Journal articles
Reardon T, Dodd H, Hill C, Jasper B, Lawrence PJ, Morgan F, Rapee RM, Ukoumunne O, Violato M, Davey E, et al (In Press). Minimising Young Children’s Anxiety through Schools (MY-CATS): Protocol for a cluster randomised controlled trial to evaluate the effectiveness and cost-effectiveness of an online parent-led intervention compared with usual school practice for young children identified as at-risk for anxiety disorders. Trials
Jones B, Reardon T, Creswell C, Dodd H, Hill C, Jasper B, Lawrence P, Morgan F, Rapee R, Violato M, et al (In Press). Minimising Young Children’s Anxiety through Schools (MY-CATS): Statistical Analysis Plan for a Cluster Randomised Controlled Trial to evaluate the effectiveness and cost-effectiveness of an online parent-led intervention compared with usual school practice for young children identified as at-risk for anxiety disorders. Trials
Oliver BE, Nesbit RJ, McCloy R, Harvey K, Dodd HF (2023). Adventurous play for a healthy childhood: Facilitators and barriers identified by parents in Britain. Social Science & Medicine, 323, 115828-115828.
Nesbit RJ, Harvey K, Parveen S, Dodd HF (2023). Adventurous play in schools: the parent perspective.
Children & Society,
37(6), 2102-2122.
Abstract:
Adventurous play in schools: the parent perspective
AbstractAdventurous play (play that is exciting and thrilling, where children take age‐appropriate risks, for example climbing trees and jumping from rocks) is increasingly being recognised as beneficial for child health and development. Despite this, children's opportunities for and engagement in this type of play have declined in recent decades. Break times in schools may provide an ideal opportunity to provide adventurous play opportunities for all children. Recent work has identified myriad factors that help and hinder schools in offering adventurous play opportunities, but parent perspectives have largely been absent. Through one‐to‐one semistructured qualitative interviews, this study aimed at capture parents' perspectives on adventurous play happening in schools and what they perceive as the key barriers to and facilitators of adventurous play in schools. The findings were analysed using reflective thematic analysis. Five themes were identified: Needs, Schools as Gatekeepers, Risks and Benefits, Societal Constraints and Individual Differences. Findings are discussed with reference to parental support for adventurous play, as well as parent and school level needs that should be addressed if barriers that may hinder adventurous play opportunities in school are to be overcome.
Abstract.
Rayson H, Ryan ZJ, Dodd HF (2023). Behavioural inhibition and early neural processing of happy and angry faces interact to predict anxiety: a longitudinal ERP study. Developmental Cognitive Neuroscience, 60
Skripkauskaite S, Creswell C, Shum A, Pearcey S, Lawrence P, Dodd H, Waite P (2023). Changes in UK parental mental health symptoms over 10 months of the COVID‐19 pandemic.
JCPP Advances,
3(2).
Abstract:
Changes in UK parental mental health symptoms over 10 months of the COVID‐19 pandemic
AbstractBackgroundThe threats to health, associated restrictions and economic consequences of the COVID‐19 pandemic have been linked to increases in mental health difficulties for many. Parents, in particular, have experienced many challenges such as having to combine work with home‐schooling their children and other caring responsibilities. Yet, it remains unclear how parental mental health has changed throughout the pandemic or what factors may have mitigated or compounded the impact of the pandemic on parents' mental health.MethodsWe examined monthly survey data from two linked UK‐based longitudinal studies: COVID‐19: Supporting Parents, Adolescents and Children during Epidemics' (Co‐SPACE) and COVID‐19: Supporting Parents and Young Children during Epidemics' (Co‐SPYCE). Data from 5576 parents/carers of 2–17‐year‐old children collected between April 2020 and January 2021 was analysed using mixed‐effect modelling and latent class growth (mixture) modelling.ResultsParental stress and depression, but not anxiety, were higher during the periods of restrictions. This pattern was most pronounced for parents with primary‐school‐aged children, those that worked at home or had other adults in the household. Being younger, reporting secondary or below education, working out of home, having secondary‐school‐aged children or children with special education needs (SEN)/neurodevelopmental disorders (ND) further moderated whether, how and when parental mental health symptoms changed. Although around three quarters of parents reported consistently low mental health symptoms, a substantial minority reported consistently high or increasing symptoms of anxiety, stress and depression. The latter were more likely to be parents who were younger than average, were a single adult in the household, had a pre‐existing mental health diagnosis or had a child with special educational needs or a ND.ConclusionsThese findings emphasise how different personal circumstances and pre‐existing inequalities shaped how parents were affected by this unprecedented global pandemic and highlight the need for support and consideration to meet the needs of families in the future.
Abstract.
Lawrence PJ, Skripkauskaite S, Shum A, Waite P, Dodd H (2023). Changes in UK pre‐schooler's mental health symptoms over the first year of the COVID‐19 pandemic: Data from Co‐SPYCE study.
JCPP Advances,
3(2).
Abstract:
Changes in UK pre‐schooler's mental health symptoms over the first year of the COVID‐19 pandemic: Data from Co‐SPYCE study
AbstractBackgroundThe COVID‐19 pandemic caused significant disruption to the lives of children and their families. Pre‐school children may have been particularly vulnerable to the effects of the pandemic, with the closure of childcare facilities, playgrounds, playcentres and parent and toddler groups limiting their opportunities for social interaction at a crucial stage of development. Additionally, for parents working from home, caring for pre‐school aged children who require high levels of support and care, was likely challenging. We conducted an intensive longitudinal, but not nationally representative, study to examine trajectories of pre‐schoolers’ mental symptoms in the United Kingdom during the first year of the COVID‐19 pandemic.MethodsUK‐based parents and carers (n = 1520) of pre‐school‐aged children (2–4 years) completed monthly online surveys about their pre‐schoolers’ mental health between April 2020 and March 2021. The survey examined changes in children's emotional symptoms, conduct problems and hyperactivity/inattention.ResultsIn our final mixed‐effects models, our predictors (fixed effects) accounted for 5% of the variance in each of conduct problems, emotional symptoms and hyperactivity/inattention symptoms scores, and the combined random and fixed effects accounted for between 64% and 73% of the variance. Pre‐schoolers’ emotional problems and hyperactivity/inattention symptoms declined from April through summer 2020 and then increased again during the autumn and winter 2020/2021 as lockdowns were re‐introduced. Pre‐schoolers who attended childcare showed greater decline in symptom severity than those who did not. Older children, compared to younger, showed greater lability of emotion symptom severity. Attending childcare predicted lower symptom severity across all three domains of conduct problems, emotional symptoms, and hyperactivity/inattention, while the opposite pattern was observed for children whose parent had a mental health problem.ConclusionsOur findings reinforce the importance of examining pre‐schoolers’ mental health in the context of micro and macro‐level factors. Interventions focussing on family factors such as parent mental health, as well as continued provision of childcare, may have most potential to mitigate the impact of COVID‐19 on young children's mental health.
Abstract.
Dodd HF, Nesbit RJ, FitzGibbon L (2023). Child's Play: Examining the Association Between Time Spent Playing and Child Mental Health.
Child Psychiatry Hum Dev,
54(6), 1678-1686.
Abstract:
Child's Play: Examining the Association Between Time Spent Playing and Child Mental Health.
It is theorised that adventurous play offers learning opportunities that help to prevent mental health problems in children. In this study, data from two samples is used to examine associations between the time that children aged 5-11 years spent playing adventurously and their mental health. For comparison, time spent playing unadventurously and time spent playing outdoors are also examined. Study 1 includes a sample of 417 parents, Study 2 includes data from a nationally representative sample of 1919 parents. Small, significant associations between adventurous play and internalising problems, as well as positive affect during the first UK-wide Covid-19 lockdown, were found; children who spend more time playing adventurously had fewer internalising problems and more positive affect during the Covid-19 lockdown. Study 2 showed that these associations were stronger for children from lower income families than for children from higher income families. The results align with theoretical hypotheses about adventurous play.
Abstract.
Author URL.
Morriss J, Goh K, Hirsch CR, Dodd HF (2023). Intolerance of uncertainty heightens negative emotional states and dampens positive emotional states. Frontiers in Psychiatry, 14
Rodriguez-Sobstel C, Wake S, Dodd H, McSorley E, van Reekum CM, Morriss J (2023). Shifty Eyes: the Impact of Intolerance of Uncertainty on Gaze Behaviour During Threat Conditioning.
Collabra: Psychology,
9(1).
Abstract:
Shifty Eyes: the Impact of Intolerance of Uncertainty on Gaze Behaviour During Threat Conditioning
Previous research has demonstrated that individuals with high levels of Intolerance of Uncertainty (IU) have difficulty updating threat associations to safety associations. Notably, prior research has focused on measuring IU-related differences in threat and safety learning using arousal-based measures such as skin conductance response. Here we assessed whether IU-related differences in threat and safety learning could be captured using eye-tracking metrics linked with gaze behaviours such as dwelling and scanning. Participants (N = 144) completed self-report questionnaires assessing levels of IU and trait anxiety. Eye movements were then recorded during each conditioning phase: acquisition, extinction learning, and extinction retention. Fixation count and fixation duration served as indices of conditioned responding. Patterns of threat and safety learning typically reported for physiology and self-report were observed for the fixation count and fixation duration metrics during acquisition and to some extent in extinction learning, but not for extinction retention. There was little evidence for specific associations between IU and disrupted safety learning (e.g. greater differential responses to the threat vs. safe cues during extinction learning and retention). While there was tentative evidence that IU was associated with shorter fixation durations (e.g. scanning) to threat vs. safe cues during extinction retention, this effect did not remain after controlling for trait anxiety. IU and trait anxiety similarly predicted greater fixation count and shorter fixation durations overall during extinction learning, and greater fixation count overall during extinction retention. IU further predicted shorter fixation durations overall during extinction retention. However, the only IU-based effect that remained significant after controlling for trait anxiety was that of fixation duration overall during threat extinction learning. Our results inform models of anxiety, particularly in relation to how individual differences modulate gaze behaviour during threat conditioning.
Abstract.
Nesbit R, FitzGibbon L, Dodd H (2023). Street play, wellbeing and mental health from childhood into adulthood. European Psychiatry, 66(Suppl 1), s991-s991.
Rendall S, Dodd H, Harvey K (2022). Controlling feeding practices moderate the relationship between emotionality and food fussiness in young children.
Appetite,
178Abstract:
Controlling feeding practices moderate the relationship between emotionality and food fussiness in young children.
Emotional child temperament has consistently been found to be related to food fussiness. One factor that may exacerbate or reduce the risk conferred by children's emotionality is parent feeding practices during mealtimes. Specifically, the use of controlling feeding practices aimed at increasing food consumption may particularly affect children with an emotional temperament. The primary aim of this study was to investigate whether the association between child food fussiness and higher emotionality found in previous studies is moderated by maternal use of controlling feeding practices, namely verbal pressure, physical prompts and food rewards. Sixty-seven mother-child dyads were video-recorded during a meal in their home and mothers' use of controlling feeding practices during this meal were coded. Mothers completed a questionnaire assessing child temperament. Moderation analyses revealed that maternal use of verbal pressure and physical prompts moderated the relationship between higher emotionality and food fussiness, but maternal use of food rewards did not. These results indicate that the use of verbal pressure and physical prompts may have a particularly negative influence on fussy eating for children higher in emotionality.
Abstract.
Author URL.
Dodd HF, FitzGibbon L, Watson BE, Nesbit RJ (2022). Correction: Dodd et al. Children's Play and Independent Mobility in 2020: Results from the British Children's Play Survey. Int. J. Environ. Hum. Health 2021, 18, 4334.
Int J Environ Res Public Health,
19(15).
Abstract:
Correction: Dodd et al. Children's Play and Independent Mobility in 2020: Results from the British Children's Play Survey. Int. J. Environ. Hum. Health 2021, 18, 4334.
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Author URL.
Wake S, Dodd H, Morriss J (2022). Intolerance of uncertainty and novelty facilitated extinction: the impact of reinforcement schedule.
Br J Psychol,
113(2), 353-369.
Abstract:
Intolerance of uncertainty and novelty facilitated extinction: the impact of reinforcement schedule.
Individuals who score high in intolerance of uncertainty (IU) display reduced threat extinction. Recently, it was shown that replacing threat associations with novel associations during extinction learning (i.e. presenting a novel tone 100% of the time) can promote threat extinction retention in individuals with high IU. This novelty facilitated extinction (NFE) effect could be driven by the tone's novelty or reliability. Here, we sought to address this question by adjusting the reliability of the novel tone (i.e. the reinforcement rate) during NFE. We measured skin conductance response during an associative learning task in which participants (n = 92) were assigned to one of three experimental groups: standard extinction, NFE 100% reinforcement, or NFE 50% reinforcement. For standard extinction, compared to NFE 100% and 50% reinforcement groups, we observed a trend for greater recovery of the conditioned response during extinction retention. Individuals with high IU relative to low IU in the standard extinction group demonstrated a larger recovery of the conditioned response during extinction retention. These findings tentatively suggest that NFE effects are driven by the novelty rather than the reliability of the new stimulus. The implications of these findings for translational and clinical research in anxiety disorder pathology are discussed.
Abstract.
Author URL.
Vogt J, Dodd HF, Parker A, Duffield F, Sakaki M (2022). Now you see it, now you don’t: Relevance of threat enhances social anxiety-linked attentional bias to angry faces, but relevance of neutral information attenuates it. PLOS ONE, 17(7).
Oliver BE, Nesbit RJ, McCloy R, Harvey K, Dodd HF (2022). Parent perceived barriers and facilitators of children’s adventurous play in Britain: a framework analysis.
BMC Public Health,
22(1).
Abstract:
Parent perceived barriers and facilitators of children’s adventurous play in Britain: a framework analysis
Abstract
. Background
. From a public health perspective there is growing interest in children’s play, including play involving risk and adventure, in relation to children’s physical and mental health. Regarding mental health, it is theorised that adventurous play, where children experience thrilling, exciting emotions, offers important learning opportunities that prepare children for dealing with uncertainty and help prevent anxiety. Despite these benefits, adventurous play has decreased substantially within a generation. Parents have a key role in facilitating or limiting children’s opportunities for adventurous play, but research identifying the barriers and facilitators parents perceive in relation to adventurous play is scarce. The present study therefore examined the barriers to and facilitators of adventurous play as perceived by parents of school-aged children in Britain.
.
. Methods
. This study analysed data from a subsample of parents in Britain (n = 377) who participated in the nationally representative British Children’s Play Survey. Parents responded to two open-ended questions pertaining to the barriers to and facilitators of children’s adventurous play. Responses were analysed using a qualitative Framework Analysis, an approach suitable for managing large datasets with specific research questions.
.
. Results
. Four framework categories were identified: Social Environment; Physical Environment; Risk of Injury; Child Factors. Social Environment included barriers and facilitators related to parents, family and peers, as well as community and society. Dominant themes within the Social Environment related to perceptions about the certainty of child safety, such as supervision and the safety of society. Beliefs about the benefits of adventurous play for development and well-being were also important in the Social Environment. Physical Environment factors focused on safety and practical issues. Risk of Injury captured concerns about children being injured during play. Child Factors included child attributes, such as play preference, developmental ability and trait-like characteristics.
.
. Conclusions
. Improved understanding of what influences parent perceptions of adventurous play can inform public health interventions designed to improve children’s opportunities for and engagement in adventurous play, with a view to promote children’s physical and mental health.
.
Abstract.
Ooi J, Dodd HF, Meiser-Stedman R, Hudson JL, Bridges J, Pass L (2022). The efficacy of interventions for behaviourally inhibited preschool-aged children: a meta-analysis. Journal of Anxiety Disorders, 88, 102559-102559.
Morriss J, Tupitsa E, Dodd HF, Hirsch CR (2022). Uncertainty Makes Me Emotional: Uncertainty as an Elicitor and Modulator of Emotional States. Frontiers in Psychology, 13
Dodd HF, Lester KJ (2021). Adventurous Play as a Mechanism for Reducing Risk for Childhood Anxiety: a Conceptual Model.
CLINICAL CHILD AND FAMILY PSYCHOLOGY REVIEW,
24(1), 164-181.
Author URL.
Dodd HF, Fitzgibbon L, Watson BE, Nesbit RJ (2021). Children’s play and independent mobility in 2020: Results from the british children’s play survey.
International Journal of Environmental Research and Public Health,
18(8).
Abstract:
Children’s play and independent mobility in 2020: Results from the british children’s play survey
The British Children’s Play Survey was conducted in April 2020 with a nationally representative sample of 1919 parents/caregivers with a child aged 5–11 years. Respondents completed a range of measures focused on children’s play, independent mobility and adult tolerance of and attitudes towards risk in play. The results show that, averaged across the year, children play for around 3 h per day, with around half of children’s play happening outdoors. Away from home, the most common places for children to play are playgrounds and green spaces. The most adventurous places for play were green spaces and indoor play centres. A significant difference was found between the age that children were reported to be allowed out alone (10.74 years; SD = 2.20 years) and the age that their parents/caregivers reported they had been allowed out alone (8.91 years; SD = 2.31 years). A range of socio-demographic factors were associated with children’s play. There was little evidence that geographical location predicted children’s play, but it was more important for independent mobility. Further, when parents/caregivers had more positive attitudes around children’s risk-taking in play, children spent more time playing and were allowed to be out of the house independently at a younger age.
Abstract.
Dodd HF, Nesbit RJ, Maratchi LR (2021). Development and evaluation of a new measure of children’s play: the Children’s Play Scale (CPS).
BMC Public Health,
21(1).
Abstract:
Development and evaluation of a new measure of children’s play: the Children’s Play Scale (CPS)
Background: There is increasing recognition of the importance of children’s play from a public health perspective, given the links between play and children’s physical and mental health. The present research aimed to develop and evaluate a new parent-report questionnaire that measures the time children spend playing across a range of places and includes a supplement to evaluate how adventurously children play. Methods: the questionnaire was developed with input from a diverse group of parents and experts in children’s play. It was designed to yield a range of metrics including time spent playing per year, time spent playing outside, time spent playing in nature and level of adventurous play. The reliability of the questionnaire was then evaluated with 245 parents (149 mothers, 96 fathers) of 154 children aged 5–11 years. All participants completed the measure at time 1. At time 2, an average of 20 days later, 184 parents (111 mothers and 73 fathers) of 99 children completed the measure again. Results: Cross-informant agreement, evaluated using Concordance Correlation Coefficients (CCCs), ranged from 0.36 to 0.51. These fall in the poor to moderate range and are largely comparable to cross-informant agreement on other measures. Test-retest reliability for mothers was good (range 0.67–0.76) for time spent playing metrics. For fathers, test-retest reliability was lower (range 0.39–0.63). For both parents the average level of adventurous play variable had relatively poor test retest reliability (mothers = 0.49, fathers = 0.42). This variable also showed a significant increase from time 1 to time 2. This instability over time may be due to the timing of the research in relation to the Covid-19 lockdown and associated shifts in risk perception. Conclusions: the measure will be of value in future research focusing on the public health benefits and correlates of children’s play as well as researchers interested in children’s outdoor play and play in nature specifically. The development of the measure in collaboration with parents and experts in children’s play is a significant strength. It will be of value for future research to further validate the measure against play diaries or activity monitors.
Abstract.
Osmanağaoğlu N, Creswell C, Dodd HF (2021). Development of a behavioural measure of Intolerance of Uncertainty in preadolescent children: Adaptation of the beads task.
Journal of Behavior Therapy and Experimental Psychiatry,
72Abstract:
Development of a behavioural measure of Intolerance of Uncertainty in preadolescent children: Adaptation of the beads task
Background and objectives: Intolerance of Uncertainty (IU) may be important for the development and maintenance of anxiety disorders but research with preadolescent children has relied entirely on questionnaire measures to assess IU. Here we aimed to develop a behavioural measure of IU that was appropriate for preadolescent children by adapting the beads task (Jacoby, Abramowitz, Buck, & Fabricant, 2014). Methods: Participants were 51 typically developing children (26 female; 7–11 years). We examined first whether preadolescent participants could understand and complete the task, then how participants responded to varying levels of uncertainty. We also conducted exploratory analyses regarding associations between task measures and questionnaire measures of IU, anxiety and worry. Results: Overall, the adapted Beads Task appears suitable for preadolescent children and is able to capture reactions to uncertainty. At least some of these reactions are related to questionnaire measures of IU and anxiety. Implications and areas for future research are discussed to provide insights into how behavioural tasks examining responses to uncertainty can improve our understanding of IU. Limitations: the sample size was relatively small. There was no control task or condition without uncertainty. Conclusions: Overall, the adapted Beads Task appears suitable for preadolescent children and is able to capture reactions to uncertainty. This type of behavioural task would be appropriate for use in future research that aims to improve our understanding of IU in children.
Abstract.
Osmanağaoğlu N, Creswell C, Snuggs S, Stuijfzand S, Dodd HF (2021). Evaluating the psychometric properties of the intolerance of uncertainty scale for children in a preadolescent sample.
Journal of Anxiety Disorders,
77Abstract:
Evaluating the psychometric properties of the intolerance of uncertainty scale for children in a preadolescent sample
Intolerance of Uncertainty (IU) is a dispositional tendency to react negatively to uncertainty. The Intolerance of Uncertainty Scale for Children (IUS-C) is designed to measure IU in children but there has been limited investigation into the psychometric properties of this scale. Using data from 227 preadolescent children and 204 parents, we examined (a) readability and whether any items were difficult to understand for children and parents, (b) factor structure, (c) test-retest reliability, and (d) the agreement between child and parent forms of the IUS-C. Results revealed that the reading age of the IUS-C may be too high for preadolescent children and that both children and parents found some items difficult to understand. Model fit with the full IUS-C was not adequate for either parent or child forms. For both forms, selecting items aligned with the IUS-12 led to adequate model fit. For both child-report and parent-report, a one-factor model was supported. Test-retest reliability of total score for all versions was high over a 2-week period (child form: ICC =.82 for 27 item and ICC =.73 for 12 items; parent form: ICC =.87 for 27 item and ICC =.86 for 12 item) but agreement between child and parent forms was consistently poor (r =.24 for 27 item and r =.29 for 12 item). Overall, the results suggest that IUS-C-12 is most appropriate for preadolescent children and their parents. The reading age remains slightly high for preadolescent children so it may be beneficial for future research to consider developing a child-report version with lower reading age.
Abstract.
Wake S, Morriss J, Johnstone T, van Reekum CM, Dodd H (2021). Intolerance of uncertainty, and not social anxiety, is associated with compromised extinction of social threat.
Behaviour Research and Therapy,
139Abstract:
Intolerance of uncertainty, and not social anxiety, is associated with compromised extinction of social threat
Extinction-resistant threat is regarded as a central hallmark of pathological anxiety. However, it remains relatively under-studied in social anxiety. Here we sought to determine whether self-reported trait social anxiety is associated with compromised threat extinction learning and retention. We tested this hypothesis within two separate, socially relevant conditioning studies. In the first experiment, a Selective Extinction Through Cognitive Evaluation (SECE) paradigm was used, which included a cognitive component during the extinction phase, while experiment 2 used a traditional threat extinction paradigm. Skin conductance responses and subjective ratings of anxiety (experiment 1 and 2) and expectancy (experiment 2) were collected across both experiments. The findings of both studies demonstrated no effect of social anxiety on extinction learning or retention. Instead, results from experiment 1 indicated that individual differences in Intolerance of Uncertainty (IU) were associated with the ability to use contextual cues to decrease a conditioned response during SECE. However, during extinction retention, high IU predicted greater generalisation across context cues. Findings of experiment 2 revealed that higher IU was associated with impaired extinction learning and retention. The results from both studies suggest that compromised threat extinction is likely to be a characteristic of high levels of IU and not social anxiety.
Abstract.
Nesbit RJ, Bagnall CL, Harvey K, Dodd HF (2021). Perceived Barriers and Facilitators of Adventurous Play in Schools: a Qualitative Systematic Review.
CHILDREN-BASEL,
8(8).
Author URL.
Pearcey S, Gordon K, Chakrabarti B, Dodd H, Halldorsson B, Creswell C (2021). Research Review: the relationship between social anxiety and social cognition in children and adolescents: a systematic review and meta-analysis.
JOURNAL OF CHILD PSYCHOLOGY AND PSYCHIATRY,
62(7), 805-821.
Author URL.
Doyle FL, Dodd HF, Morris TM, Lazarus RS, Byrow Y, Hudson JL (2021). Targeting risk factors for inhibited preschool children: an anxiety prevention program.
Behaviour Research and Therapy,
147Abstract:
Targeting risk factors for inhibited preschool children: an anxiety prevention program
Objective: Children with a behaviorally inhibited temperament during early childhood have been shown to have an increased risk for developing anxiety disorders. This study evaluated the efficacy of an anxiety prevention program aimed at reducing the risk of anxiety in behaviorally inhibited preschool children. Method: Participants were 86 children aged 41–57 months and their mothers. Children were selected if their mothers reported high levels of child behavioral inhibition on a screening measure. Participants were randomly allocated to a nine-session intervention or a waitlist control condition. Mothers and children both participated in the intervention. Results. At follow-up, the intervention group had significantly fewer clinician-rated child anxiety disorders and fewer mother-reported child anxiety symptoms than at baseline but this change was not significantly different to the change seen in the waitlist control group. Conclusions: on average, across the course of the study, anxiety decreased in all children irrespective of group. A number of potential reasons for this are discussed along with implications for research and clinical practice.
Abstract.
Wake S, van Reekum CM, Dodd H (2021). The effect of social anxiety on the acquisition and extinction of low-cost avoidance.
Behav Res Ther,
146Abstract:
The effect of social anxiety on the acquisition and extinction of low-cost avoidance.
Excessive avoidance and safety behaviours are a hallmark feature of social anxiety disorder. However, the conditioning and extinction of avoidance behaviour in social anxiety is understudied. Here, we examined the effect of individual differences in social anxiety on low-cost operant avoidance conditioning and extinction in 80 female participants. We employed an avoidance conditioning and extinction paradigm and measured skin conductance response, threat expectancy ratings and avoidance behaviour throughout the task. Findings demonstrated that elevated levels of social anxiety predicted the generalisation of conditioned avoidance responses across to safety cues during avoidance conditioning. When the opportunity to avoid was returned after the threat extinction phase, elevated social anxiety was associated with increased avoidance behaviour to threat cues. The results suggest that compromised extinction of avoidance behaviour is a characteristic of social anxiety and supports the strategy of minimising avoidance and safety behaviours during exposure therapy for the treatment of social anxiety disorder. Future research should utilise the avoidance conditioning and extinction paradigm as a laboratory model for clinical research to investigate how, and under what circumstances, the extinction of avoidance and safety behaviours can be improved for individuals high in social anxiety.
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Author URL.
Stuijfzand S, Stuijfzand B, Reynolds S, Dodd H (2020). Anxiety-Related Attention Bias in Four- to Eight-Year-Olds: an Eye-Tracking Study.
Behav Sci (Basel),
10(12).
Abstract:
Anxiety-Related Attention Bias in Four- to Eight-Year-Olds: an Eye-Tracking Study.
(1) Background: There is evidence of an attention bias-anxiety relationship in children, but lack of appropriate methods has limited the number of studies with children younger than eight years old. This study used eye tracking as a measure of overt attention in young children. The aim of this study was to assess anxiety-related attention bias in children aged four to eight years. Age was considered a moderator, and the influence of effortful control was investigated. (2) Method: a community sample of 104 children was shown pairs of happy-neutral and angry-neutral faces. Growth curve analyses were used to examine patterns of gaze over time. (3) Results: Analyses revealed moderation by age and anxiety, with distinct patterns of anxiety-related biases seen in different age groups in the angry-neutral face trials. Effortful control did not account for age-related effects. (4) Conclusions: the results support a moderation model of the development of anxiety in children.
Abstract.
Author URL.
Rendall S, Dodd H, Harvey K (2020). Behavioural validation of a parent-report measure of child food fussiness.
APPETITE,
154 Author URL.
Morriss J, Wake S, Lindner M, McSorley E, Dodd H (2020). How many times do I need to see to believe? the impact of intolerance of uncertainty and exposure experience on safety-learning and retention in young adults.
International Journal of Psychophysiology,
153, 8-17.
Abstract:
How many times do I need to see to believe? the impact of intolerance of uncertainty and exposure experience on safety-learning and retention in young adults
Individuals who score high in self-reported Intolerance of Uncertainty (IU) display difficulties updating threat associations to safe associations. Here we sought to determine whether individuals who score high in IU can learn and retain new safety associations if given more exposure. We recorded skin conductance response, pupil dilation and expectancy ratings during an associative threat learning task with acquisition, same-day extinction and next-day extinction phases. Participants (n = 144) were assigned to either a regular exposure (32 trials of same-day and next-day extinction) or extended exposure condition (48 trials of same-day and next-day extinction). We failed to replicate previous work showing that IU is associated with poorer safety-learning indexed via SCR. We found preliminary evidence for promoted safety-retention in individuals with higher Inhibitory IU in the extended exposure condition, relative to individuals with higher Inhibitory IU in the regular exposure condition, indexed via SCR. These findings further our current understanding of the role of IU in safety-learning and -retention, informing models of IU and exposure-based treatments.
Abstract.
Littler JAB, Haffey A, Wake S, Dodd HF (2020). The Effect of Anonymous Computer-Mediated Communication on State Anxiety: an Experimental Study.
CYBERPSYCHOLOGY BEHAVIOR AND SOCIAL NETWORKING,
23(12), 823-828.
Author URL.
Wake S, van Reekum CM, Dodd H, Morriss J (2020). The Impact of Intolerance of Uncertainty and Cognitive Behavioural Instructions on Safety Learning.
COGNITIVE THERAPY AND RESEARCH,
44(5), 931-942.
Author URL.
Dodd HF, Rayson H, Ryan Z, Bishop C, Parsons S, Stuijfzand B (2020). Trajectories of Anxiety When Children Start School: the Role of Behavioral Inhibition and Attention Bias to Angry and Happy Faces.
JOURNAL OF ABNORMAL PSYCHOLOGY,
129(7), 701-712.
Author URL.
Morriss J, Biagi N, Dodd H (2020). Your guess is as good as mine: a registered report assessing physiological markers of fear and anxiety to the unknown in individuals with varying levels of intolerance of uncertainty.
INTERNATIONAL JOURNAL OF PSYCHOPHYSIOLOGY,
156, 93-104.
Author URL.
Hudson JL, Murayama K, Meteyard L, Morris T, Dodd HF (2019). Early Childhood Predictors of Anxiety in Early Adolescence.
Journal of Abnormal Child Psychology,
47(7), 1121-1133.
Abstract:
Early Childhood Predictors of Anxiety in Early Adolescence
This longitudinal study examined a multitude of early childhood predictors of anxiety symptoms and disorders over an 8-year period. The purpose of the study was to identify early life predictors of anxiety across childhood and early adolescence in a sample of at-risk children. The sample included 202 preschool children initially identified as behaviorally inhibited or uninhibited between the ages of 3 years 2 months and 4 years 5 months. Temperament and familial environment variables were assessed using observation and parent report at baseline. Anxiety symptoms and disorders were assessed using questionnaires and diagnostic interviews at baseline (age 4), and at age 6, 9 and 12 years. In line with our hypotheses, the findings showed that preschool children were more likely to experience anxiety symptoms and disorders over time i) when the child was inhibited, ii) when there was a history of maternal anxiety disorders or iii) when mothers displayed high levels of overinvolvement. Further, the study identified a significant interaction effect between temperament and maternal overvinvolvement such that behaviorally inhibited preschoolers had higher anxiety symptoms at age 12, only in the presence of maternal overinvolvement at age 4. The increased risk of anxiety in inhibited children was mitigated when mothers demonstrated low levels of overinvolvement at age 4. This study provides evidence of both additive and interactive effects of temperament and family environment on the development of anxiety and provides important information for the identification of families who will most likely benefit from targeted early intervention.
Abstract.
Stuijfzand S, Chakrabarti B, Reynolds S, Dodd HF (2019). Look out captain, I hear an ambiguous alien! a study of interpretation bias and anxiety in young children.
Behaviour Research and Therapy,
121Abstract:
Look out captain, I hear an ambiguous alien! a study of interpretation bias and anxiety in young children
There is convincing evidence that anxious children and adolescents are biased to interpret ambiguity in a negative way (Stuijfzand, Creswell, Field, Pearcey, & Dodd, 2017). However, little research examines interpretation bias in children under eight years. This is due to existing measures of interpretation bias being inappropriate for young children. Consequently, we aimed to develop a new interpretation bias task for young children using tones. Children learnt to associate high tones with a ‘happy alien’ and low tones with an ‘angry alien’. They were then asked to classify tones from the middle of the frequency range (ambiguous tones) as ‘happy’ or ‘angry’. Corrugator muscle activity was recorded alongside behavioural responses. A community sample of 110 children aged 4–8 years, split into high and low anxious groups, completed the task. High anxious children were more likely to interpret the ambiguous tones as negative but this effect was small and only apparent after controlling for developmental factors. Corrugator activity aligned with behavioural responses for trained but not ambiguous tones. This is the first study to assess interpretation bias in young children using behavioural and physiological measures. Results indicate the task is developmentally appropriate and has potential utility for future research.
Abstract.
Pearcey S, Alkozei A, Chakrabarti B, Dodd H, Murayama K, Stuijfzand S, Creswell C (2018). Do clinically anxious children cluster according to their expression of factors that maintain child anxiety?.
JOURNAL OF AFFECTIVE DISORDERS,
229, 469-476.
Author URL.
Osmanağaoğlu N, Creswell C, Dodd HF (2018). Intolerance of Uncertainty, anxiety, and worry in children and adolescents: a meta-analysis.
Journal of Affective Disorders,
225, 80-90.
Abstract:
Intolerance of Uncertainty, anxiety, and worry in children and adolescents: a meta-analysis
Background Intolerance of uncertainty (IU) has been implicated in the development and maintenance of worry and anxiety in adults and there is an increasing interest in the role that IU may play in anxiety and worry in children and adolescents. Method We conducted a systematic review and meta-analysis to summarize existing research on IU with regard to anxiety and worry in young people, and to provide a context for considering future directions in this area of research. The systematic review yielded 31 studies that investigated the association of IU with either anxiety or worry in children and adolescents. Results the meta-analysis showed that IU accounted for 36.00% of the variance in anxiety and 39.69% in worry. Due to the low number of studies and methodological factors, examination of potential moderators was limited; and of those we were able to examine, none were significant moderators of either association. Most studies relied on questionnaire measures of IU, anxiety, and worry; all studies except one were cross-sectional and the majority of the studies were with community samples. Limitations the inclusion of eligible studies was limited to studies published in English that focus on typically developing children. Conclusions There is a strong association between IU and both anxiety and worry in young people therefore IU may be a relevant construct to target in treatment. To extend the existing literature, future research should incorporate longitudinal and experimental designs, and include samples of young people who have a range of anxiety disorders.
Abstract.
Stuijfzand S, Creswell C, Field AP, Pearcey S, Dodd H (2018). Research Review: is anxiety associated with negative interpretations of ambiguity in children and adolescents? a systematic review and meta-analysis.
JOURNAL OF CHILD PSYCHOLOGY AND PSYCHIATRY,
59(11), 1127-1142.
Author URL.
Majdandžić M, Lazarus RS, Oort FJ, van der Sluis C, Dodd HF, Morris TM, de Vente W, Byrow Y, Hudson JL, Bögels SM, et al (2018). The Structure of Challenging Parenting Behavior and Associations with Anxiety in Dutch and Australian Children.
Journal of Clinical Child and Adolescent Psychology,
47(2), 282-295.
Abstract:
The Structure of Challenging Parenting Behavior and Associations with Anxiety in Dutch and Australian Children
Challenging parenting behavior (CPB), a novel construct involving active physical and verbal behaviors that encourage children to push their limits, has been identified as a potential buffer against child anxiety. This study aimed to (a) evaluate the measurement invariance of the Challenging Parenting Behavior Questionnaire (CPBQ4-6) across Dutch and Australian mothers and fathers of preschoolers, (b) examine differences in levels of CPB across mothers and fathers and across countries, and (c) examine whether parents’ CPB predicts less child anxiety symptoms and disorders. Participants were 312 families—146 Dutch and 166 Australian—with their 3- to 4-year-old child (55.8% girls). Fathers’ and mothers’ CPB was measured using the CPBQ4-6, and child anxiety symptoms and presence of anxiety disorders were assessed using maternal reports. Multigroup confirmatory factor analyses revealed equivalence of factor structure and factor loadings (all significant) of the CPBQ4-6 across mothers and fathers and across countries. Evidence of partial scalar invariance indicated that the groups differed on some subscales of the CPBQ4-6. Australian mothers scored lower on the CPB factor than Australian fathers and Dutch parents. Structural equation models showed that CPB predicted fewer child anxiety symptoms and anxiety disorders for all groups. The study confirms that the CPBQ4-6 is appropriate for use with Dutch and Australian parents of preschool-age children and identifies CPB as a multifaceted and coherent construct. The negative relations between CPB and child anxiety suggest that CPB has a protective role in childhood anxiety and is important to examine in future research and interventions.
Abstract.
Rendall S, Harvey K, Dodd H (2018). The influence of child temperament, maternal core beliefs, maternal self-esteem and maternal psychopathologic symptoms on the development of fussy eating. Appetite, 123
Dodd HF, Vogt J, Turkileri N, Notebaert L (2017). Task relevance of emotional information affects anxiety-linked attention bias in visual search.
BIOLOGICAL PSYCHOLOGY,
122, 13-20.
Author URL.
Pass L, Mastroyannopoulou K, Coker S, Murray L, Dodd H (2017). Verbal Information Transfer in Real-Life: When Mothers Worry About Their Child Starting School.
JOURNAL OF CHILD AND FAMILY STUDIES,
26(8), 2324-2334.
Author URL.
Stuijfzand S, Dodd HF (2017). Young children have social worries too: Validation of a brief parent report measure of social worries in children aged 4–8 years.
Journal of Anxiety Disorders,
50, 87-93.
Abstract:
Young children have social worries too: Validation of a brief parent report measure of social worries in children aged 4–8 years
This study investigated the psychometric properties of the Social Worries Anxiety Index for Young children (SWAIY), adapted from the Social Worries Questionnaire—Parent version (SWQ-P; Spence, 1995), as a measure of social anxiety in young children. 169 parents of children aged four to eight years from a community sample completed the SWAIY and a standardized measure of anxiety; the SWAIY was completed again two weeks later. Parents deemed the items appropriate and relevant to children of this age. The SWAIY demonstrated excellent ( > 0.80) internal consistency and a one-factor model. Test-retest reliability was strong (r = 0.87) and evidence of convergent validity (r > .50) was found. The study provides initial evidence for the validation of SWAIY as a measure of social anxiety in children aged four to eight years old. This questionnaire is ideal for investigating social anxiety over early childhood and the relationship between early social worries and later anxiety disorders.
Abstract.
McGrath LM, Oates JM, Dai YG, Dodd HF, Waxler J, Clements CC, Weill S, Hoffnagle A, Anderson E, MacRae R, et al (2016). Attention Bias to Emotional Faces Varies by IQ and Anxiety in Williams Syndrome.
JOURNAL OF AUTISM AND DEVELOPMENTAL DISORDERS,
46(6), 2174-2185.
Author URL.
Ooi J, Dodd HF, Stuijfzand BG, Walsh J, Broeren S (2016). Do you think I should be scared? the effect of peer discussion on children's fears.
BEHAVIOUR RESEARCH AND THERAPY,
87, 23-33.
Author URL.
Lazarus RS, Dodd HE, Majdandzic M, de Ventec W, Morris T, Byrow Y, Bogels SM, Hudson JL (2016). The relationship between challenging parenting behaviour and childhood anxiety disorders.
JOURNAL OF AFFECTIVE DISORDERS,
190, 784-791.
Author URL.
Dodd HF, Hudson JL, Williams T, Morris T, Lazarus RS, Byrow Y (2015). Anxiety and Attentional Bias in Preschool-Aged Children: an Eyetracking Study.
JOURNAL OF ABNORMAL CHILD PSYCHOLOGY,
43(6), 1055-1065.
Author URL.
Dodd HF, Stuijfzand S, Morris T, Hudson JL (2015). Child Anxiety and the Processing of Ambiguity.
COGNITIVE THERAPY AND RESEARCH,
39(5), 669-677.
Author URL.
Ooi J, Dodd HF, Walsh J (2015). Erratum to: Shared Cognition in Childhood Anxiety: Interpretation Bias in Preschool Children and Their Parents (J Child Fam Stud, 10.1007/s10826-015-0143-5). Journal of Child and Family Studies, 24(11).
Ooi J, Dodd HF, Walsh J (2015). Shared Cognition in Childhood Anxiety: Interpretation Bias in Preschool Children and Their Parents.
JOURNAL OF CHILD AND FAMILY STUDIES,
24(11), 3413-3422.
Author URL.
Van Bergen P, Graham LJ, Sweller N, Dodd HF (2015). The psychology of containment: (mis) representing emotional and behavioural difficulties in Australian schools.
Emotional and Behavioural Difficulties,
20(1), 64-81.
Abstract:
The psychology of containment: (mis) representing emotional and behavioural difficulties in Australian schools
The number of students in special schools has increased at a rapid rate in some Australian states, due in part to increased enrolment under the categories of emotional disturbance (ED) and behaviour disorder (BD). Nonetheless, diagnostic distinctions between ED and BD are unclear. Moreover, despite international findings that students with particular backgrounds are over-represented in special schools, little is known about the backgrounds of students entering such settings in Australia. This study examined the government school enrolment data from New South Wales, the most populous of the Australian states. Linear and quadratic trends were used to describe the numbers and ages of students enrolled in special schools in the ED and BD categories. Changes between 1997 and 2007 were observed. Results showed an over-representation of boys that increased across the decade and a different pattern across age for boys and girls. Consistent with international findings, these results indicate that trends in special school placements are unrelated to disability prevalence in the population. Rather, it is suggested that schools act to preserve time and resources for others by removing their more challenging students: most typically, boys.
Abstract.
Broeren S, Newall C, Dodd HF, Locker R, Hudson JL (2014). Longitudinal investigation of the role of temperament and stressful life events in childhood anxiety.
DEVELOPMENT AND PSYCHOPATHOLOGY,
26(2), 437-449.
Author URL.
Morris TM, Hudson JL, Dodd HF (2014). Risk-taking and inhibitory control in behaviourally inhibited and disinhibited preschool children.
PERSONALITY AND INDIVIDUAL DIFFERENCES,
71, 113-117.
Author URL.
Willis ML, Dodd HF, Palermo R (2013). Correction: the Relationship between Anxiety and the Social Judgements of Approachability and Trustworthiness. PLOS ONE, 8(10).
Ng AS, Dodd HF, Gamble AL, Hudson JL (2013). The Relationship Between Parent and Child Dysfunctional Beliefs About Sleep and Child Sleep.
JOURNAL OF CHILD AND FAMILY STUDIES,
22(6), 827-835.
Author URL.
Willis ML, Dodd HF, Palermo R (2013). The Relationship between Anxiety and the Social Judgements of Approachability and Trustworthiness.
PLOS ONE,
8(10).
Author URL.
Hudson JL, Dodd HF (2012). Informing Early Intervention: Preschool Predictors of Anxiety Disorders in Middle Childhood.
PLOS ONE,
7(8).
Author URL.
Dodd HF, Hudson JL, Morris TM, Wise CK (2012). Interpretation Bias in Preschool Children at Risk for Anxiety: a Prospective Study.
JOURNAL OF ABNORMAL PSYCHOLOGY,
121(1), 28-38.
Author URL.
Porter M, Dodd H (2011). A Longitudinal Study of Cognitive Abilities in Williams Syndrome.
DEVELOPMENTAL NEUROPSYCHOLOGY,
36(2), 255-272.
Author URL.
Dodd HF, Hudson JL, Lyneham HJ, Wuthrich VM, Morris T, Monier L (2011). Biased Self-Perception of Social Skills in Anxious Children: the Role of State Anxiety.
Journal of Experimental Psychopathology,
2(4), 571-585.
Abstract:
Biased Self-Perception of Social Skills in Anxious Children: the Role of State Anxiety
The role of state and trait anxiety on observer ratings of social skill and negatively biased self-perception of social skill was examined. Participants were aged between 7 and 13 years (M = 9.65; SD = 1.77; N = 102), 47 had a current anxiety diagnosis and 55 were non-anxious controls. Participants were randomly allocated to a high or low anxiety condition and asked to complete social tasks. Task instructions were adjusted across conditions to manipulate participants' state anxiety. Observers rated anxious participants as having poorer social skills than non-anxious controls but there was no evidence that anxious participants exhibited a negative self-perception bias, relative to controls. However, as participants' ratings of state anxiety increased, their perception of their performance became more negatively biased. The results suggest that anxious children may exhibit real impairments in social skill and that high levels of state anxiety can lead to biased judgements of social skills in anxious and non-anxious children.
Abstract.
Dodd HF, Porter MA (2011). Interpretation of Ambiguous Situations: Evidence for a Dissociation Between Social and Physical Threat in Williams Syndrome.
JOURNAL OF AUTISM AND DEVELOPMENTAL DISORDERS,
41(3), 266-274.
Author URL.
Hudsona JL, Dodd HF (2011). Introduction to Special Issue on Social Phobia in Children. Journal of Experimental Psychopathology, 2(4), 449-453.
Dodd HF, Hudson JL (2011). Parent-child CBT reduces anxiety disorders among children aged 4-7 years. BMJ Mental Health, 14(1).
Hudson JL, Dodd HF, Lyneham HJ, Bovopoulous N (2011). Temperament and Family Environment in the Development of Anxiety Disorder: Two-Year Follow-up.
JOURNAL OF THE AMERICAN ACADEMY OF CHILD AND ADOLESCENT PSYCHIATRY,
50(12), 1255-1264.
Author URL.
Hudson JL, Dodd HF, Bovopoulos N (2011). Temperament, Family Environment and Anxiety in Preschool Children.
JOURNAL OF ABNORMAL CHILD PSYCHOLOGY,
39(7), 939-951.
Author URL.
Dodd HF, Porter MA (2011). There's that scary picture: Attention bias to threatening scenes in Williams syndrome.
NEUROPSYCHOLOGIA,
49(2), 247-253.
Author URL.
Dodd HF, Porter MA (2010). I see happy people: Attention bias towards happy but not angry facial expressions in Williams syndrome.
COGNITIVE NEUROPSYCHIATRY,
15(6), 549-567.
Author URL.
Dodd HF, Porter MA, Peters GL, Rapee RM (2010). Social approach in pre-school children with Williams syndrome: the role of the face.
JOURNAL OF INTELLECTUAL DISABILITY RESEARCH,
54, 194-203.
Author URL.
Dodd HF, Schniering CA, Porter MA (2009). Beyond Behaviour: is Social Anxiety Low in Williams Syndrome?.
JOURNAL OF AUTISM AND DEVELOPMENTAL DISORDERS,
39(12), 1673-1681.
Author URL.
Porter MA, Dodd H, Cairns D (2009). PSYCHOPATHOLOGICAL AND BEHAVIOR IMPAIRMENTS IN WILLIAMS-BEUREN SYNDROME: THE INFLUENCE OF GENDER, CHRONOLOGICAL AGE, AND COGNITION.
CHILD NEUROPSYCHOLOGY,
15(4), 359-374.
Author URL.
Dodd HF, Porter MA (2009). Psychopathology in williams syndrome: the effect of individual differences across the life span.
Journal of Mental Health Research in Intellectual Disabilities,
2(2), 89-109.
Abstract:
Psychopathology in williams syndrome: the effect of individual differences across the life span
This research aimed to comprehensively explore psychopathology in Williams syndrome (WS) across the life span and evaluate the relationship between psychopathology and age category (child or adult), gender, and cognitive ability. The parents of 50 participants with WS, ages 6-50 years, were interviewed using the Schedule for Affective Disorders and Schizophrenia for School-Age Children. The prevalence of a wide range of Axis I Diagnostic and Statistical Manual of Mental Disorders (DSM-IV; American Psychiatric Association, 1994) disorders was assessed. In addition to high rates of anxiety and attention-deficit/hyperactivity disorder (38% and 20%, respectively), 14% of our sample met criteria for a Depressive Disorder and 42% of participants were not experiencing any significant psychopathological difficulties. There was some evidence for different patterns of psychopathology between children and adults with WS and between males and females. These relationships were largely in keeping with those found in the typically developing population, thus supporting the validity of applying theory and treatment approaches for psychopathology in the typically developing population to WS. © Taylor & Francis Group, LLC.
Abstract.
