The relationship between obsessive-compulsive symptoms and functioning in a clinical sample of help-seeking youths: evidence for an inverted U-shape relationship with IQ

Introduction This database includes the raw data linked with the paper “The relationship between obsessive-compulsive symptoms and functioning in a clinical sample of help-seeking youths: evidence for an inverted U-shape relationship with IQ”. In this paper, we aimed to investigate the association between OCD and functioning (cognitive and socio-occupational) across different levels of OCD severity in a help-seeking adolescent population. Methods 341 help-seeking youth with different psychopathologies underwent an in-depth clinical examination through the Comprehensive Assessment of At Risk Mental States (CAARMS) and the Kiddie-Schedule for Affective Disorder and Schizophrenia Present and Lifetime – DSM-5 (K-SADS-PL). Intelligence Quotient (IQ) and socio-occupational functioning (SOFAS) were also assessed. Results (in brief) A negative curvilinear relationship was found between OCD severity and IQ and a negative linear relationship was observed between OCD severity and socio-occupational functioning. While the former remained significant after controlling for sociodemographic data and general symptoms, the latter did not. OCD symptoms appear to impact cognitive functioning according to their severity. That is, mild levels of OCD are associated with a higher IQ relative to no OCD or severe OCD and may therefore serve as a protective factor toward cognition.