Abstract
The temporary spike in antisocial behavior that occurs during adolescence has led to the hypothesis that antisocial behavior may be a relatively normative and transient phenomenon of this developmental period. However, data indicate that antisocial behavior with adolescent onset does not arise independent of contextual risk, nor is it independent of adverse adult outcomes. In contrast, age of onset is likely a function of a continuum of risk. Adolescence represents a confluence of changes that can catalyze the onset of antisocial behavior for individuals at risk. These changes include physical and physiological manifestations of puberty, changes in neural function, re-prioritization of social goals, expanding social networks, and changes in family dynamics as parents and adolescents adjust to increasing autonomy needs. Many of these phenomena can be targeted through prevention and intervention programs that can effectively reduce the onset and/or severity of antisocial behavior.
Access this chapter
Tax calculation will be finalised at checkout
Purchases are for personal use only
Similar content being viewed by others
References
American Psychiatric Association. (2000). Diagnostic and statistical manual of mental disorders (Revised 4th ed.). Washington, DC: American Psychiatric Association.
Archer, J. (2009). Does sexual selection explain human sex differences in aggression? The Behavioral and Brain Sciences, 32, 249–311.
Beauchaine, T. P., Gatzke-Kopp, L., & Mead, H. (2007). Polyvagal theory and developmental psychopathology. Emotion dysregulation and conduct problems from preschool to adolescence. Biological Psychology, 74, 174–184.
Bechara, A., Damasio, H., & Damasio, A. R. (2000). Emotion, decision making and the orbitofrontal cortex. Cerebral Cortex, 10, 295–307.
Biederman, J., Newcorn, J., & Sprich, S. (1991). Comorbidity of attention deficit hyperactivity disorder with conduct, depressive, anxiety, and other disorders. The American Journal of Psychiatry, 148, 564–577.
Brendgen, M., Vitaro, F., & Bukowski, W. M. (2000). Stability and variability of adolescents’ affiliation with delinquent friends: Predictors and consequences. Social Development, 9, 205–225.
Brown, B. B., Mounts, N., Lamborn, S. D., & Steinberg, L. (1993). Parenting practices and peer group affiliation in adolescence. Child Development, 64, 467–482.
Buckholtz, J. W., & Meyer-Lindenberg, A. (2008). MAOA and the neurogenetic architecture of human aggression. Trends in Neuroscience, 31, 120–129.
Burt, S. A., Krueger, R. F., McGue, M., & Iacono, W. G. (2001). Sources of covariation among attention-deficit/hyperactivity disorder, oppositional defiant disorder, and conduct disorder: The importance of shared environment. Journal of Abnormal Psychology, 110, 516–525.
Burt, S. A., McGue, M., DeMarte, J. A., Krueger, R. F., & Iacono, W. G. (2006). Timing of menarche and the origins of conduct disorder. Archives of General Psychiatry, 63, 890–896.
Cairns, R. B., Leung, M., Buchanan, L., & Cairns, B. (1996). Friendships and social networks in childhood and adolescence: Fluidity, reliability, and interrelations. Social Development, 66, 1330–1345.
Calam, R., Sanders, M. R., Miler, C., Sadhnani, V., & Carmont, S.-A. (2008). Can technology and the media help reduce dysfunctional parenting and increase engagement with preventative parenting interventions? Child Maltreatment, 13, 347–361.
Colby, J. B., Van Horn, J. D., & Sowell, E. R. (2011). Quantitative in vivo evidence for broad regional gradients in the timing of white matter maturation during adolescence. NeuroImage, 54, 25–31.
Crick, N. R., Bigbee, M. A., & Howes, C. (1996). Gender differences in children’s normative beliefs about aggression: How do I hurt thee? Let me count the ways. Child Development, 67, 1003–1014.
Crowley, T. J., Dalwani, M. S., Mikulich-Gilbertson, S. K., Du, Y. P., Lejuez, C. W., Raymond, K. M., et al. (2010). Risky decision and their consequences: Neural processing by boys with antisocial substance disorder. PLoS One, 5, e12835.
Dishion, T. J., Bullock, B. M., & Granic, I. (2002). Pragmatism in modeling peer influence: Dynamics, outcomes, and change processes. Development and Psychopathology, 14, 969–981.
Dishion, T. J., & Kavanagh, K. (2003). Intervening in adolescent problem behavior: A family-centered approach. New York: Guilford Press.
Dishion, T. J., Kavanagh, K., Schneiger, A., Nelson, S., & Kaufman, N. K. (2002). Preventing early adolescent substance use: A family-centered strategy for the public middle school. Prevention Science, 3, 191–201.
Dishion, T. J., McCord, J., & Poulin, F. (1999). When interventions harm: Peer groups and problem behavior. American Psychologist, 54, 755–764.
Dishion, T. J., Nelson, S. E., & Bullock, B. M. (2004). Premature adolescent autonomy: Parent disengagement and deviant peer process in the amplification of problem behavior. Journal of Adolescence, 27, 515–530.
Dishion, T. J., Nelson, S. E., Winter, C. E., & Bullock, B. M. (2004). Adolescent friendship as a dynamic system: Entropy and deviance in the etiology and course of male antisocial behavior. Journal of Abnormal Child Psychology, 32, 651–663.
Dodge, K. A. (1986). A social information processing model of social competence in children. In M. Perlmutter (Ed.), Minnesota symposium in child psychology (pp. 77–125). Hillsdale, NJ: Lawrence Erlbaum.
Dodge, K. A. (2011). Social information processing as mediators of the interaction between genetic factors and life experiences in the development of aggressive behavior. In P. R. Shaver & M. Mikulincer (Eds.), Human aggression and violence: Causes, manifestations, and consequences (pp. 165–185). Washington, DC: American Psychological Association.
Ernst, M., & Fudge, J. L. (2009). A developmental neurobiological model of motivated behavior: Anatomy, connectivity and ontogeny of the triadic nodes. Neuroscience and Biobehavioral Reviews, 33, 367–382.
Ernst, M., Grant, S. J., London, E. D., Contoreggi, C. S., Kimes, A. S., & Spurgeon, L. (2003). Decision making in adolescents with behavior disorders and adults with substance abuse. The American Journal of Psychiatry, 160, 33–40.
Fairchild, G., Van Goozen, S. H., Stollery, S. J., & Goodyer, I. M. (2008). Fear conditioning and affective modulation of the startle reflex in male adolescents with early-onset or adolescence-onset conduct disorder and healthy control subjects. Biological Psychiatry, 63, 279–285.
Fontaine, N., Carbonneau, R., Vitaro, F., Barker, E. D., & Tremblay, R. E. (2009). Research review: A critical review of studies on the developmental trajectories of antisocial behavior in females. Journal of Child Psychology and Psychiatry, 50, 363–385.
Galvan, A., Hare, T. A., Parra, C. E., Penn, J., Voss, H., Glover, G., et al. (2006). Earlier development of the accumbens relative to orbitofrontal cortex might underlie risk-taking behavior in adolescents. Journal of Neuroscience, 26, 6885–6892.
Gatzke-Kopp, L. M., Beauchaine, T. P., Shannon, K. E., Chipman, J., Fleming, A. P., Crowell, S. E., et al. (2009). Neurological correlates of reward responding in adolescents with conduct disorder and/or attention-deficit/hyperactivity disorder. Journal of Abnormal Psychology, 118, 203–213.
Gatzke-Kopp, L. M., Raine, A., Loeber, S., Stouthamer-Loeber, M., & Steinhauer, S. R. (2002). Serious delinquent behavior, sensation-seeking and electrodermal arousal. Journal of Abnormal Child Psychology, 30(5), 477–486.
Gordon, D. A., Graves, K., & Arbuthnot, J. (1995). The effect of functional family therapy for delinquents on adult criminal behavior. Criminal Justice and Behavior, 22, 60–73.
Granic, I., & Patterson, G. R. (2006). Toward a comprehensive model of antisocial development: A dynamic systems approach. Psychological Review, 113, 101–131.
Hall, H. R., Bernat, E. M., & Patrick, C. J. (2007). Externalizing psychopathology and the error-related negativity. Psychological Science, 18, 326–333.
Henggeler, S. W., Cunningham, P. B., Schoenwald, S. K., Borduin, C. M., & Rowland, M. D. (2009). MultiÂsystemic therapy for antisocial behavior in children and adolescents (2nd ed.). New York: Guilford Press.
Henggeler, S. W., Melton, G. B., & Smith, L. A. (1992). Family preservation using multisystemic therapy: An effective alternative to incarcerating serious juvenile offenders. Journal of Consulting and Clinical Psychology, 60, 953–961.
Herpertz, S. C., Huebner, T., Marx, I., Vloet, T. D., Fink, G. R., Stoecker, T., et al. (2008). Emotional processing in male adolescents with childhood-onset conduct disorder. Journal of Child Psychology and Psychiatry, 49, 781–791.
Hofvander, B., Ossowski, D., Lundstrom, S., & Anckarsater, H. (2009). Continuity of aggressive antisocial behavior from childhood to adulthood: The question of phenotype definition. International Journal of Law and Psychiatry, 32, 224–234.
Horsley, T. A., de Castro, B. O., & Van der Schoot, M. (2010). In the eye of the beholder: Eye-tracking assessment of social information processing in aggressive behavior. Journal of Abnormal Child Psychology, 38, 587–599.
Johnston, L. D., O’Malley, P. M., Bachman, J. G., & Schulenberg, J. E. (2009). Monitoring the future: National results on adolescent drug use. Bethesda, MD: National Institute on Drug Abuse.
Jones, M., & Westen, D. (2010). Diagnosis and subtypes of adolescent antisocial personality disorder. Journal of Personality Disorders, 24, 217–243.
Kazdin, A. E., Mazurick, J. L., & Bass, D. (1993). Risk for attrition in treatment of antisocial children and families. Journal of Clinical Child Psychology, 22, 1–16.
Kerr, M., & Stattin, H. (2000). What parents know, how they know it, and several forms of adolescent adjustment: Further support for a reinterpretation of monitoring. Developmental Psychology, 36, 366–380.
Klein, N. C., Alexander, J. F., & Parsons, B. V. (1977). Impact of family systems intervention on recidivism and sibling delinquency: A model of primary prevention and program evaluation. Journal of Consulting and Clinical Psychology, 45, 469–474.
Krueger, R. F., Hicks, B. M., Patrick, C. J., Carlson, S. R., Iacono, W. G., & McGue, M. (2002). Etiologic connections among substance dependence, antisocial behavior, and personality: Modeling the externalizing spectrum. Journal of Abnormal Psychology, 111, 411–424.
Lacourse, E., Nagin, D., Tremblay, R. E., Vitaro, F., & Claes, M. (2003). Developmental trajectories of boys’ delinquent group membership and facilitation of violent behaviors during adolescence. Development and Psychopathology, 15, 183–197.
Levin, H. S., Culhaneb, K. A., Hartmannb, J., Evankovichb, K., Mattsonb, A. J., Harward, H., et al. (1991). Developmental changes in performance on tests of purported frontal lobe functioning. Developmental Neuropsychology, 7, 377–395.
Lewis, M. D., & Todd, R. M. (2007). The self-regulating brain: Cortical-subcortical feedback and the development of intelligent action. Cognitive Development, 22, 406–430.
Metcalfe, J., & Mischel, W. (1999). A hot/cool systems analysis of delay of gratification: Dynamics of willpower. Psychological Review, 106, 3–19.
Moffitt, T. E. (1993). Adolescence-limited and life-course-persistent antisocial behavior: A developmental taxonomy. Psychological Review, 100, 674–701.
Moffitt, T. E., & Caspi, A. (2005). Life-course persistent and adolescence-limited antisocial males: Longitudinal follow up to adulthood. In D. M. Stoff & E. J. Susman (Eds.), Developmental psychobiology of aggression (pp. 161–186). New York: Cambridge University Press.
Molero, S. Y., Hodgins, S., Larsson, A., Larm, P., & Tengstrom, A. (2010). Adolescent antisocial behavior as predictor of adverse outcomes to age 50: A follow up study of 1,974 individuals. Criminal Justice and Behavior, 37, 158–174.
Mounts, N. S. (2000). Parental management of adolescent peer relationships: What are its effects on friend selection. In K. A. Kerns, J. M. Contreras, & A. M. Neal-Barnett (Eds.), Family and peers: Linking two social worlds (pp. 169–193). Westport, CT: Praeger.
Murray, J., & Farrington, D. P. (2010). Risk factors for conduct disorder and delinquency: Key findings from longitudinal studies. Canadian Journal of Psychiatry, 55, 633–642.
Odgers, C. L., Moffitt, T. E., Broadbent, J. M., Dickson, N., Hancox, R. J., Harrington, H., et al. (2008). Female and male antisocial trajectories: From childhood origins to adult outcomes. Development and Psychopathology, 20, 673–716.
Patterson, G. R. (1982). Coercive family process. Eugene, OR: Castalia.
Poulin, F., Dishion, T. J., & Burraston, B. (2001). 3-year iatrogenic effects associated with aggregating high-risk adolescents in cognitive-behavioral preventive interventions. Applied Developmental Science, 5, 214–224.
Raine, A. (2008). From genes to brain to antisocial behavior. Current Directions in Psychological Science, 17, 323–328.
Roisman, G. I., Aguilar, B., & Egeland, B. (2004). Antisocial behavior in the transition to adulthood: The independent and interactive roles of developmental history and emerging developmental tasks. Development and Psychopathology, 21, 417–439.
Roisman, G. I., Monahan, K. C., Campbell, S. B., Steinberg, L., Cauffman, E., & The National Institute of Child Health and Human Development Early Child Care Research Network. (2010). Is adolescence-onset antisocial behavior developmentally normative? Development and Psychopathology, 22, 295–311.
Sagvolden, T. A., Johansen, E. B., Aase, H., & Russell, V. A. (2005). A dynamic developmental theory of attention-deficit/hyperactivity disorder (ADHD) predominantly hyperactive/impulsive and combined subtypes. The Behavioral and Brain Sciences, 28, 397–419.
Sanders, M. R., Calam, R., Durand, M., Liversidge, T., & Carmont, S. A. (2008). Does self-directed and web-based support for parents enhance the effects of viewing a reality television series based on the Tripe P-Positive Parenting Programme? Journal of Child Psychology and Psychiatry, 49, 924–932.
Sanders, M. R., & Prinz, R. J. (2008). Using the mass media as a population level strategy to strengthen parenting skills. Journal of Clinical Child and Adolescent Psychology, 37, 609–621.
Seeley, W. W., Menon, V., Schatzberg, A. F., Keller, J., Glover, G. H., Kenna, H., et al. (2007). Dissociable intrinsic connectivity networks for salience processing and executive control. Journal of Neuroscience, 27, 2349–2356.
Sexton, T. L., & Alexander, J. F. (1999). Functional family therapy: Principles of clinical intervention, assessment, and implementation. Henderson, NV: RCH Enterprises.
Shannon, K. E., Sauder, C., Beauchaine, T. P., & Gatzke-Kopp, L. M. (2009). Disrupted effective connectivity between the medial frontal cortex and the caudate in adolescent boys with externalizing behavior disorders. Criminal Justice and Behavior, 36, 1141–1157.
Siever, L. J. (2008). Neurobiology of aggression and violence. The American Journal of Psychiatry, 165, 429–442.
Soenens, B., Vansteenkiste, M., & Niemiec, C. P. (2009). Should parental prohibition of adolescents’ peer relationships be prohibited? Personal Relationships, 16, 507–530.
Somerville, J. H., & Casey, B. J. (2010). Development neurobiology of cognitive control and motivational systems. Current Opinion in Neurobiology, 20, 236–241.
Sowell, E. R., Peterson, B. S., Thompson, P. M., Welcome, S. E., Henkenius, A. L., & Toga, A. W. (2003). Map** cortical change across the human life span. Nature Neuroscience, 6, 309–315.
Spoth, R., Guyll, M., & Shin, C. (2009). Universal intervention as a protective shield against exposure to substance use: Long-term outcomes and public health significance. American Journal of Public Health, 99, 2026–2033.
Spoth, R. L., Redmond, C., & Shin, C. (2001). Randomized trial of brief family interventions for general populations: Adolescent substance use outcomes 4 years following baseline. Journal of Consulting and Clinical Psychology, 69, 627–642.
Stadler, C., Sterzer, P., Schmeck, K., Krebs, A., Kleinschmidt, A., & Poustka, F. (2007). Reduced anterior cingulate activation in aggressive children and adolescents during affective stimulation: Association with temperament traits. Journal of Psychiatric Research, 41, 410–417.
Stattin, H., & Kerr, M. (2000). Parental monitoring: A reinterpretation. Child Development, 71, 1072–1085.
Steinberg, L. (2001). We know some things: Parent-adolescent relationships in retrospect and prospect. Journal of Research on Adolescence, 11, 1–19.
Steinberg, L., Mounts, N. S., Lamborn, S. D., & Dornbusch, S. M. (1991). Authoritative parenting and adolescent adjustment across varied ecological niches. Journal of Research on Adolescence, 1, 19–36.
Susman, E. J., Dockray, S., Granger, D. A., Blades, K. T., Randazzo, W., Heaton, J. A., et al. (2010). Cortisol and alpha amylase reactivity and timing of puberty: Vulnerabilities for antisocial behavior in young adolescents. Psychoneuroendocrinology, 35, 557–569.
Swanson, H. L. (1999). What develops in working memory? A life span perspective. Developmental Psychology, 35, 986–1000.
Vera, J., Ezpeleta, L., Granero, R., & de la Osa, N. (2010). Antisocial behavior, psychopathology and functional impairment: Association with sex and age in clinical children and adolescents. Child Psychiatry and Human Behavior, 41, 465–478.
Williams, B. R., Ponesse, J. S., Schachar, R. J., Logan, G. D., & Tannock, R. (1999). Development of inhibitory control across the life span. Developmental Psychology, 35, 205–213.
Woodward, L. J., Fergusson, D. M., & Horwood, L. J. (2002). Romantic relationships of young people with childhood and adolescent onset antisocial behavior problems. Journal of Abnormal Child Psychology, 30, 231–243.
Yang, Y., & Raine, A. (2009). Prefrontal structural and functional brain imaging findings in antisocial, violent, and psychopathic individuals: A meta analysis. Psychiatry Research: Neuroimaging, 174, 81–88.
Zabin, L. S., Emerson, M. R., & Rowland, D. L. (2005). Childhood sexual abuse and early menarche: The direction of their relationship and its implications. Journal of Adolescent Health, 36, 393–400.
Author information
Authors and Affiliations
Corresponding author
Editor information
Editors and Affiliations
Rights and permissions
Copyright information
© 2013 Springer Science+Business Media New York
About this chapter
Cite this chapter
Gatzke-Kopp, L.M., DuPuis, D., Nix, R.L. (2013). Social and Biological Changes During Adolescence That Precipitate the Onset of Antisocial Behavior. In: O'Donohue, W., Benuto, L., Woodward Tolle, L. (eds) Handbook of Adolescent Health Psychology. Springer, New York, NY. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-1-4614-6633-8_28
Download citation
DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/978-1-4614-6633-8_28
Published:
Publisher Name: Springer, New York, NY
Print ISBN: 978-1-4614-6632-1
Online ISBN: 978-1-4614-6633-8
eBook Packages: Behavioral ScienceBehavioral Science and Psychology (R0)