Pousset M, Tremblay R E, Falissard B
Inserm U669, Maison de Solenn, 94 Boulevard de Port-Royal, 75014 Paris, France.
Rev Epidemiol Sante Publique. 2011 Jun;59(3):169-74. doi: 10.1016/j.respe.2011.01.004. Epub 2011 May 19.
The aim of this study was to contribute to clarification of the relations between antisocial personality disorder (APD) and its potential risk factors in a population of 560 French male prisoners.
Adverse childhood was assessed as a latent variable determined by several traumatic events. APD (MINI), character and temperament (Cloninger's model), WAIS®-III similarities subtest and psychosocial characteristics were assessed by two clinicians. The WAIS®-III subtest accounts for verbal and cognitive performance. We used a structural model to determine the weight of the different pathways between adverse childhood and APD.
Study confirmed the major and direct role of adverse childhood (standardized coefficient=0.48). An intermediate effect mediated by character (considered as a global variable) and novelty-seeking was also shown, confirming previous results from the literature.
This study emphasizes the role of adverse childhood in APD, suggesting the potential benefit of early intervention in the prevention of antisocial behaviours.
