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Inattention in boys from low-income backgrounds predicts welfare receipt: a 30-year prospective study

Published online by Cambridge University Press:  04 September 2019

Francis Vergunst Open the ORCID record for Francis Vergunst [Opens in a new window] ,
Richard E. Tremblay ,
Daniel Nagin ,
Yao Zheng ,
Cedric Galera ,
Jungwee Park ,
Elizabeth Beasley ,
Yann Algan ,
Frank Vitaro  and
Sylvana M. Côté
Francis Vergunst
Affiliation:
Ste-Justine Hospital Research Center, University of Montréal, Montreal, Canada
Richard E. Tremblay
Affiliation:
Department of Pediatrics and Psychology, University of Montreal, Montreal, Canada School of Public Health, Physiotherapy and Sport Science, University College Dublin, Dublin, Ireland
Daniel Nagin
Affiliation:
Carnegie Mellon University, Pittsburgh, PA, USA
Yao Zheng
Affiliation:
Department of Psychology, University of Alberta, Edmonton, AB, Canada
Cedric Galera
Affiliation:
University of Bordeaux, INSERM U1219, Bordeaux, France
Jungwee Park
Affiliation:
Statistics Canada, Ottawa, Ontario, Canada
Elizabeth Beasley
Affiliation:
CEPREMAP, Paris, France
Yann Algan
Affiliation:
Sciences Po, OFCE, Paris, France
Frank Vitaro
Affiliation:
School of Psycho-Education, University of Montreal, Montreal, Canada
Sylvana M. Côté*
Affiliation:
Ste-Justine Hospital Research Center, 3175, Côte Sainte-Catherine, Étage A, Local A-568, Montréal (Québec), Canada
*
Author for correspondence: Sylvana M. Côté, E-mail: sylvana.cote.1@umontreal.ca
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Abstract

Background

Childhood disruptive behaviors are highly prevalent and associated with adverse long-term social and economic outcomes. Trajectories of welfare receipt in early adulthood and the association of childhood behaviors with high welfare receipt trajectories have not been examined.

Methods

Boys (n = 1000) from low socioeconomic backgrounds were assessed by kindergarten teachers for inattention, hyperactivity, aggression, opposition, and prosociality, and prospectively followed up for 30 years. We used group-base trajectory modeling to estimate trajectories of welfare receipt from age 19–36 years using government tax return records, then examined the association between teacher-rated behaviors and trajectory group membership using mixed effects multinomial regression models.

Results

Three trajectories of welfare receipt were identified: low (70.8%), declining (19.9%), and chronic (9.3%). The mean annual personal employment earnings (US$) for the three groups at age 35/36 years was $36 500 (s.d. = $24 000), $15 600 (s.d. = $16 275), and $1700 (s.d. = $4800), respectively. Relative to the low welfare receipt group, a unit increase in inattention (mean = 2.64; s.d. = 2.32, range = 0–8) at age 6 was associated with an increased risk of being in the chronic group (relative risk ratio; RRR = 1.16, 95% CI 1.03–1.31) and in the declining group (RRR = 1.13, 95% CI 1.03–1.23), after adjustment for child IQ and family adversity, and independent of other behaviors. Family adversity was more strongly associated with trajectories of welfare receipt than any behavior.

Conclusions

Boys from disadvantaged backgrounds exhibiting high inattention in kindergarten are at elevated risk of chronic welfare receipt during adulthood. Screening and support for inattentive behaviors beginning in kindergarten could have long-term social and economic benefits for individuals and society.

Keywords

ADHDaggressionconduct disorderexternalizinghyperactivityinattentionnon-cognitiveoppositionprosocialitytax return
Type
Original Articles
Information
Psychological Medicine , Volume 50 , Issue 12 , September 2020 , pp. 2001 - 2009
Copyright
Copyright © Cambridge University Press 2019

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