Crime & Delinquency

Portnoy, Jill

doi: 10.1177/0011128720937245pmid: N/A

Schwartz, Joseph A.; Savolainen, Jukka; Granger, Douglas A.; Calvi, Jessica L.

doi: 10.1177/0011128720903048pmid: N/A

Specific sources of psychophysiological dysfunction have been identified as a primary mechanism of the association between stress and health, wherein chronic and prolonged exposure to stressors results in downstream negative consequences of stress-linked dysregulation that increase the likelihood of chronic health problems. Factors pertinent to criminological inquiry have been previously identified as sources of physiological dysfunction, but the extent to which offending over the life course operates in a similar manner has yet to be examined. The current study examines the longitudinal association between delinquency and physiological dysfunction in cardiovascular and metabolic functioning (i.e., cardiometabolic risk). The results of longitudinal structural equation models revealed that greater levels of delinquency are associated with higher levels of cardiometabolic risk.

Farrington, David P.

doi: 10.1177/0011128720926108pmid: N/A

This article analyzes data collected in the Cambridge Study in Delinquent Development, which is a prospective longitudinal study of 411 London males from Ages 8 to 61. It aims to investigate interactions between Age 8 and Age 10 psychosocial risk factors and a biological factor (resting heart rate), measured at Age 18, in predicting convictions up to Age 61 and high antisocial personality scores at Ages 32 and 48 (combined). The present analyses suggest that a high resting heart rate acted as a protective factor against harsh parental discipline and a depressed mother, or conversely that these childhood risk factors predicted antisocial outcomes only when they coincided with a low resting heart rate.

Portnoy, Jill; Raine, Adrian; Rudo-Hutt, Anna S.; Gao, Yu; Monk, Khadija

doi: 10.1177/0011128720926110pmid: N/A

This article examines whether heart rate stress reactivity interacts with neighborhood disadvantage to predict antisocial behavior. Antisocial behavior was assessed in a community sample of 445 males and females (Mage = 11.92 years), using respondent and parent measures of antisocial behavior. Heart rate stress reactivity interacted with neighborhood disadvantage to predict parent-reported antisocial behavior. Specifically, the relationship between neighborhood disadvantage and antisocial behavior was stronger among children with lower heart rate reactivity. This study is the first to find that heart rate stress reactivity interacts with the neighborhood environment to predict antisocial behavior. Findings demonstrate the importance of examining biological factors in conjunction with the broader environmental context to understand the development of antisocial behavior.

Ling, Shichun; Raine, Adrian; Waller, Rebecca E.; Ruparel, Kosha; Loughead, James; Gur, Ruben C.

doi: 10.1177/0011128720926118pmid: N/A

Although callous-unemotional (CU) traits have been associated with amygdala hypoactivity, it is unclear whether such traits are associated with amygdala structure. This study examines the relationship between amygdala structure and CU traits and considers sex differences in hemisphere-related asymmetries in this relationship. In this brain imaging study of children (n = 272), a significant sex × hemisphere × CU traits interaction was observed. Females with high CU traits and males with low CU exhibited a rightward exaggerated amygdala volume asymmetry, whereas females with low CU traits and males with high CU traits did not. Findings may reflect sex-related influences related to CU traits and amygdala volume and are broadly consistent with a neurodevelopment perspective on psychopathic-like traits in children.

Fox, Bryanna; Bozzay, Melanie; Verona, Edelyn

doi: 10.1177/0011128720937295pmid: N/A

Psychopathy is of great interest to criminologists, given its consistent association with violence, offending, and antisocial behavior. However, the etiology of psychopathy, particularly in terms of a gene × environment (G×E) interaction, has had little examination in the literature. One study has examined the direct and interactive effects of two genotypes (MAOA, 5-HTT) and childhood trauma on psychopathic traits using a high-risk forensic sample of adult males, and identified G×E interactions that may help us understand this complex phenotype. However, given the difficulties replicating G×E research, particularly with antisocial phenotypes, this study conducts a replication and expansion of prior research by examining direct and interactive effects of three genotypes (MAOA, 5-HTT, DRD4) and childhood trauma on psychopathy using a high-risk community sample of males and females. Results only partially support prior findings, illustrating the need for additional replication research in the biopsychosocial and epigenetic arenas.

Cooke, Eric M.; Connolly, Eric J.; Boisvert, Danielle L.; Armstrong, Todd A.; Lewis, Richard H.; Kavish, Nicholas; Woeckener, Matthias; Wells, Jessica; Harper, James

doi: 10.1177/0011128720903047pmid: N/A

This study provides a test of General Strain Theory by examining the relations between strain, negative emotions, and biological hormones in the prediction of antisocial behavior across gender. Findings from a diverse sample of 512 undergraduate students reveal that strain and the ratio between testosterone to cortisol reactivity are associated with higher levels of antisocial behavior in males, but not females. In contrast, the effect of depressive symptoms on antisocial behavior is stronger at higher levels of strain and ratio of testosterone to cortisol reactivity in females. Drug use and depressive symptoms were found to partly mediate the association between strain and antisocial behavior in females, but not males.