Neurobiological correlates of antisociality across adolescence and young adulthood: a multi-sample, multi-method study

Abstract

Background Antisociality across adolescence and young adulthood puts individuals at high risk of developing a variety of problems. Prior research has linked antisociality to autonomic nervous system and endocrinological functioning. However, there is large heterogeneity in antisocial behaviors, and these neurobiological measures are rarely studied conjointly, limited to small specific studies with narrow age ranges, and yield mixed findings due to the type of behavior examined. Methods We harmonized data from 1489 participants (9–27 years, 67% male), from six heterogeneous samples. In the resulting dataset, we tested relations between distinct dimensions of antisociality and heart rate, pre-ejection period (PEP), respiratory sinus arrhythmia, respiration rate, skin conductance levels, testosterone, basal cortisol, and the cortisol awakening response (CAR), and test the role of age throughout adolescence and young adulthood. Results Three dimensions of antisociality were uncovered: ‘callous-unemotional (CU)/manipulative traits’, ‘intentional aggression/conduct’, and ‘reactivity/impulsivity/irritability’. Shorter PEPs and higher testosterone were related to CU/manipulative traits, and a higher CAR is related to both CU/manipulative traits and intentional aggression/conduct. These effects were stable across age. Conclusions Across a heterogeneous sample and consistent across development, the CAR may be a valuable measure to link to CU/manipulative traits and intentional aggression, while sympathetic arousal and testosterone are additionally valuable to understand CU/manipulative traits. Together, these findings deepen our understanding of the fundamental mechanisms underlying different components of antisociality. Finally, we illustrate the potential of using current statistical techniques for combining multiple datasets to draw robust conclusions about biobehavioral associations.

Integrating Cognitive Developmental Neuroscience in Society: Lessons Learned From a Multidisciplinary Research Project on Education and Social Safety of Youth

“…Importantly, neurobiological markers cannot be used in their own right, but should be integrated with psychosocial characteristics of individuals. At the moment, an algorithm is being developed to predict antisocial and delinquent behavior from biopsychosocial information within clinical practice (for an example prototype, see 6 ; de Ruigh et al, 2021). To implement this algorithm for crime prevention and risk assessment, the current consortium involves partners from Juvenile Justice Institutions and Youth Care to guarantee the feasibility and usability of this tool (translation).…”

“…Also, results vary depending on the antisocial behavior that is investigated. Through the extensive collaboration between different universities and youth care facilities, we were able to gain access to and harmonize data from 6 (clinical) samples ( Blankenstein et al, 2021 ). This resulted in a unique dataset of 1,489 participants, displaying none to severe criminal behavior.…”

Exploring the effects of a wearable biocueing app (Sense-IT) as an addition to aggression regulation therapy in forensic psychiatric outpatients

“…Over the last years, the number of studies focusing on the psychophysiological correlates of antisocial spectrum behavior and aggression has increased (Portnoy and Farrington, 2015;Blankenstein et al, 2021;De Looff et al, 2021;Blankenstein et al, 2022). In aggression research, psychophysiological measures such as heart rate (HR), skin conductance level (SCL), and heart rate variability (HRV) are used as indicators of, respectively, the general activity of the autonomic nervous system (ANS) and its two branches: the accelerating sympathetic nervous system (SNS) and the inhibitory parasympathetic nervous system (PNS; Branje and Koot, 2018).…”

Neurobiological Responses towards Stimuli Depicting Aggressive Interactions in Delinquent Young Adults and Controls: No Relation to Reactive and Proactive Aggression

“…Studies on the neurobiology of emotion regulation in delinquents have mostly examined either structural or functional brain correlates or used psychophysiological or electrophysiological measures. Thus, neurobiological measures are rarely jointly studied in relation to aggression [ 10 ]. In addition, studies often have focused on antisocial behavior more generally, leaving aggressive behavior less specifically addressed.…”

“…However, studies are often performed in community samples, using resting-state data or neuropsychological tasks that induce arousal but not specifically depict aggressive behavior. Furthermore, results remain inconsistent and neurobiological measures are rarely studied conjointly [ 10 ]. Therefore, the aim of our study was to examine differences in psychophysiological (i.e., HR, RSA, SCL) and electrophysiological responses (i.e., P3, LPP, mu suppression) between delinquent young adults and controls in a passive viewing task depicting aggressive and neutral interactions.…”