VERBAL DICHOTIC-LISTENING IN BOYS AT RISK FOR BEHAVIOR DISORDERS

Objective: The association between deficits in verbal processing skill s and disruptive psychopathology remains one of the most frequently re plicated findings in all of child psychiatry. This study uses a dichot ic consonant-vowel listening test to examine the potential neural basi s for this association. Method: A series of 87 young boys recruited fr om a sample at risk for disruptive disorders received standardized psy chiatric, neuropsychological, and language skills assessments. Approxi mately 1 year later, these boys received a reassessment of their psych iatric status and a test that assesses the neural basis of language-pr ocessing ability, a dichotic consonant-vowel listening test. Results: Disruptive psychopathology predicted reduced right ear accuracy for di chotic syllables, indicative of a deficit in left hemisphere processin g ability. Deficits in reading and language ability also correlated wi th right ear accuracy for dichotic syllables. Conclusions: Boys with d isruptive behavior disorders, relative to at-risk but nondisruptive bo ys, exhibit a deficit in verbal processing abilities on dichotic liste ning tasks. This deficit in verbal processing ability is also manifest ed as low scores on standardized tests of reading achievement and lang uage comprehension.