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Normative and Pathological Obsessive‐compulsive Behavior and Ideation in Childhood: A Question of Timing
Author(s) -
Zohar Ada H.,
Bruno Rotem
Publication year - 1997
Publication title -
journal of child psychology and psychiatry
Language(s) - English
Resource type - Journals
SCImago Journal Rank - 3.652
H-Index - 211
eISSN - 1469-7610
pISSN - 0021-9630
DOI - 10.1111/j.1469-7610.1997.tb01616.x
Subject(s) - psychology , normative , anxiety , ideation , developmental psychology , obsessive compulsive , pathological , el niño , trait , trait anxiety , clinical psychology , psychiatry , pediatrics , medicine , philosophy , epistemology , pathology , computer science , programming language , cognitive science
This study was designed to test whether obsessive‐compulsive behavior declines over development. A cross‐sectional design was used on a large community sample of children. Children in grades four, six, and eight ( N = 1083), 8 to 14 years of age, were administered the Maudsley Obsessive Compulsive Inventory (MOCI) and the Spielberger State Trait Anxiety Scales. Whereas the mean MOCI score was significantly lower in the eighth grade than in the sixth and fourth, there was an elevation of children with very high MOCI scores in the eighth grade. Obsessive ideas and compulsive behaviors that were common for fourth‐grade children were present in only a minority of children in the eighth grade, and were associated with high levels of anxiety. No gender differences were observed for overall obsessive‐compulsive behavior, but checking behavior was higher in boys, and cleaning behavior in girls. State anxiety was higher in girls than in boys, and was also higher in older than in younger children.