Overt vs. Covert Conduct Disorder Symptoms

Symptoms of conduct disorder are often categorized by the nature of the behavior involved, either overt (confrontational behavior such as fighting or violence) or covert in nature (stealthy behavior such as theft and lying). It is unclear whether these two clusters represent separate disorders. In addition, the frequency of these behaviors vary by gender as do their familial associations. Overt and covert CD symptoms were examined in a sample of families of boys and girls with ADHD. The goal was to determine whether the familial association of covert versus overt symptoms differed by gender. Two hundred seventy-three children diagnosed with ADHD and 807 of their first-degree relatives (parents and siblings) participated. Data concerning DSM-III-R conduct disorder symptoms were collected through diagnostic interviews with children's mothers and each item was classified as either overt or covert. Familial aggregation models were conducted using multivariate regression modeling.