TY - JOUR
T1 - Outcomes, moderators, and mediators of empathic-emotion recognition training for complex conduct problems in childhood
AU - Dadds, Mark Richard
AU - Cauchi, Avril Jessica
AU - Wimalaweera, Subodha
AU - Hawes, David John
AU - Brennan, John
PY - 2012/10/30
Y1 - 2012/10/30
N2 - Impairments in emotion recognition skills are a trans-diagnostic indicator of early mental health problems and may be responsive to intervention. We report on a randomized controlled trial of "Emotion-recognition-training" (ERT) versus treatment-as-usual (TAU) with N=195 mixed diagnostic children (mean age 10.52 years) referred for behavioral/emotional problems measured at pre- and 6 months post-treatment. We tested overall outcomes plus moderation and mediation models, whereby diagnostic profile was tested as a moderator of change. ERT had no impact on the group as a whole. Diagnostic status of the child did not moderate outcomes; however, levels of callous-unemotional (CU) traits moderated outcomes such that children with high CU traits responded less well to TAU, while ERT produced significant improvements in affective empathy and conduct problems in these children. Emotion recognition training has potential as an adjunctive intervention specifically for clinically referred children with high CU traits, regardless of their diagnostic status.
AB - Impairments in emotion recognition skills are a trans-diagnostic indicator of early mental health problems and may be responsive to intervention. We report on a randomized controlled trial of "Emotion-recognition-training" (ERT) versus treatment-as-usual (TAU) with N=195 mixed diagnostic children (mean age 10.52 years) referred for behavioral/emotional problems measured at pre- and 6 months post-treatment. We tested overall outcomes plus moderation and mediation models, whereby diagnostic profile was tested as a moderator of change. ERT had no impact on the group as a whole. Diagnostic status of the child did not moderate outcomes; however, levels of callous-unemotional (CU) traits moderated outcomes such that children with high CU traits responded less well to TAU, while ERT produced significant improvements in affective empathy and conduct problems in these children. Emotion recognition training has potential as an adjunctive intervention specifically for clinically referred children with high CU traits, regardless of their diagnostic status.
KW - Callous-unemotional traits
KW - Child psychopathology
KW - Conduct problems
KW - Emotion recognition
KW - Randomized controlled trial
KW - Trans-diagnostic models
UR - http://www.scopus.com/inward/record.url?scp=84869869350&partnerID=8YFLogxK
U2 - 10.1016/j.psychres.2012.04.033
DO - 10.1016/j.psychres.2012.04.033
M3 - Article
C2 - 22703720
AN - SCOPUS:84869869350
SN - 0165-1781
VL - 199
SP - 201
EP - 207
JO - Psychiatry Research
JF - Psychiatry Research
IS - 3
ER -