The treatment of conduct problems in children with callous-unemotional traits.

The aim of this study was to examine the impact of callous-unemotional (CU) traits on treatment outcomes and processes in a 10-week behavioral parent-training intervention with young boys referred for conduct problems (N = 56; mean age 6.29 years). CU traits were associated with greater conduct problems at pretreatment and with poor outcomes at 6-month follow-up. CU traits uniquely predicted clinical outcomes when analyzed in relation to conduct-problem severity, other predictors of antisocial behavior, and parents' implementation of treatment. Boys with high CU traits were less responsive to discipline with time-out than boys without CU traits and reacted to this discipline with less affect. These findings present important implications for the role of child temperament in intervention for conduct problems. Copyright 2005 APA, all rights reserved.