In addition, adolescent females with ADHD are reported to show more internalizing symptoms than their male counterparts [ 14].
Furthermore, girls experience more internalizing symptoms (Vostanis et al. 1997; van Eldik 2005; van Eldik et al. 2004; Dammeyer 2010), whereas boys experience more externalizing symptoms (Theunissen et al. 2013).
A recent meta-analysis found more internalizing symptoms (mainly anxiety and depression) in patients with migraine and in patients with TTH than healthy controls, and no difference between headache types[27].
Children who are hearing impaired experience more internalizing and externalizing symptoms when compared with their normally hearing counterparts (King et al. 1989; van Eldik et al. 2004; van Eldik 2005; Konuk et al. 2006; Hintermair 2007; van Gent et al. 2007; Coll et al. 2009; Fellinger et al. 2012; Theunissen et al. 2011, 2012, 2013, 2014).
Teacher reports on the Behavioral Assessment System for Children (BASC) were examined to determine if groups differed with respect to internalizing symptoms (Internalizing Composite), externalizing symptoms (Externalizing Composite), overall behavioral symptoms (Behavioral Symptoms Composite) and adaptive behavior (Adaptability Composite).
More precisely, lack of attention control seems more strongly linked to internalizing symptoms, whereas a deficiency of inhibitory control is more clearly related to externalizing symptoms.
This may be because girls are more likely to exhibit internalizing symptoms such as withdrawal, anxiety, and depression in stressful situations [ 48].
Further, the pattern of these correlations was also comparable to that observed in previous studies and indicates that attention control is more convincingly linked to internalizing symptoms (i.e., anxiety and depression) than to externalizing symptoms (i.e., aggression) [ 49].
This is clearly in disagreement with the common observation that girls/women display higher levels of fear and anxiety, and thus are also considered to be more prone to such internalizing symptoms, as compared to boys/men [ 4].
In our sample, parents of boys who show internalizing symptoms were more likely to be inconsistent in showing discipline.
More moderate effect sizes were evident for internalizing symptoms (g = 0.74), self-appraisal (g = 0.63), externalizing symptoms (g = 0.52), and sexualized behavior (g = 0.49), while small effects were found for measures of coping/functioning (g = 0.44), caregiver outcomes (g = 0.43), and social skills/competence (g = 0.38).
