Advantages of Machine Learning in Forensic Psychiatric Research—Uncovering the Complexities of Aggressive Behavior in Schizophrenia

Linear statistical methods may not be suited to the understanding of psychiatric phenomena such as aggression due to their complexity and multifactorial origins. Here, the application of machine learning (ML) algorithms offers the possibility of analyzing a large number of influencing factors and their interactions. This study aimed to explore inpatient aggression in offender patients with schizophrenia spectrum disorders (SSDs) using a suitable ML model on a dataset of 370 patients. With a balanced accuracy of 77.6% and an AUC of 0.87, support vector machines (SVM) outperformed all the other ML algorithms. Negative behavior toward other patients, the breaking of ward rules, the PANSS score at admission as well as poor impulse control and impulsivity emerged as the most predictive variables in distinguishing aggressive from non-aggressive patients. The present study serves as an example of the practical use of ML in forensic psychiatric research regarding the complex interplay between the factors contributing to aggressive behavior in SSD. Through its application, it could be shown that mental illness and the antisocial behavior associated with it outweighed other predictors. The fact that SSD is also highly associated with antisocial behavior emphasizes the importance of early detection and sufficient treatment.

Surviving Senior Psychopathy: Informant Reports of Deceit and Antisocial Behavior in Multiple Types of Relationships

A prevailing view among researchers and mental health clinicians is that symptoms of antisocial personality disorder (ASPD)/psychopathy decrease as affected individuals reach middle age. In the current investigation, informants were surveyed about the behavior of individuals who they believed showed traits of ASPD/psychopathy and were over the age of 50. A final sample of 1,215 respondents rated the index individuals according to the ASPD/psychopathy traits derived from the pre-publication first draft of the Diagnostic and Statistical Manual of Mental Disorders Fifth Edition, revealing high endorsement of traits associated with ASPD. Survey respondents reported their observations that individuals who met a threshold for putative ASPD/psychopathy continued to engage in antisocial behavior after age 50, and as a result the respondents endured significant harm, including material losses, financial losses, and various self-reported mental health problems. Those who knew the index individuals both before and after the age of 50 were specifically asked whether there was a change in the individual’s engagement in manipulation, deceit, and antisocial behavior; 93% of respondents reported that the behavior was just as bad or worse after age 50. Other researchers have suggested that the DSM diagnostic criteria do not accurately describe ASPD/psychopathy symptoms and behavior in older adults, and that the disorder remains stable, but its manifestation changes with age. This study supports those conclusions.

Exploring differences in the antisocial behaviors of adolescent rule-breaking that affect entrepreneurial persistence

PurposeThe authors explore the relationship between adolescent behavior and subsequent entrepreneurial persistence by drawing on scholarship from clinical psychology and criminology to examine different subtypes of antisocial behavior (nonaggressive antisocial behavior and aggressive antisocial behavior) that underlie adolescent rule breaking. The intersection of gender and socioeconomic status on these types of antisocial behavior and entrepreneurial persistence is also studied.Design/methodology/approachUsing a longitudinal research design, this study draws from a national representative survey of USA adolescents, the National Longitudinal Survey of Youth (1997) (NLSY97). Nonaggressive antisocial behavior was assessed with a composite scale that measured economic self-interest and with a second measure that focused on substance abuse. Aggressive antisocial behavior was assessed as a measure of aggressive, destructive behaviors, such as fighting and property destruction. Entrepreneurial persistence was operationalized as years of self-employment experience, which is based on the number of years a respondent reported any self-employment.FindingsAggressive antisocial behavior is positively related to entrepreneurial persistence but nonaggressive antisocial behavior is not. This relationship is moderated by gender and socioeconomic status.Originality/valueThese findings contribute to research on the relationship between adolescent behavior and entrepreneurship in adulthood, the effect of antisocial behavior, and demographic intersectionality (by gender and socioeconomic status) in entrepreneurship. The authors surmise that the finding that self-employment for men from lower socioeconomic backgrounds involved in aggressive antisocial behavior was significantly higher compared to others may indicate that necessity entrepreneurship may be the primary driver of entrepreneurial activity for these individuals.

Law Abidance / Delinquency through the Lens of Neurobiology

The paper is interdisciplinary in nature: it is written at the intersection of legal theory and neuroscience. In legal science, the study of the causes of illegal behavior is carried out at different levels (psychological, sociological and philosophical). The novelty that this paper introduces is that it is proposed to conduct research on the causes of illegal behavior at the neurobiological level, which is almost more powerful than those mentioned above. The paper is aimed at solving the problem of using a neurobiological portrait of a person or a social group to prevent offenses. According to neurobiological features, people are divided into 4 categories: visual, auditory, kinesthetic and digital, which implies a different characteristic of them in terms of law abidance/delinquency. Knowledge of the neurobiological features of the subjects of law will allow the state to act “ahead of the curve”, and not wait for the commission of illegal actions to begin the fight against them. The question of the gender brain (or the features of the female and male brains) and its influence on the nature of delinquency is being investigated. The features of the adolescent brain are considered, which are able to activate not only prosocial behavior, but also antisocial. The use of neuroscience to explain the antisocial behavior of adolescents allows a deeper understanding of juvenile delinquency. The understanding of the peculiarities of the adolescent brain, it seems possible to develop many different measures in advance to direct their energy in the right way. Finally, neurobiological knowledge is also used to study the legal behavior of older people. The gerontological brain has both advantages and disadvantages. Despite the fact that older people are law-abiding, and the level of delinquency among them is law, it is extremely shortsighted to abandon the behavior of older people in the field of law, especially in the light of demographic problems existing in Russia.

Longitudinal Associations between Parental Support and Parental Knowledge on Behavioral and Emotional Problems in Adolescents

When testing longitudinal effects of parenting practices on adolescent adjustment, an integrated consideration of externalizing and internalizing behaviors is a gap in research. This study analyzed how parental support and parental knowledge directly and indirectly influence both antisocial behavior and emotional problems. The sample had 642 adolescents aged 12-15 (mean age = 12.49; 45.4% females) from Spain, who participated in a three-year long study. The results showed longitudinal bidirectional associations between parental support and parental knowledge. Only parental knowledge, however, directly predicted antisocial behavior and emotional problems. Parental support had an indirect effect on outcomes through the mediating effect of parental knowledge. This study has practical implications by indicating that increasing parental knowledge should be the target of educational-prevention programs.