NCJ Number
220782
Journal
Journal of Youth and Adolescence Volume: 36 Issue: 8 Dated: November 2007 Pages: 1048-1057
Date Published
November 2007
Length
10 pages
Annotation
This study tested the hypothesis that adolescent antisocial personality disorder (ASPD) is a valid construct by comparing a group of adolescents with diagnosed ASPD, a group diagnosed with conduct disorder (CD) but not ASPD, and a control group with neither a CD or ASPD diagnosis.
Abstract
The study found that adolescent ASPD is a valid construct that provides incremental clinical utility beyond what can be found in a CD diagnosis alone. Adolescent ASPD was distinct from CD in terms of comorbid psychiatric diagnoses, cognitive functioning, peer deviance, and academic performance. Because no evidence of an interaction between gender and group was found, adolescent ASPD is apparently a valid construct for both genders. Consistent with the large body of evidence that links CD to other childhood behavioral disorders, both CD and adolescent ASPD were significantly associated with attention deficit/hyperactivity disorder (ADHD); however, as predicted, boys and girls with adolescent ASPD had significantly higher rates of depression and substance-use disorder compared to those with CD only. Adolescent ASPD identifies a clinically important subgroup of antisocial adolescents who might benefit most from interventions designed to deter them from a continued course of antisocial behavior. Such applications, however, should be cautious until further research confirms the findings of the current study, given the potential dangers of improper diagnostic labels. The boys and girls in the sample were grouped by diagnoses of CD and ASPD according to DSM-II-R criteria. Controls (n=340) had neither diagnosis; the "CD only" group (n=77) had CD by age 17 but no ASPD through age 20; the adolescent ASPD group (n=64) had ASPD by age 17. The adolescent ASPD group was compared to 20 young adult men who met criteria for ASPD. 2 tables, 2 figures, and 42 references