Correlates of clinic referral for early conduct problems: Variable- and person-oriented approaches

The current study utilized both variable- and person-oriented analyses to e xamine correlates of early disruptive behavior problems. Participants inclu ded 80 preschool boys referred to a child psychiatry clinic and diagnosed w ith oppositional defiant disorder (with or without attention-deficit hypera ctivity disorder) and 80 case-matched normal comparison boys. The study exa mined four domains of correlates: vulnerable child characteristics, poor pa renting practices, insecure attachment, and adverse family ecology. Results indicated that the combination of these factors provided relatively high s ensitivity (81%) and specificity (85%), clearly differentiating referred fr om comparison boys. A dramatic increase in clinic status occurred when thre e or more factors were present, and specific combinations of factors were d ifferentially predictive of conduct problems. However, no correlates were f ound to be either necessary or sufficient for clinic status. By maintaining the integrity of individual cases, person-oriented analyses were able to a nswer different questions than more traditional variable-oriented analyses. Discussion focuses on the value of person-oriented analyses for understand ing heterogeneous clinical groups.