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Mother's and children's ADHD genetic risk, household chaos and children's ADHD symptoms: A gene–environment correlation study
Author(s) -
AgnewBlais Jessica C.,
Wertz Jasmin,
Arseneault Louise,
Belsky Daniel W.,
Danese Andrea,
Pingault JeanBaptiste,
Polanczyk Guilherme V.,
Sugden Karen,
Williams Benjamin,
Moffitt Terrie E.
Publication year - 2022
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/jcpp.13659
Subject(s) - attention deficit hyperactivity disorder , longitudinal study , demography , twin study , generation r , cohort study , cohort , correlation , medicine , psychology , developmental psychology , pediatrics , clinical psychology , genetics , biology , heritability , geometry , mathematics , pathology , sociology
Background Chaotic home environments may contribute to children's attention‐deficit hyperactivity disorder (ADHD) symptoms. However, ADHD genetic risk may also influence household chaos. This study investigated whether children in chaotic households had more ADHD symptoms, if mothers and children with higher ADHD genetic risk lived in more chaotic households, and the joint association of genetic risk and household chaos on the longitudinal course of ADHD symptoms across childhood. Methods Participants were mothers and children from the Environmental Risk (E‐Risk) Longitudinal Twin Study, a UK population‐representative birth cohort of 2,232 twins. Children's ADHD symptoms were assessed at ages 5, 7, 10 and 12 years. Household chaos was rated by research workers at ages 7, 10 and 12, and by mother's and twin's self‐report at age 12. Genome‐wide ADHD polygenic risk scores (PRS) were calculated for mothers ( n = 880) and twins ( n = 1,999); of these, n = 871 mothers and n = 1,925 children had information on children's ADHD and household chaos. Results Children in more chaotic households had higher ADHD symptoms. Mothers and children with higher ADHD PRS lived in more chaotic households. Children's ADHD PRS was associated with household chaos over and above mother's PRS, suggesting evocative gene–environment correlation. Children in more chaotic households had higher baseline ADHD symptoms and a slower rate of decline in symptoms. However, sensitivity analyses estimated that gene–environment correlation accounted for a large proportion of the association of household chaos on ADHD symptoms. Conclusions Children's ADHD genetic risk was independently associated with higher levels of household chaos, emphasising the active role of children in shaping their home environment. Our findings suggest that household chaos partly reflects children's genetic risk for ADHD, calling into question whether household chaos directly influences children's core ADHD symptoms. Our findings highlight the importance of considering parent and child genetic risk in relation to apparent environmental exposures.