaviours and academic achievement may, in part, depend on executive function capacities. Executive function deficits have been found to be associated with Attention Deficit Hyperactivity Disorder (ADHD), not Oppositional Defiant Disorder/Conduct Disorder (ODD/CD). METHOD: Using a sample of 110 adolescents, comprising four groups, ADHD only, co-morbid ADHD and ODD/CD, ODD/CD only, and a normal community control group, we assessed socialisation and communication skills with the Vineland Adaptive Behaviour Scales, along with reading ability, and executive functioning. RESULTS: Poorer adaptive communication skills were specifically associated with ADHD when compared with either ODD/CD or the control group, and the social competence of adolescents with ADHD was as low as the levels associated with ODD/CD. Presence of ADHD was associated with lower word recognition scores, while the reading levels of adolescents with ODD/CD were equivalent to those without behaviour problems. Executive function test scores correlated with all adaptive behaviour outcomes. Multiple regression analyses indicated that verbal ability predicted communication and reading scores, with executive function abilities contributing significant variance to the prediction in the adaptive behaviour, communication, and socialisation domains. CONCLUSIONS: Further research with other samples, both community and clinical groups, is needed to assess the generalisability of the findings. Small numbers of girls in the groups gave us insufficient power to adequately address potential gender differences.

Achievement↗
PubMed2002

The long-term significance of teacher-rated hyperactivity and reading ability in childhood: findings from two longitudinal studies.

BACKGROUND: The aims of this study were twofold: first, to examine behavioural and academic outcomes of children with hyperactivity, using data from two longitudinal studies; and second, to examine comparable psychosocial outcomes for children with early reading difficulties. METHODS: Measures of teacher-rated persistent hyperactivity, and reading ability obtained during early primary school were available for children from the Australian Temperament Project and the Dunedin Multidisciplinary Health and Development Study. Both samples were followed up to assess behavioural and academic outcomes during the adolescent and early adult years. Family background, antisocial behaviour and literacy were controlled in the first set of analyses to examine the influence of early hyperactivity. RESULTS: There were strong linear relationships between early hyperactivity and later adverse outcomes. Adjustment for other childhood variables suggested that early hyperactivity was associated with continuing school difficulties, problems with attention and poor reading in adolescence. Early reading difficulties, after controlling for early hyperactivity, predicted continuing reading problems in high school and leaving school with no qualifications. CONCLUSIONS: The findings suggest that there are dual pathways from early inattentive behaviours to later inattention and reading problems, and from early reading difficulties to substantial impairments in later academic outcomes.

Attention Deficit Disorder with Hyperactivity↗
PubMedDate not supplied

Apolipoprotein E genotype and temperament: a longitudinal study from infancy to the late teens.

OBJECTIVE: To replicate an earlier Finnish study by Keltikangas-Järvinen et al. (5) reporting that the APOE genotype is associated with temperamental traits involving increased activity. METHODS: DNA was collected from 683 Australian children who had participated in a longitudinal study of childhood temperament from 4 to 8 months up to 17 to 18 years. Associations were examined between APOE genotype and a range of measures of activity and hyperactivity. RESULTS: No associations were found. CONCLUSIONS: The earlier Finnish finding could not be replicated despite adequate statistical power.

Adolescent↗