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Early motor developmental milestones and level of neuroticism in young adulthood: a 23-year follow-up study of the Copenhagen Perinatal Cohort

Published online by Cambridge University Press:  14 September 2012

T. Flensborg-Madsen ,
H. J. Sørensen ,
R. Revsbech  and
E. L. Mortensen
T. Flensborg-Madsen*
Affiliation:
National Institute of Public Health, University of Southern Denmark, Copenhagen, Denmark
H. J. Sørensen
Affiliation:
Psychiatric Center, Copenhagen, Denmark Institute of Preventive Medicine, Bispebjerg Hospital, Copenhagen, Denmark
R. Revsbech
Affiliation:
Psychiatric Center Hvidovre, Cognitive Research Unit, Brondby, Denmark
E. L. Mortensen
Affiliation:
Institute of Preventive Medicine, Bispebjerg Hospital, Copenhagen, Denmark Institute of Public Health and Center for Healthy Aging, University of Copenhagen, Copenhagen, Denmark
*
*Address for correspondence: T. Flensborg-Madsen, National Institute of Public Health, University of Southern Denmark, Øster Farimagsgade 5,2, 1353 Copenhagen K, Denmark. (Email: tfm@niph.dk)
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Abstract

Background

Studies investigating early developmental factors in relation to psychopathology have mainly focused on schizophrenia. The personality dimension of neuroticism seems to be a general risk factor for psychopathology, but evidence on associations between early developmental precursors and personality traits is almost non-existent. This study is therefore the first to investigate associations between early motor developmental milestones and neuroticism in adulthood.

Method

Mothers of 9125 children of the Copenhagen Perinatal Cohort recorded 12 developmental milestones during the child's first year of life. A subsample of the cohort comprising 1182 individuals participated in a follow-up when they were aged 20–34 years and were administered the Eysenck Personality Questionnaire (EPQ). Associations between motor developmental milestones and level of neuroticism, extraversion and psychoticism were analysed by multiple linear regression adjusting for for sex, single-mother status, parity, mother's age, father's age, parental social status and birth weight.

Results

Among the 1182 participants with information on the EPQ, information on milestones was available for 968 participants. Infants who developed high levels of neuroticism as adults tended to sit without support, crawl, and walk with and without support significantly later than individuals with low levels of neuroticism (p values <0.05). These results remained significant after adjustment for the included covariates and for adult intelligence.

Conclusions

The findings are the first of their kind and suggest that delays in early motor development may not only characterize psychopathological disorders such as schizophrenia, but may also be associated with the personality dimension of neuroticism in adulthood.

Keywords

Developmental milestonesepidemiologyneurodevelopmentneuroticismpersonality traits
Type
Original Articles
Information
Psychological Medicine , Volume 43 , Issue 6 , June 2013 , pp. 1293 - 1301
Copyright
Copyright © Cambridge University Press 2012 

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