Disruptive behaviors, antisocial attitudes, and aggression in young offenders: Comparison of Adverse Childhood Experience (ACE) typologies

Suicidal risk in patients with aggression in schizophrenia: a systematic review

Introduction

Suicide represents the primary risk factor for mortality among individuals diagnosed with schizophrenia, with a mortality rate that is 10 times higher than that observed in the general population. In the study of individuals who have committed suicide, some exhibited a high risk of aggression and impulsivity, which permitted the consideration of these indicators as predictors of suicide risk. The extant literature contains a number of debates concerning diverse conceptualizations of aggression and impulsivity in the context of suicidal behavior. The present study examined the levels of verbal and physical aggression in individuals diagnosed with schizophrenia, finding that 43% exhibited verbal aggression and 24% physical aggression, levels that are significantly higher than those observed in the general population. Concurrently, an analysis of the psycho-emotional state of patients with suicidal behavior in the anamnesis reveals an indication that the suppression of emotions (including aggression) and the avoidance of harm may result in suicide. This finding is at odds with the previously mentioned results, and consequently, the present review sought to assess the impact of aggressive behavior on suicide risk in patients diagnosed with schizophrenia.

Methods

The search was conducted in accordance with the Preferred Reporting Items for Systematic Reviews and Meta-Analyses (PRISMA) statement. The literature search was conducted in PubMed, Cochrane Library, PsychINFO and Mendeley Data. The search terms used were "aggress*" and "suicid*" or "autoaggress*" and "schizophrenia*". The search was limited to papers published between 2009 and 2024 (the last 15 years), and the search was continued until November 2024. This systematic review has been registered in PROSPERO (CRD42024628033).

Results

A total of 1,364 articles were identified, 295 of which were duplicates. Following a thorough review, 1,046 articles that did not align with the title and abstract were excluded from the analysis. During the literature search, 23 articles were read in full, of which eight studies met the inclusion criteria. A total of eight studies provided information on the effect of aggressive behavior on suicide in patients with schizophrenia. Of these, six studies demonstrated a positive association between aggression and suicidal behavior or employed a logistic regression model in which the risk of aggression increased the risk of suicide and vice versa. Conversely, two studies revealed no association between suicide risk and aggression.

Conclusions

Patients with a documented history of suicide attempts and aggressive behavior are considered to be at risk of suicide, thus emphasizing the necessity for preventive measures to be implemented for this cohort of patients. However, the conclusion regarding the influence of aggressive behavior on increased suicide risk may not be entirely accurate and may not reflect the true extent of the problem, due to the significant number of methodological inaccuracies and discrepancies in the design of the studies included in the review.

Systematic review registration

https://www.crd.york.ac.uk/PROSPERO/view/CRD42024628033, identifier CRD42024628033.

Presence and Impact of Adverse Childhood Experiences and Reflective Functioning on Aggression in Adults With Antisocial Behaviour

This cross-sectional study investigated the relationship between the presence and impact of ACEs with both reactive and proactive aggression, and the possible moderating role of mentalization (operationalized as reflective functioning) in these expected relationships. Sixty-five inpatient and outpatient adults with any kind of antisocial behaviour completed the Dutch version of the Traumatic Experiences Checklist, the Reactive-Proactive Aggression Questionnaire, and the Adult Attachment Interview with the use of the Reflective Functioning Scale. Preliminary analysis showed a remarkably high level of ACEs, and a relatively high reported impact of these experiences. We found a positive relationship between the total presence of ACEs (including childhood maltreatment and adverse household factors), and both reactive and proactive aggression. We also found positive relationships between the experienced impact of these ACEs and both reactive and proactive aggression. Regarding childhood maltreatment in family of origin, we did not find a correlation between the presence of these experiences and respectively reactive and proactive aggression. However, we found a correlation between the impact of childhood maltreatment and reactive aggression. These results suggest that in addition to the cumulative experience of ACEs, the subjective burden of these experiences on individuals must not be underestimated in case of aggression. Additional moderation analysis showed no differences in these relationships in case of less developed versus medium-high developed reflective functioning. The findings substantiate the importance of early prevention and treatment programs with focus on ACEs to possibly reduce aggression.

Exploring the Nexus of Adverse Childhood Experiences and Aggression in Children and Adolescents: A Scoping Review

A strong relation between adverse childhood experiences (ACE) and aggression has been established in adult populations, with less research examining this relation earlier in development. The purpose of this study was to complete a scoping review of the current evidence available on the relation between ACE and aggression and subtypes of aggression within a child and adolescent population. Inclusion criteria for the review included publications in English between 1998 and 2023, use of a child/adolescent population, and peer-review and quantitative publications. Databases searched included PubMed, APA PsycINFO, Scopus, and EBSCO, and search terms included words related to ACE and aggression. Initial selection was based on title and abstract, with 32 papers meeting eligibility criteria for inclusion. Two authors extracted the relevant characteristics of the studies independently and conferred on any disagreements. The overall findings from the scoping review suggest that there is a strong link between aggression and ACE; however, this link may not be as strong for specific subtypes of aggression. Additionally, characteristics of ACE may play role in understanding this relation, but little research is available within a child and adolescent population. A few studies have attempted to examine potential mediators and moderators of this relation; however, none have been replicated within a child and adolescent population. The findings from this review support the need for additional research in this area and identify significant gaps in the literature that need to be addressed within a child and adolescent population.

A psychometric analysis of the Early Trauma Inventory-Short Form in Colombia: CTT and Rasch model

BACKGROUND

Potential childhood traumatic experiences increase risk for mental and physical health disorders and their precise assessment can help to promote health prevention and promotion strategies for countries with limited data and measurement strategies like Colombia.

OBJECTIVE

The goal of the present study is to strengthen evidence for the validity of scores from an adapted version of the Early Trauma Inventory self report-short form (ETI-SF) using Item Response Theory and by assessing factorial invariance across gender and education level.

PARTICIPANTS AND SETTING

The study assessed a total of 1909 Colombian participants (66.16 % women, 32.16 % men, 1.68 % other gender; age range 18-72 years old).

METHODS

Participants answered the ETI-SF via a web-based sampling strategy.

RESULTS

The total scores of the scale showed good reliability coefficients (α = 0.81 and ω = 0.60). A specific analysis for the subscales showed good reliability for the emotional, physical, and sexual trauma subscales (αs and ωs >0.64), while general trauma showed lower than accepted reliability values (α =0.56 and ω = 0.37). Most of the individual items of the scale showed good calibration. The factorial invariance analysis suggests the possibility of some gender and educational differences.

CONCLUSIONS

The study confirms particularly high rates of potential childhood traumatic experiences in Colombia and complement data for specific trauma types. Overall, the ETI-SF is confirmed as useful for Colombia, which highlights this scale as a good tool to use for public health assessment. Future research can continue the integration of diverse methods for estimating the quality of the scale.

Adverse childhood experience trajectories and individual high risk-behaviors of sexual offenders: A developmental victimology perspective

BACKGROUND

Developmental victimology theory suggests that developmental features of risk and impact stemming from various types of victimization depend on the age of the child or adolescent.

OBJECTIVE

A next step is studying the developmental victimization trajectories of individuals involved in sexual crimes by focusing on traumatic events occurring during childhood and adolescence respectively. Building on the developmental victimology perspective, the study's specific aims encompass two key objectives: 1) exploring the diverse trajectories of Adverse Childhood Experiences (ACEs) within a sample of individuals involved in sexual crimes, and 2) assessing whether these ACEs trajectories influence the emergence of distinct high-risk behaviors.

PARTICIPANTS AND SETTING

252 individuals convicted of sexual crimes were selected from a federal penitentiary in Quebec, Canada.

METHODS

Semi-structured interviews with a computerized questionnaire produced data on numerous aspects of the participant's life history, criminal career, and victimization experiences that were analyzed via latent class modeling.

RESULTS

Four classes (no ACEs trajectory, poly exposure and victimization trajectory, childhood exposure trajectory, and poly victimization trajectory) were identified.

CONCLUSIONS

Consistent with hypotheses, developmental ACEs trajectories are heterogeneous and associated with the criminal careers, adolescent problematic behaviors, substance use disorders, and violence history among individuals involved in sexual offending.