Self ratings of mood levels and mood variability as predictors of Junior I-6 impulsivity and ADHD classroom behaviors

In an unselected sample of children in grades four and five, two dimensions of mood, affect and arousal, were assessed over a 2-week period. Consistent with findings on adults, it was found that boys scoring high on the Junior I-6 Impulsiveness scale were characterized by more negative levels of affect and more variable affect. Impulsive boys also perceived themselves as having lower arousal levels and greater variability of arousal. Emotion appears to be an important component of impulsivity, at least in boys. The mood measures explained from 18 to 43% of the variance in impulsivity. In girls, variability of mood and variability of arousal was associated with teacher ratings of ADHD classroom behaviors. None of the correlations between impulsiveness and the CTRS-39 subscales were significant.