男性违法青少年的家庭亲密度和适应性研究

目的 调查违法青少年尤其是暴力违法青少年家庭亲密度和适应性的特点及暴力犯罪和家庭亲密度和适应性的相关性.方法 在未成年人劳动教养所中随机选取男性暴力违法青少年131例和非暴力违法青少年98例,以181例普通高中男生为对照,进行MOAS、家庭亲密度和适应性量表评定.结果 违法青少年实际家庭亲密度显著低于正常对照组,且对亲密度的不满意程度显著高于对照组.与暴力组相比,非暴力违法组对家庭适应性的不满意程度更高.MOAS与家庭适应性呈负相关.结论 违法青少年尤其暴力违法青少年家庭亲密度和适应性不足,家庭的情感联系薄弱,需要进行适当干预.     

Negative association between plasma cortisol levels and aggression in a high-risk community sample of adolescents

In this study, the association of aggressive behavior and personality traits with plasma cortisol levels was investigated in a high-risk community sample of adolescents. Plasma cortisol levels were collected in 245 fifteen-year-olds (118 males, 127 females) from an epidemiological cohort study of children at risk for psychopathology. Additionally, measures of reactive and proactive aggression, externalizing behavior and callous-unemotional together with impulsive personality features were assessed. Both subtypes of aggression as well as delinquent behavior and impulsive personality traits showed significant negative correlations with plasma cortisol levels. This association was observed in males, but not in females. In both gender groups, callous-unemotional traits were unrelated to plasma cortisol levels. This result suggests that the association between cortisol levels and aggression in adolescents is mediated rather by impulsivity than by unemotional or psychopathic traits.     

CSF testosterone: relationship to aggression, impulsivity, and venturesomeness in adult males with personality disorder

OBJECTIVE: Studies of various species suggest that testosterone, assayed in various compartments, is correlated with aggression and possibly related behaviors. The objective of this study was to assess the relationship between cerebrospinal fluid testosterone (CSF TEST) and measures of aggression, impulsivity, and venturesomeness in male personality disordered subjects and test the hypothesis that CSF TEST would correlate directly with each measure in this group. METHODS: Lumbar CSF for morning basal levels of testosterone were obtained from 31 male subjects with personality disorder. Aggression was assessed dimensionally through the use of the life history of aggression (LHA) assessment, and categorically by the research diagnosis of intermittent explosive disorder. Impulsiveness and venturesomeness were assessed using the Eysenck personality questionnaire - II (EPQ-II). RESULTS: CSF TEST did not correlate with measures of aggression or impulsivity but did correlate directly with venturesomeness (r = .42, p = .021). Adjusting for age and height modestly reduced the magnitude and statistical significance of this correlation. CONCLUSIONS: In contrast to some published studies, CSF TEST was not found to have a significant relationship with aggression. The presence of a modest correlation between CSF TEST and venturesomeness, but not impulsivity, in male personality-disordered subjects suggests a possible relationship between CSF TEST and a type of sensation-seeking that involves consideration of the consequences of action taken.     

Suicidal behavior and violence in male adolescents: a school-based study

OBJECTIVE: To investigate characteristics of suicidal and violent behavior in a community school sample of adolescents. METHOD: Self-report questionnaires were administered to 794 male students (aged 12-18 years) from Antwerp, Belgium. Subjects were classified into four groups: a suicidal-only (n = 40; suicidal ideation and/or self-harming behavior), a violent-only (n = 142), a suicidal-violent (n = 21), and a control group (n = 591). RESULTS: Compared with controls, higher levels of internalizing problems, risk-taking behavior (substance use, diminished perception of risk, sensation seeking), and aggression were found in the comparison groups. The suicidal-violent group had the highest levels of depression, somatization, overt and covert aggression, and risk-taking behavior. Compared with the suicidal-only group, the violent-only group had less depression, anxiety, and covert aggression, but higher levels of overt aggression, sensation seeking, diminished perception of risk, and marijuana use. CONCLUSIONS: Although adolescent suicidal and violent behavior are both related to internalizing problems, aggression, and risk-taking behavior, marked differences in severity and nature exist in these relationships. Differentiation of suicidal youths based on the presence or absence of violent behavior may add to our understanding of suicidal phenomena and may thus have important clinical consequences.     

Aggression in delinquent adolescents vs controls in Northern Russia: relations with hereditary and environmental factors

The relationships between aggression and both hereditary and social factors are still very unclear. To examine the interrelations between aggression, temperament and character dimensions and parental rearing factors, 188 delinquent adolescents and 118 same-aged schoolchildren from north-western Russia were studied by means of the Buss-Durkee Hostility Inventory, Temperament and Character Inventory (TCI) and EMBU questionnaire on parental rearing. Delinquent adolescents differed significantly from non-delinquents on the majority of variables under investigation. Overt aggression was most strongly related with novelty seeking, whereas covert aggression was related with harm avoidance. Furthermore, the aggression scores were related to lack of paternal emotional warmth. Our results point to the significant role of both temperament characteristics and parental rearing as background factors in the development of aggression among adolescents. Copyright © 1998 Whurr Publishers Ltd.     

Psychopharmacology and aggression. I: A meta-analysis of stimulant effects on overt/covert aggression-related behaviors in ADHD

OBJECTIVE: To determine by meta-analysis the effect size for stimulants on overt and covert aggression-related behaviors in children with attention-deficit/hyperactivity disorder (ADHD), separately from stimulant effects on the core symptoms of ADHD. METHOD: A review of the literature from 1970 to 2001 revealed 28 studies meeting inclusion/exclusion criteria for meta-analysis. These studies yielded 28 independent effects of overt aggression and 7 independent effects of covert aggression. RESULTS: The overall weighted mean effect size was 0.84 for overt and 0.69 for covert aggression related behaviors in ADHD. Comorbid conduct disorder is associated with diminishing stimulant effect size for overt aggression. CONCLUSION: Stimulant effects for aggression-related behaviors in ADHD have effect sizes similar to those for the core symptoms of ADHD.     

Hypothalamus pituitary adrenal axis and autonomic activity during stress in delinquent male adolescents and controls

OBJECTIVE: Patterns of low autonomic arousal have consistently been related to delinquency and disruptive behavior disorders (DBD) in children and adolescents. Findings on another stress regulating mechanism, the hypothalamic pituitary adrenal (HPA) axis, have been inconsistent, which may partly be due to not considering specific stress reactivity measures. Therefore, the aim of the present study was to investigate the relationship between disruptive behavior in male adolescents and their HPA and autonomic reactivity to a standard public speaking task (PST). METHOD: Responsivity to the PST of cortisol, heart rate (HR), skin conductance level (SCL) and self-reported negative feelings was measured, and compared between 12and14-year-old boys who attended a delinquency diversion program (DP), with and without DBD (DP+, n=22 and DP-, n=49, resectively), and matched normal controls (NC, n=30). DBD diagnoses were based on a structured psychiatric interview. RESULTS: The DP+ group, but not the DP- group, showed a significantly decreased cortisol and HR response during the PST as compared with the NC group. No significant effects were found for SCL. All subjects connoted the task negatively. CONCLUSIONS: The results indicate that low cortisol and HR responsivity to stress may be a neurobiological marker for delinquent boys with DBD, but not for those without DBD. Directions for future research and clinical implications are discussed.     

Low salivary cortisol and persistent aggression in boys referred for disruptive behavior

BACKGROUND: Persistent antisocial behavior in adulthood is often preceded by childhood-onset aggressive conduct disorder. Aggressive syndromes in both children and adults have previously been associated with abnormalities in peripheral responses to stress. One peripheral measure, salivary cortisol concentration, may reflect individual differences in the hypothalamic-pituitary-adrenal axis that underlie propensities for aggression, socialization, and adaptation to stress. METHODS: The relationship between salivary cortisol levels and aggression was tested in 38 clinic-referred school-aged boys. Persistent aggression was measured by collecting disruptive behavior disorder symptoms in 4 annual clinical evaluations and peer nominations of aggression in the first 2 annual evaluations. Salivary cortisol levels were measured during years 2 and 4 of the study. RESULTS: Low cortisol levels were associated with persistence and early onset of aggression, particularly when measures of cortisol concentrations were pooled. Boys with low cortisol concentrations at both time points exhibited triple the number of aggressive symptoms and were named as most aggressive by peers 3 times as often as boys who had higher cortisol concentrations at either sampling time. CONCLUSIONS: This suggests that low hypothalamic-pituitary-adrenal axis activity is a correlate of severe and persistent aggression in male children and adolescents. A restricted (low) range of cortisol variability may be more indicative of persistent aggression than a low concentration of cortisol at any single point in time.     

The relationships between gender,psychopathic traits and self-reported delinquency: a comparison between a general population sample and a high-risk sample for juvenile delinquency

Background

Studies have shown that youths with high psychopathic traits have an earlier onset of delinquent behavior, have higher levels of delinquent behavior, and show higher rates of recidivism than youths with low psychopathic traits. Furthermore, psychopathic traits have received much attention as a robust indicator for delinquent and aggressive behavior in both boys and girls. However, there is a notable lack of research on gender differences in the relationship between psychopathic traits and delinquent behavior. In addition, most of the studies on psychopathic traits and delinquent behavior were conducted in high-risk samples. Therefore, the first objective of the current study was to investigate the relationship between psychopathic traits and specific forms of self-reported delinquency in a high-risk sample for juvenile delinquency as well as in a general population sample. The second objective was to examine the influence of gender on this relationship. Finally, we investigated whether the moderating effect of gender was comparable in the high-risk sample for juvenile delinquency and the general population sample.

Methods

Participants were 1220 adolescents of the German-speaking part of Switzerland (N = 351 high-risk sample, N = 869 general population sample) who were between 13 and 21 years of age. The Youth Psychopathic traits Inventory (YPI) was used to assess psychopathic traits. To assess the lifetime prevalence of the adolescents’ delinquent behavior, 15 items derived from a self-report delinquency instrument were used. Logistic regression analyses were used to examine the relationship between gender, psychopathic traits and self-reported delinquency across both samples.

Results

Our results demonstrated that psychopathic traits are related to non-violent and violent offenses. We found no moderating effect of gender and therefore we could not detect differences in the moderating effect of gender between the samples. However, there was a moderating effect of sample for the relationship between the callous and unemotional YPI scale and non-violent offenses. In addition, the regression weights of gender and sample were, for non-violent offenses, reduced to non-significance when adding the interaction terms.

Conclusions

Psychopathic traits were found to be present in a wide range of youths (i.e., high-risk as well as general population sample, young children as well as adolescents, boys as well as girls) and were related to delinquent behavior. The influence of age and YPI scales on self-reported delinquency was more robust than the influence of gender and sample. Therefore, screening for psychopathic traits among young children with psychosocial adjustment problems seems relevant for developing effective intervention strategies.

     

Gender Differences in Delinquent Behavior among Korean Adolescents

The present study examined gender differences in the rate, type, and relevant variables underlying delinquent behavior among South Korean adolescents. Although female delinquency is increasing and becoming more violent in South Korea, the rate of delinquent behavior was found to be much lower among female than among male adolescents and female adolescents were much less involved in antisocial, aggressive, and psychopathic delinquent behavior compared to male adolescents. Moreover, compared to female delinquent adolescents, male delinquent adolescents were found to have greater tendencies towards antisocial personality, sociability, being sexually abused, and alcohol and drug use. In contrast, female delinquent adolescents had a greater tendency toward depression than male delinquent adolescents. No gender differences were found in the association between family dynamics and delinquent behaviors. Age and antisocial personality had the most significant total effects on male delinquent behavior. In contrast, alcohol and drug abuse was the strongest contributing factors in female delinquent behavior, although the level of alcohol and drug abuse was much higher among male adolescents than among female adolescents.     

Plasma testosterone levels in patients with combat-related posttraumatic stress disorder

BACKGROUND: An abnormal level of androgens has been reported in various psychiatric disorders and the important role of androgens in the regulation of human sexuality, aggression, cognition, emotions and personality have been described. Previous studies in the area of stress and the hypothalamic-pituitary-gonadal (HPG) system in humans indicate that circulating testosterone levels are suppressed by physical and psychological stress. However, there is also evidence that plasma levels of testosterone can increase during potentially stressful events and may be elevated in combat-related posttraumatic stress disorder (CR-PTSD) in comparison with normal subjects and major depressive disorder patients. METHODS: The aim of the present study was to examine the possible involvement of the HPG system in chronic untreated CR-PTSD. To this end, we assessed the morning plasma levels of testosterone and cortisol in never-treated chronic CR-PTSD outpatients compared with normal healthy controls. RESULTS: There were no statistically significant differences between the CR-PTSD patients and healthy control subjects in morning plasma testosterone (547.8 +/- 152.2 ng/dl vs. 565.6 +/- 122.4 ng/dl; p = 0.7) and cortisol (19.0 +/- 8.5 microg/dl vs. 15.4 +/- 5.1 microg/dl; p = 0.1) levels. However, a significant correlation between plasma testosterone level and avoidance symptom scores of the Impact of Events Scale (IES) was found in the CR-PTSD patients (r = 0.43, p < 0.05). CONCLUSIONS: The findings of plasma testosterone levels comparable with normal controls in CR-PTSD patients may indicate that the previously described reduction in testosterone levels in normal subjects under stressful conditions may reflect the acute stress response of the HPG axis, in contrast to an adaptation of the HPG axis under chronic psychological stress.     

Correlation of plasma neurosteroid levels to the severity of negative symptoms in male patients with schizophrenia

The authors examined the correlations among plasma levels of ACTH, cortisol, progesterone, testosterone, and dehydroepiandrosterone sulfate (DHEA-S) and their relationship with the scales for assessment of negative symptoms (SANS) in the male schizophrenic patients with negative symptoms. The subjects were 28 male schizophrenic patients categorized as with low negative symptoms (N = 14) and with moderate negative symptoms (N = 14) and 13 healthy subjects. Plasma levels of neurosteroids were measured by radioimmunoassay. Significant correlations of SANS scores with plasma levels of ACTH, cortisol and testosterone, but not progesterone and DHEA-S, were found in the male schizophrenic patients. Furthermore, plasma levels of ACTH, cortisol, and testosterone in the male schizophrenic patients with moderate negative symptoms, but not low negative symptoms, were significantly different from normal controls. The measurements of plasma neurosteroid levels could be a useful biological marker for the severity of negative symptoms in schizophrenic patients.     

Pathways to violent and non-violent criminality in an adolescent psychiatric population

In a Norwegian follow-up study of former adolescent psychiatric in-patients 222 patients who had committed violent crimes were compared to 287 patients who had committed non-violent crimes only. There were numerous significant differences between the criminal careers of violent and non-violent criminals. Individuals with a history of violent criminality only were uncommon and uncharacteristic of violent criminals in general. Regression analyses identified several strong and independent correlates of violent criminality. The study supported a division of antisocial behavior into violent and non-violent sub-groups, thus paralleling a concept of overt and covert pathways to delinquent behavior. The overt pathway seemed to be imbedded in the covert pathway.     

Salivary testosterone and cortisol are jointly related to pro-environmental behavior in men

Recently, cortisol has been suggested to moderate the positive relationship between testosterone and antisocial behavior. More precisely, high testosterone levels have been found to be related to aggressive or dominant behavior especially when cortisol levels were low. In the present study, we aimed to extend these findings to pro-environmental behavior as an indicator of prosocial behavior. In a first step, 147 male participants provided information on their everyday pro-environmental behavior by completing an online questionnaire on various energy-saving behaviors. In a second step, subjects provided two saliva samples for the assessment of testosterone and cortisol on two subsequent mornings after awakening. We found that testosterone was negatively related to pro-environmental behavior, but only in men with low cortisol. In conclusion, our findings provide first evidence for the joint association of testosterone and cortisol with everyday pro-environmental behavior. These results further reinforce the importance of considering interdependent hormone systems simultaneously rather than focusing on a single hormone.     

An empirical typology of narcissism and mental health in late adolescence

A two-step cluster analytic strategy was used in two studies to identify an empirically derived typology of narcissism in late adolescence. In Study 1, late adolescents (N=204) responded to the profile of narcissistic dispositions and measures of grandiosity ("superiority") and idealization ("goal instability") inspired by Kohut's theory, along with several College Adjustment Scales and a measure of pathology of separation-individuation. Cluster analysis revealed three clusters: covert narcissists (N=71), moderate narcissists (N=55) and overt narcissists (N=74). Moderate narcissists had significantly lower means scores on indices of anxiety, relationship problem, depression, esteem- and family problems and pathology of separation-individuation. The overt and covert clusters showed comparable levels of dysfunction on most indices of adjustment. This general pattern was replicated in Study 2 (N=210). Moderate narcissists showed a uniform profile of good adjustment, whereas covert and overt narcissist clusters showed a pervasive pattern of dysfunction. Results support the claim that narcissism has "two faces" and that a moderate degree of narcissism is associated with fewer adjustment problems or psychological symptoms. Directions for future research are discussed.     

Similarities and differences between aggressive and delinquent children and adolescents in a national sample

OBJECTIVE: To examine differences in the correlates, comorbidity and use of services between aggressive and delinquent children and adolescents. METHOD: An Australian representative sample (n = 4083) of parents of children and adolescents were administered a psychiatric diagnostic interview, the Child Behaviour Checklist, and other instruments to measure service use. The characteristics of children with high scores (top 5%) in the aggressive and delinquent syndromes or both were then examined. RESULTS: The proportion of aggressive children decreased with increasing age while that of delinquents increased. The aggressive group was specifically associated with the impulsive-hyperactive subtype of attention deficit hyperactivity disorder (ADHD) (OR = 12.63; 95% CI = 5.97-26.74). Comorbidity between ADHD, aggression and delinquency was less frequent among adolescents than in children, with the exception of the inattentive subtype in which comorbidity was higher. Both aggressive and delinquent groups had a considerable overlap with conduct disorder. Aggressive and delinquent youths used services more often, but parents perceived aggressive children as more in need of help than delinquent ones. Living in a sole parent family was specifically associated with the delinquent group (OR = 3.34; 95% CI = 2.25-4.96). CONCLUSIONS: The results suggest that these empirically derived syndromes while sharing many features also differ in important ways, highlighting the need for further convergence between categorical and dimensional classifications. Their differential association with the subtypes of ADHD requires further examination and may help to understand the relationship between ADHD and conduct problems. The importance of aggressive behaviour in children should not be underestimated since it is associated with significant psychopathology, parental distress and use of services.     

Personality,perceived parental rejection and problem behavior in adolescence

BACKGROUND: It has been well documented that adolescents run a heightened risk for developing depression and aggression when they feel rejected by their parents and that parental rejection has different effects for gender in developing depression and aggression. Whether personality in combination with gender plays a role in the association between parental rejection, depression and aggression has not yet received much attention. METHOD: This was a cross-sectional study using data from the Conflict and Management of Relationships study (CONAMORE). A total of 1142 early and middle adolescents completed questionnaires about parental rejection, depression, aggression and personality. The associations between the variables were tested in multi-group moderation models using structural equation modeling. RESULTS: Perceived parental rejection was associated with depression and aggression in most of the combined personality type and gender groups. Personality type and gender moderated the associations between perceived parental rejection, depression and aggression. Several clear differences between the combined personality type and gender groups were found on these associations. CONCLUSION: Several clear moderating effects of the personality type x gender groups were found on associations between perceived parental rejection, depression and aggression. Future research should focus on these specific combinations instead of using either personality types or gender separately.     

A descriptive survey of Flemish delinquent adolescents

Previous research has shown that delinquent adolescents are characterized by a number of psychiatric problems. Most of these assessments, however, have been conducted on incarcerated adolescents.By means of semi-structured assessment (Child Assessment Schedule) and self-report measures, we assessed psychiatric status in a group of 72 delinquent adolescents, adjudicated before the Juvenile Court of Antwerp, Belgium. A significant difference was found between ethnic groups on self-report scores. Seventy per cent of subjects received at least one psychiatric diagnosis. The most prevalent diagnoses were conduct disorder (CD), substance abuse disorder and attention deficit hyperactivity disorder (ADHD). Less prevalent were post traumatic stress disorder (PTSD) and major depression (MD).As we found that an unselected sample of delinquent adolescents show a great number of psychiatric disorders, we suggest that psychiatric screening of delinquent adolescents should be done systematically. The predictive value of psychiatric assessment and subsequent treatment in delinquent adolescents should be investigated by future, prospective research.     

Moral Disengagement as Mediator and Moderator of the Relation Between Empathy and Aggression Among Chinese Male Juvenile Delinquents

The link between empathy and aggression is well documented; yet, studies examining potential mechanisms that explain this association are limited. In the present study, we tested the relation between empathy and aggression and examined both the mediating and moderating effects of moral disengagement on this relation among Chinese male juvenile delinquents. Three hundred and fifty-seven male juvenile delinquents from one Chinese juvenile correctional facility completed the interpersonal reactivity index, the moral disengagement scale and the aggression questionnaire. The results indicated that moral disengagement partially mediated the influence of empathy on aggression. Moreover, moral disengagement moderated the relation between empathy and aggression. Specifically, there was a significant negative relation between empathy and aggression at low levels of moral disengagement. However, at high levels of moral disengagement, the relation between empathy and aggression was non-significant. The significance and limitations of the results are discussed.     

Hormonal and neural correlates of prosocial conformity in adolescents

The dual hormone hypothesis, which centers on the interaction between testosterone and cortisol on social behavior, offers a compelling framework for examining the role of hormones on the neural correlates of adolescent peer conformity. Expanding on this hypothesis, the present study explored the interaction between testosterone and cortisol via hair concentrations on adolescents’ conformity to peers. During fMRI, 136 adolescents (51 % female) ages 11–14 years (M = 12.32; SD = 0.6) completed a prosocial decision-making task. Participants chose how much of their time to donate to charity before and after observing a low- or high-prosocial peer. Conformity was measured as change in behavior pre- to post-observation. High testosterone with low cortisol was associated with greater conformity to high-prosocial peers but not low prosocial peers. Focusing on high prosocial peers, whole-brain analyses indicated greater activation post- vs. pre-observation as a function of high testosterone and low cortisol in regions implicated in social cognition, salience detection, and reward processing: pSTS/TPJ, insula, OFC, and caudate nucleus. Results highlight the relevance of hormones for understanding the neural correlates of adolescents’ conformity to prosocial peers.