Title page for ETD etd-07092004-104002

Type of Document

Thesis

Author

Lima, Elizabeth N.

Author's Email Address

enl6908@garnet.acns.fsu.edu

URN

etd-07092004-104002

Title

Emotional Reactivity, Trait Affectivity, and Child Conduct Problems

Degree

Master of Science

Department

Psychology, Department of

Advisory Committee

Advisor Name	Title
Bryan R. Loney	Committee Chair
Colleen Kelley	Committee Member
Thomas E. Joiner	Committee Member

Keywords

Trait Affectivity
Emotional Reactivity
Psychopathy
Conduct Problems

Date of Defense

2004-06-25

Availability

unrestricted

Abstract

The current study examined the emotional reactivity and trait affectivity patterns of children and adolescents referred to a university-based clinic for learning, emotional and behavioral difficulties. Prior research suggests that callous-unemotional (CU) traits are uniquely related to emotional under-reactivity such as a lack of response time facilitation to negative word stimuli. Further, studies conducted with adult forensic samples have indicated that psychopathic traits are uniquely related to high positive affectivity (PA) and low negative affectivity (NA), whereas general impulsive and antisocial behavior is related to low PA and high NA. The current study integrated the emotional reactivity and trait affectivity literatures in assessing for established relations between trait affectivity, emotional reactivity, conduct problems, and CU traits in a clinic-referred sample of children ages 8-17. It was hypothesized that emotional reactivity would moderate the relation between negative trait affectivity and child CU traits. Emotional reactivity was assessed using an emotional lexical decision task and trait affectivity was assessed using the Positive and Negative Scale for Children (PANAS-C) and. The results generally failed to support study hypotheses. However, consistent with prediction, a relation was documented between child conduct problems and low PA/high NA that approached statistical significance (p = .10). Implications of current null findings as well as recommendations for future studies are discussed.

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