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Background: Psychotic experiences are common in childhood and an important risk indicator of adverse mental health outcomes. However, little is known about the association of psychotic experiences with functional outcomes in childhood, particularly regarding school performance. The aim of the present study was to examine whether psychotic experiences were prospectively related to school performance in childhood. Methods: This study was embedded in the population‐based Generation R Study (N = 2,362). Psychotic experiences were assessed using self‐reports on hallucinations at age 10 years. School performance was assessed using a standardized national school performance test at age 12 years. We considered the total school performance score, as well as language and mathematics subscales. Analyses were adjusted for sociodemographic characteristics, maternal nonverbal IQ, nonverbal IQ at age 6 years and co‐occurring psychopathology at age 10 years. Results: Psychotic experiences were prospectively associated with poorer school performance scores (B = −0.61, 95% CI [−0.98;−0.25], p =.001), as well as poorer language (Bpercentile rank score = −2.00, 95% CI [−3.20;−0.79], p =.001) and mathematical ability (Bpercentile rank score = −1.75, 95% CI [−2.99;−0.51], p =.006). These associations remained after additional adjustment for nonverbal IQ at age 6 years (B = −0.51, 95% CI [−0.86;−0.16], p =.005), and co‐occurring internalizing (B = −0.40, 95% CI [−0.77;−0.03], p =.036) and externalizing problems (B = −0.40, 95% CI [−0.75;−0.04], p =.029), but not attention problems (B = −0.10, 95% CI [−0.47;0.26], p =.57). Conclusions: Children with psychotic experiences had lower school performance scores than their nonaffected peers. The finding was independent of sociodemographic characteristics, intelligence and co‐occurring internalizing and externalizing problems, but not attention problems. This study suggests that psychotic experiences are associated with childhood functional impairments, although the relatively small effects and the role of attention problems warrant further exploration. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Background: Previous studies have shown that poor family environments are related to more sleep problems; however, little is known about how family irregularity in early life affects the development of sleep problems over childhood using objective sleep measures. The current study tests the hypothesis that early family irregularity contributes to the development of sleep problems. Methods: This population‐based study comprises 5,443 children from the Generation R Study. Family irregularity was measured with seven maternal‐reported questions on family routines when children were 2 and 4 years old. Mothers reported on sleep problems at child age 3, 6, and 10 years, whereas children completed questionnaires on sleep problems at age 10. Additionally, we used tri‐axial wrist accelerometers for five nights in 851 children (mean age 11.7 years) to assess sleep objectively. Results: Family irregularity was associated with more mother‐ and child‐reported sleep problems at ages 3, 6, and 10 years as well as with a shorter sleep duration and later objective sleep onset, but not with sleep efficiency or waking time. The association between family irregularity and multi‐informant subjective sleep problems at age 10 years was mediated by mother‐reported child psychopathology at age 6 years. Conclusions: Our findings show a long‐term robust association of preschool family irregularity with more sleep problems during childhood as well as shorter sleep duration and later sleep onset as measured objectively with actigraphy. In part, these sleep problems were associated with family irregularity by way of child psychopathology. These findings suggest that interventions improving preschool family irregularity, which are targeted to reduce child psychopathology, may also impact the development of sleep problems beneficially. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Background and methods: In two birth cohort studies with genetic, sensitive parenting, and attachment data of more than 1,000 infants in total, we tested main and interaction effects of candidate genes involved in the dopamine, serotonin, and oxytocin systems ( DRD4, DRD2, COMT, 5-HTT, OXTR) on attachment security and disorganization. Parenting was assessed using observational rating scales for parental sensitivity (), and infant attachment was assessed with the Strange Situation Procedure. Results: We found no consistent additive genetic associations for attachment security and attachment disorganization. However, specific tests revealed evidence for a codominant risk model for COMT Val158Met, consistent across both samples. Children with the Val/Met genotype showed higher disorganization scores (combined effect size d = .22, CI = .10-.34, p < .001). Gene-by-environment interaction effects were not replicable across the two samples. Conclusions: This unexpected finding might be explained by a broader range of plasticity in heterozygotes, which may increase susceptibility to environmental influences or to dysregulation of emotional arousal. This study is unique in combining the two largest attachment cohorts with molecular genetic and observed rearing environment data to date. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]