Diverse pathways to deficient self-regulation: Implications for disinhibitory psychopathology in children

Abstract

Laboratory evidence from research employing adult subjects has revealed three different pathways to the breakdown of self-regulation. The pathways are elucidated using Gray's neuropsychological model of approach/avoidance learning: One pathway, associated with Gray's behavioral activation system (BAS), is triggered by cues for reward; another, associated with the behavioral inhibition system (BIS), is triggered by cues for punishment; and the third involves an intrinsic deficit in the automatic integration of BAS and BIS processes which results in more widespread self-regulatory problems. We propose that childhood disinhibition also reflects diverse etiological processes and review the potential implications of our proposals for the development of conduct disorder, attention deficit hyperactivity disorder, and several “comorbid” syndromes (i.e., those manifesting multiple dimensions of psychopathology).