Top

Published in:

Open Access 01-09-2018 | Original Contribution

Genetic and environmental influences on conduct and antisocial personality problems in childhood, adolescence, and adulthood

Authors: Laura W. Wesseldijk, Meike Bartels, Jacqueline M. Vink, Catharina E. M. van Beijsterveldt, Lannie Ligthart, Dorret I. Boomsma, Christel M. Middeldorp

Published in: European Child & Adolescent Psychiatry | Issue 9/2018

Abstract

Conduct problems in children and adolescents can predict antisocial personality disorder and related problems, such as crime and conviction. We sought an explanation for such predictions by performing a genetic longitudinal analysis. We estimated the effects of genetic, shared environmental, and unique environmental factors on variation in conduct problems measured at childhood and adolescence and antisocial personality problems measured at adulthood and on the covariation across ages. We also tested whether these estimates differed by sex. Longitudinal data were collected in the Netherlands Twin Register over a period of 27 years. Age appropriate and comparable measures of conduct and antisocial personality problems, assessed with the Achenbach System of Empirically Based Assessment, were available for 9783 9–10-year-old, 6839 13–18-year-old, and 7909 19–65-year-old twin pairs, respectively; 5114 twins have two or more assessments. At all ages, men scored higher than women. There were no sex differences in the estimates of the genetic and environmental influences. During childhood, genetic and environmental factors shared by children in families explained 43 and 44% of the variance of conduct problems, with the remaining variance due to unique environment. During adolescence and adulthood, genetic and unique environmental factors equally explained the variation. Longitudinal correlations across age varied between 0.20 and 0.38 and were mainly due to stable genetic factors. We conclude that shared environment is mainly of importance during childhood, while genetic factors contribute to variation in conduct and antisocial personality problems at all ages, and also underlie its stability over age.

Available only for authorised users

American Psychiatric Association (2013) Diagnostic and statistical manual of mental disorders, 5th edn. American Psychiatric Publishing, ArlingtonCrossRef

Copeland WE, Wolke D, Shanahan L, Costello EJ (2015) Adult functional outcomes of common childhood psychiatric problems: a prospective, longitudinal study. JAMA Psychiatry 72(9):892–899. doi:10.1001/jamapsychiatry.2015.0730 CrossRefPubMedPubMedCentral

Fergusson DM, John Horwood L, Ridder EM (2005) Show me the child at seven: the consequences of conduct problems in childhood for psychosocial functioning in adulthood. J Child Psychol psychiatry 46(8):837–849. doi:10.1111/j.1469-7610.2004.00387.x CrossRefPubMed

Fergusson DM, Boden JM, Horwood LJ (2010) Classification of behavior disorders in adolescence: scaling methods, predictive validity, and gender differences. J Abnorm Psychol 119(4):699–712. doi:10.1037/a0018610 CrossRefPubMed

Copeland WE, Shanahan L, Costello EJ, Angold A (2009) Childhood and adolescent psychiatric disorders as predictors of young adult disorders. Arch Gen Psychiatry 66(7):764–772. doi:10.1001/archgenpsychiatry.2009.85 CrossRefPubMedPubMedCentral

Copeland WE, Adair CE, Smetanin P, Stiff D, Briante C, Colman I, Fergusson D, Horwood J, Poulton R, Costello EJ, Angold A (2013) Diagnostic transitions from childhood to adolescence to early adulthood. J Child Psychol Psychiatry 54(7):791–799. doi:10.1111/jcpp.12062 CrossRefPubMedPubMedCentral

Canino G, Polanczyk G, Bauermeister JJ, Rohde LA, Frick PJ (2010) Does the prevalence of CD and ODD vary across cultures? Soc Psychiatry Psychiatr Epidemiol 45(7):695–704. doi:10.1007/s00127-010-0242-y CrossRefPubMedPubMedCentral

Bourne R (2010) Antisocial personality disorder: the NICE guideline on treatment, management and prevention. Br J Psychiatry 197(4):337. doi:10.1192/bjp.bp.110.080440 CrossRef

McCollister KE, French MT, Fang H (2010) The cost of crime to society: new crime-specific estimates for policy and program evaluation. Drug Alcohol Depend 108(1–2):98–109. doi:10.1016/j.drugalcdep.2009.12.002 CrossRefPubMedPubMedCentral

10.

Burt SA (2009) Rethinking environmental contributions to child and adolescent psychopathology: a meta-analysis of shared environmental influences. Psychol Bull 135(4):608–637. doi:10.1037/a0015702 CrossRefPubMed

11.

Ferguson CJ (2010) Genetic contributions to antisocial personality and behavior: a meta-analytic review from an evolutionary perspective. J Soc Psychol 150(2):160–180. doi:10.1080/00224540903366503 CrossRefPubMed

12.

Rhee SH, Waldman ID (2002) Genetic and environmental influences on antisocial behavior: a meta-analysis of twin and adoption studies. Psychol Bull 128(3):490–529CrossRefPubMed

13.

Polderman TJ, Benyamin B, de Leeuw CA, Sullivan PF, van Bochoven A, Visscher PM, Posthuma D (2015) Meta-analysis of the heritability of human traits based on fifty years of twin studies. Nat Genet. doi:10.1038/ng.3285 CrossRefPubMed

14.

Hicks BM, Blonigen DM, Kramer MD, Krueger RF, Patrick CJ, Iacono WG, Mcgue M (2007) Gender differences and developmental change in externalizing disorders from late adolescence to early adulthood: a longitudinal twin study. J Abnorm Psychol 116(3):433–447. doi:10.1037/0021-843x.116.3.433 CrossRefPubMedPubMedCentral

15.

Jacobson KC, Prescott CA, Kendler KS (2002) Sex differences in the genetic and environmental influences on the development of antisocial behavior. Dev Psychopathol 14(2):395–416CrossRefPubMed

16.

Meier MH, Slutske WS, Heath AC, Martin NG (2011) Sex differences in the genetic and environmental influences on childhood conduct disorder and adult antisocial behavior. J Abnorm Psychol 120(2):377–388. doi:10.1037/a0022303 CrossRefPubMedPubMedCentral

17.

Tuvblad C, Eley TC, Lichtenstein P (2005) The development of antisocial behaviour from childhood to adolescence—a longitudinal twin study. Eur Child Adolesc Psychiatry 14(4):216–225. doi:10.1007/s00787-005-0458-7 CrossRefPubMed

18.

Moffitt TE (2001) Sex differences in antisocial behaviour : conduct disorder, delinquency, and violence in the Dunedin longitudinal study. Cambridge studies in criminology. Cambridge University Press, CambridgeCrossRef

19.

Rose RJ, Dick DM, Viken RJ, Pulkkinen L, Kaprio J (2004) Genetic and environmental effects on conduct disorder and alcohol dependence symptoms and their covariation at age 14. Alcohol Clin Exp Res 28(10):1541–1548CrossRefPubMed

20.

Slutske WS, Heath AC, Dinwiddie SH, Madden PAF, Bucholz KK, Dunne MP, Statham DJ, Martin NG (1997) Modeling genetic and environmental influences in the etiology of conduct disorder: a study of 2,682 adult twin pairs. J Abnorm Psychol 106(2):266–279. doi:10.1037/0021-843x.106.2.266 CrossRefPubMed

21.

Saudino KJ, Ronald A, Plomin R (2005) The etiology of behavior problems in 7-year-old twins: substantial genetic influence and negligible shared environmental influence for parent ratings and ratings by same and different teachers. J Abnorm Child Psychol 33(1):113–130. doi:10.1007/s10802-005-0939-7 CrossRefPubMed

22.

Eaves LJ, Silberg JL, Meyer JM, Maes HH, Simonoff E, Pickles A, Rutter M, Neale MC, Reynolds CA, Erikson MT, Heath AC, Loeber R, Truett KR, Hewitt JK (1997) Genetics and developmental psychopathology: 2. The main effects of genes and environment on behavioral problems in the Virginia twin study of adolescent behavioral development. J Child Psychol Psychiatry 38(8):965–980. doi:10.1111/j.1469-7610.1997.tb01614.x CrossRefPubMed

23.

Vink JM, Bartels M, van Beijsterveldt TC, van Dongen J, van Beek JH, Distel MA, de Moor MH, Smit DJ, Minica CC, Ligthart L, Geels LM, Abdellaoui A, Middeldorp CM, Hottenga JJ, Willemsen G, de Geus EJ, Boomsma DI (2012) Sex differences in genetic architecture of complex phenotypes? PLoS One 7(12):e47371. doi:10.1371/journal.pone.0047371 CrossRefPubMedPubMedCentral

24.

Zheng Y, Cleveland HH (2015) Differential genetic and environmental influences on developmental trajectories of antisocial behavior from adolescence to young adulthood. J Adolesc 45:204–213. doi:10.1016/j.adolescence.2015.10.006 CrossRefPubMedPubMedCentral

25.

Gelhorn HL, Stallings MC, Young SE, Corley RP, Rhee SH, Hewitt JK (2005) Genetic and environmental influences on conduct disorder: symptom, domain and full-scale analyses. J Child Psychol Psychiatry 46(6):580–591. doi:10.1111/j.1469-7610.2004.00373.x CrossRefPubMed

26.

RescorlaL A (2003) Manual for the ASEBA adult forms and profiles : for ages 18–59: adult self-report and adult behavior checklist. ASEBA, Burlington

27.

Achenbach TM, Rescorla L (2001) Manual for the ASEBA school-age forms and profiles : an integrated system of multi-informant assessment. ASEBA, Burlington

28.

van Beijsterveldt CE, Groen-Blokhuis M, Hottenga JJ, Franic S, Hudziak JJ, Lamb D, Huppertz C, de Zeeuw E, Nivard M, Schutte N, Swagerman S, Glasner T, van Fulpen M, Brouwer C, Stroet T, Nowotny D, Ehli EA, Davies GE, Scheet P, Orlebeke JF, Kan KJ, Smit D, Dolan CV, Middeldorp CM, de Geus EJ, Bartels M, Boomsma DI (2013) The Young Netherlands Twin Register (YNTR): longitudinal twin and family studies in over 70,000 children. Twin Res Hum Genet 16(1):252–267. doi:10.1017/thg.2012.118 CrossRefPubMed

29.

Willemsen G, Vink JM, Abdellaoui A, den Braber A, van Beek JH, Draisma HH, van Dongen J, van ‘t Ent D, Geels LM, van Lien R, Ligthart L, Kattenberg M, Mbarek H, de Moor MH, Neijts M, Pool R, Stroo N, Kluft C, Suchiman HE, Slagboom PE, Geus EJ, Boomsma DI (2013) The Adult Netherlands Twin Register: twenty-five years of survey and biological data collection. Twin Res Hum Genet 16(1):271–281. doi:10.1017/thg.2012.140 CrossRefPubMedPubMedCentral

30.

Wesseldijk LW, Fedko IO, Bartels M, Nivard MG, van Beijsterveldt CE, Boomsma DI, Middeldorp CM (2016) Psychopathology in 7-year-old children: differences in maternal and paternal ratings and the genetic epidemiology. Am J Med Genet B Neuropsychiatr Genet 174(3):251–260. doi:10.1002/ajmg.b.32500 CrossRefPubMedPubMedCentral

31.

Petersen IT, Bates JE, Dodge KA, Lansford JE, Pettit GS (2015) Describing and predicting developmental profiles of externalizing problems from childhood to adulthood. Dev Psychopathol 27(3):791–818. doi:10.1017/S0954579414000789 CrossRefPubMed

32.

Derks EM, Dolan CV, Boomsma DI (2004) Effects of censoring on parameter estimates and power in genetic modeling. Twin Res Hum Genet 7(6):659–669. doi:10.1375/1369052042663832 CrossRef

33.

Falconer DS, Mackay TFC (1996) Introduction to quantitative genetics. Longmans Green, Harlow, Essex

34.

Boker S, Neale M, Maes H, Wilde M, Spiegel M, Brick T, Spies J, Estabrook R, Kenny S, Bates T, Mehta P, Fox J (2011) OpenMx: an open source extended structural equation modeling framework. Psychometrika 76(2):306–317. doi:10.1007/s11336-010-9200-6 CrossRefPubMedPubMedCentral

35.

Neale MC, Miller MB (1997) The use of likelihood-based confidence intervals in genetic models. Behav Genet 27(2):113–120. doi:10.1023/A:1025681223921 CrossRefPubMed

36.

Posthuma D, Beem AL, de Geus EJ, van Baal GC, von Hjelmborg JB, Iachine I, Boomsma DI (2003) Theory and practice in quantitative genetics. Twin Res Hum Genet 6(5):361–376. doi:10.1375/136905203770326367 CrossRef

37.

Zhang R, Thiele H, Bartmann P, Hilger AC, Berg C, Herberg U, Klingmuller D, Nurnberg P, Ludwig M, Reutter H (2016) Whole-exome sequencing in nine monozygotic discordant twins. Twin Res Hum Genet 19(1):60–65. doi:10.1017/thg.2015.93 CrossRefPubMed

38.

van Dongen J, Slagboom PE, Draisma HHM, Martin NG, Boomsma DI (2012) The continuing value of twin studies in the omics era. Nat Rev Genet 13(9):640–653. doi:10.1038/nrg3243 CrossRefPubMed

39.

Neale MC, Cardon LR, North Atlantic Treaty Organization. Scientific Affairs Division (1992) Methodology for genetic studies of twins and families. NATO ASI series Series D, behavioural and social sciences, vol 67. Kluwer Academic Publishers, Dordrecht

40.

Bergen SE, Gardner CO, Kendler KS (2007) Age-related changes in heritability of behavioral phenotypes over adolescence and young adulthood: a meta-analysis. Twin Res Hum Genet 10(3):423–433. doi:10.1375/twin.10.3.423 CrossRefPubMed

41.

Miles DR, Carey G (1997) Genetic and environmental architecture of human aggression. J Pers Soc Psychol 72(1):207–217CrossRefPubMed

42.

Posthuma D, Boomsma DI (2000) A note on the statistical power in extended twin designs. Behav Genet 30(2):147–158CrossRefPubMed

43.

Visscher PM, Gordon S, Neale MC (2008) Power of the classical twin design revisited: II detection of common environmental variance. Twin Res Hum Genet 11(1):48–54. doi:10.1375/twin.11.1.48 CrossRefPubMedPubMedCentral

44.

Kendler KS, Patrick CJ, Larsson H, Gardner CO, Lichtenstein P (2013) Genetic and environmental risk factors in males for self-report externalizing traits in mid-adolescence and criminal behavior through young adulthood. Psychol Med 43(10):2161–2168. doi:10.1017/S003329171300007x CrossRefPubMed

45.

Lamb DJ, Middeldorp CM, van Beijsterveldt CE, Bartels M, van der Aa N, Polderman TJ, Boomsma DI (2010) Heritability of anxious-depressive and withdrawn behavior: age-related changes during adolescence. J Am Acad Child Adolesc Psychiatry 49(3):248–255PubMed

46.

Van Grootheest DS, Bartels M, Van Beijsterveldt CEM, Cath DC, Beekman AT, Hudziak JJ, Boomsma DI (2008) Genetic and environmental contributions to self-report obsessive-compulsive symptoms in Dutch adolescents at ages 12, 14, and 16. J Am Acad Child Adolesc Psychiatry 47(10):1182–1188. doi:10.1097/CHI.0b013e3181825abd CrossRefPubMed

47.

Racz SJ, McMahon RJ (2011) The relationship between parental knowledge and monitoring and child and adolescent conduct problems: a 10-year update. Clin Child Fam Psychol Rev 14(4):377–398. doi:10.1007/s10567-011-0099-y CrossRefPubMed

48.

Laird RD, Pettit GS, Bates JE, Dodge KA (2003) Parents’ monitoring-relevant knowledge and adolescents’ delinquent behavior: evidence of correlated developmental changes and reciprocal influences. Child Dev 74(3):752–768. doi:10.1111/1467-8624.00566 CrossRefPubMedPubMedCentral

49.

Laird RD, Criss MM, Pettit GS, Bates JE, Dodge KA (2009) Developmental trajectories and antecedents of distal parental supervision. J Early Adolesc 29(2):258–284. doi:10.1177/0272431608320123 CrossRefPubMedPubMedCentral

50.

Kerr M, Stattin H, Burk WJ (2010) A reinterpretation of parental monitoring in longitudinal perspective. J Res Adolesc 20(1):39–64. doi:10.1111/j.1532-7795.2009.00623.x CrossRef

51.

Keijsers L, Frijns T, Branje SJT, Meeus W (2009) Developmental links of adolescent disclosure, parental solicitation, and control with delinquency: moderation by parental support. Dev Psychol 45(5):1314–1327. doi:10.1037/a0016693 CrossRefPubMed

52.

Smetana JG (1988) Adolescents and parents conceptions of parental authority. Child Dev 59(2):321–335. doi:10.1111/j.1467-8624.1988.tb01469.x CrossRefPubMed

53.

Marceau K, Narusyte J, Lichtenstein P, Ganiban JM, Spotts EL, Reiss D, Neiderhiser JM (2015) Parental knowledge is an environmental influence on adolescent externalizing. J Child Psychol Psychiatry 56(2):130–137. doi:10.1111/jcpp.12288 CrossRefPubMed

54.

McAdams TA, Neiderhiser JM, Rijsdijk FV, Narusyte J, Lichtenstein P, Eley TC (2014) Accounting for genetic and environmental confounds in associations between parent and child characteristics: a systematic review of children-of-twins studies. Psychol Bull 140(4):1138–1173. doi:10.1037/a0036416 CrossRefPubMed

55.

O’Connor TG, Deater-Deckard K, Fulker D, Rutter M, Plomin R (1998) Genotype-environment correlations in late childhood and early adolescence: antisocial behavioral problems and coercive parenting. Dev Psychol 34(5):970–981. doi:10.1037/0012-1649.34.5.970 CrossRefPubMed

56.

Kan KJ, van Beijsterveldt CE, Bartels M, Boomsma DI (2014) Assessing genetic influences on behavior: informant and context dependency as illustrated by the analysis of attention problems. Behav Genet 44(4):326–336. doi:10.1007/s10519-014-9657-7 CrossRefPubMed

57.

Wicherts JM (2016) The importance of measurement invariance in neurocognitive ability testing. Clin Neuropsychol 30(7):1006–1016. doi:10.1080/13854046.2016.1205136 CrossRefPubMed

58.

Carey G (1992) Twin imitation for antisocial behavior: implications for genetic and family environment research. J Abnorm Psychol 101(1):18–25CrossRefPubMed

59.

Carey G (1986) Sibling imitation and contrast effects. Behav Genet 16(3):319–341. doi:10.1007/Bf01071314 CrossRefPubMed

Title: Genetic and environmental influences on conduct and antisocial personality problems in childhood, adolescence, and adulthood
Authors: Laura W. Wesseldijk
Meike Bartels
Jacqueline M. Vink
Catharina E. M. van Beijsterveldt
Lannie Ligthart
Dorret I. Boomsma
Christel M. Middeldorp
Publication date: 01-09-2018
Publisher: Springer Berlin Heidelberg
Published in: European Child & Adolescent Psychiatry / Issue 9/2018
Print ISSN: 1018-8827
Electronic ISSN: 1435-165X
DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/s00787-017-1014-y

Keynote webinar | Spotlight on sleep in brain health

Springer Medicine

Genetic and environmental influences on conduct and antisocial personality problems in childhood, adolescence, and adulthood

Abstract

Keynote webinar | Spotlight on sleep in brain health

Springer Medicine

Abstract

Please log in to get access to this content

Other articles of this Issue 9/2018

Comparing the DSM-5 construct of Disruptive Mood Dysregulation Disorder and ICD-10 Mixed Disorder of Emotion and Conduct in the UK Longitudinal Assessment of Manic Symptoms (UK-LAMS) Study

Child-based treatment of oppositional defiant disorder: mediating effects on parental depression, anxiety and stress

Long-term neurodevelopmental consequences of intrauterine exposure to lithium and antipsychotics: a systematic review and meta-analysis

Childhood aggression and the co-occurrence of behavioural and emotional problems: results across ages 3–16 years from multiple raters in six cohorts in the EU-ACTION project

Sex differences in risk-based decision making in adolescents with conduct disorder

Diagnostic accuracy of the ADOS and ADOS-2 in clinical practice