Patterns Of Aggressive Behavior Research Articles

Predicting Adult Physical Health Outcomes from Childhood Aggression, Social Withdrawal and Likeability: A 30-Year Prospective, Longitudinal Study

Literature suggests that early patterns of aggressive behavior in both girls and boys are predictive of a variety of health risks in adulthood. However, longitudinal examination of predictive links between childhood aggression and negative adult physical health outcomes and overall medical service usage has not been done. The purpose of the present investigation is to extend the current body of knowledge regarding the long-term negative physical health sequelae of aggression observed in childhood, by examining direct and indirect paths (through educational attainment) from childhood aggression and other behavioral characteristics to poor physical health in middle adulthood. This study was carried out within the Concordia Longitudinal Risk Project, a study of over 4,000 individuals recruited as children in the 1970s from inner-city schools in Montreal. Childhood aggression was found to directly and positively predict medical service usage, as well as medical visits due to lifestyle-related illnesses and injuries, with indirect paths through educational attainment also present. The findings from this study suggest that childhood aggression may be an identifiable precursor of poor health and increased service usage in adulthood and are relevant to preventative intervention.

18F-FDG PET of Locally Invasive Breast Cancer and Association of Estrogen Receptor Status with Standardized Uptake Value: Microarray and Immunohistochemical Analysis

PET imaging is useful for evaluating locally advanced primary breast cancer. Expression of specific molecular markers in these cancers, such as estrogen receptor (ER), progesterone receptor (PR), and HER2 status, has direct prognostic and therapeutic implications in patient management. This study aimed to determine whether a relationship exists between tumor glucose use and important molecular markers in invasive breast cancer. For our purposes, tumor glucose use is quantified by the PET-derived parameter maximum standardized uptake value (SUV). Breast tumors from 36 patients were excised and examined histologically after PET. ER, PR, and HER2 status were determined for all lesions histopathologically. In addition, genomewide expression for a subset of 20 tumors was analyzed using the human genome U133A oligonucleotide microarray. A significant association was found between estrogen ER status and lesion SUV. ER-negative tumors (n = 17; median SUV, 8.5) demonstrated a significantly higher maximum SUV than did ER-positive tumors (n = 19; median SUV, 4.0) (P < 0.001). No significant association existed between SUV and PR status, HER2/neu status, lymph node involvement, or tumor size. Unsupervised hierarchic clustering of the 20 genetically profiled cancers segregated tumor samples into 2 primary groups of 10 patients each, largely corresponding to ER status. In locally invasive primary breast cancer, ER-negative tumors display higher (18)F-FDG uptake than ER-positive tumors. Microarray analysis confirms these data and identifies genes associated with increased glucose use as measured by PET. These genes significantly overlap those of a previously validated ER-status molecular phenotype. These preliminary data support a growing body of evidence that ER-positive and ER-negative breast cancers have distinct disease-specific patterns. Further validation prospectively and with larger numbers will be required to establish a robust molecular signature for metabolic uptake and patterns of aggressive behavior in advanced breast cancer.

Triple Negative Breast Cancer: From Molecular Portrait to Therapeutic Intervention

Triple negative breast cancer is a subtype of breast cancer that lacks expression of an estrogen receptor (ER), a progesterone receptor (PR), and HER2. It is characterized by its unique molecular profile, aggressive behavior, and distinct pattern of metastasis. Epidemiological studies show a high prevalence of triple negative breast cancer among younger women and those of African descent. Although sensitive to chemotherapy, early relapse is common, and a predilection for visceral metastasis, including brain metastasis, has been described. Gene-expression profiling approaches demonstrated that triple negative breast cancer is a heterogeneous group of diseases composed of different, molecularly distinct subtypes. Although not synonymous, the majority of triple negative breast cancers carry the "basal-like" molecular profile on gene-expression arrays. However, several studies have shown that triple negative breast cancer includes tumors with a non-basal expression profile and, in particular, the "normal-breast," the "multiple marker negative," and the recently identified "claudin-negative" subtypes. Target-based agents, including epidermal growth factor receptor (EGFR), vascular endothelial growth factor (VEGF), and poly-ADP-ribose polymerase (PARP) inhibitors, are currently in clinical trials and hold promise in the treatment of this aggressive disease.

Implications of food patch distribution on social foraging in domestic pigs (Sus scrofa)

Feeding behaviour of social animals can be influenced by the spatial distribution of resources. In domestic housing facilities growing pigs will often be fed from feeding sites confined to a small area, i.e. effectively a clumping of food resources. In the present experiment we investigated how feeding behaviour of growing pigs changed with increasing distance between feeding sites. During 20-min feeding tests, eight groups, each consisting of four growing pigs (35.4±2.7kg), were allowed to eat from four buckets containing food pellets placed in a test arena in a rectangular pattern. The positions of the buckets, determined by their mutual distance, were close (15–25cm), medium (245–290cm) or far (460cm). Feeding behaviour of the pigs was video recorded. There was a significant effect of feeding site position on all variables investigated except for the number of displacements from food buckets (i.e. time spent eating, intake, number of bouts, mean bout duration, number of aggressive interactions, number of shifts to new feeding sites: P<0.0001; mean duration of aggressive interactions: P=0.0010; displacements: P=0.3228). Physical separation of food sites (medium and far) affected aggressive interactions (lower frequency, longer mean duration) compared to minimal separation (close). Time spent eating, number of feeding bouts, number of shifts to a new site, and food intake decreased with increasing distance between food sites (from close to far). Mean bout duration was affected by physical separation of, but not distance between, feeding sites. These results indicate that feeding behaviour is markedly different when resources are clumped and even a small separation of troughs can profoundly alter patterns of aggressive behaviour and feeding.

Patterns of Physical and Relational Aggression in a School-Based Sample of Boys and Girls

The current study investigated the patterns of aggressive behavior displayed in a sample of 282 students in the 4th through 7th grades (M age = 11.28; SD = 1.82). Using cluster analyses, two distinct patterns of physical aggression emerged for both boys and girls with one aggressive cluster showing mild levels of reactive aggression and one group showing high levels of both reactive and proactive aggression. Both aggressive clusters showed problems with anger dysregulation, impulsivity, thrill and adventure seeking, positive outcome expectancies for aggression, and higher rates of bullying. However, the combined cluster was most severe on all of these variables and only the combined aggressive group differed from non-aggressive students on their level of callous-unemotional traits. Similar patterns of findings emerged for relational aggression but only for girls.

Terapia infantil e treino de pais em um caso de agressividade.

A Análise do Comportamento na Clínica explica o desenvolvimento e manutenção do comportamento em função de fatores ambientais históricos e atuais. No caso dos atendimentos infantis, a participação dos pais é indispensável, pois eles fazem parte do contexto e oferecem consequências para os comportamentos da criança. O presente estudo teve como objetivo avaliar o efeito do treino de pais e de uma intervenção comportamental em padrões comportamentais agressivos de uma criança. Participaram da terapia um garoto de 9 anos e seus pais. A queixa principal estava relacionada a comportamentos agressivos da criança e seus pais receberam orientações para a solução dos comportamentos-problema. Foi observada mudança no contexto familiar e, consequentemente, nos comportamentos do cliente. A emissão dos comportamentos inadequados diminuiu de frequência e o garoto passou a emitir novos comportamentos adequados. Tais resultados indicaram a importância do manejo ambiental no qual a criança estava inserida para que seus comportamentos se modificassem.

Associação entre o polimorfismo funcional do promotor ligado ao transportador da serotonina (5-HTTLPR): agressividade externalizada e internalizada e abuso do álcool.

Genetic factors of alcoholism influence the phenotypic heterogeneity of alcohol dependence, allowing the higher or lower expression of related aggressive behaviours. The pathogenesis of alcoholism and anti-social behaviour has been connected to serotonergic system dysfunction, given support to examine the association with 44-basepair insertion/deletion polymorphism of serotonin gene transporter (5-HTT). The study aims to assess the relationship between 5-HHTLPR polymorphism, aggressive behaviour and alcohol consumption pattern. There were recruited 97 alcohol dependent patients from the alcoholism unit (Etilo-Risco) of the Psychiatric Service of Santa Maria Hospital. Blood for DNA extraction and clinical and behavioural information was collected during the therapeutic program. Regarding 5-HTTLPR polymorphism prevalence in alcoholic population, 30.7% were homozygotic to l allele, 19.8% were homozygotic to s allele and 49.5% were heterozygotic l/s. Alcoholic patients carrying the l allele from 5-HTTLPR genotype showed significant lower scores of aggressivity during acute alcohol consumption, and alcoholic patients carrying the s allele showed significant higher scores of aggressivity (during acute alcohol consumption and abstinence), however, the results were not significant. The association between the functional nature of the s allele of 5-HTTLPR polymorphism with aggressive behaviour is in agreement with the general models of aggressivity that report low levels of central serotonergic activity related to impulsive and anti-social behaviours. The results demonstrate an association between 5-HTTLPR polymorphism and the auto and heteroaggressive behaviour in alcohol dependent population, particularly when aggressivity appears under acute alcohol consumption. During acute alcohol consumption stage, the presence of the l allele may act as a protective factor of aggressive behaviour risk, whereas the results tendency showed the s allele as susceptibility factor. Data suggests that the presence of s allele may confer a genetic vulnerability factor to the development of aggressive behaviour in alcohol dependent subjects, specially, in interaction with acute alcohol consumption stage.

Unidimensionality and Developmental Trajectory of Aggressive Behavior in Clinically-Referred Boys: A Rasch Analysis

A majority of research investigating aggression and its development in children relies on rating scales such as the Child Behavior Checklist (CBCL). These scales typically are developed using a conventional factor analytic approach for the selection and retention of scale items, but may contain insufficient items to assess the unidimensionality and developmental trajectory of youths’ aggressive behavior. Rasch analysis was employed to determine the extent to which CBCL Aggressive and Delinquent clinical syndrome scale items reflect the unidimensionality and expected developmental trajectory of aggressive behavior based on parent endorsements of 455, 6 to 16 year old boys referred to community mental health centers. The two scales showed considerable promise as a unidimensional aggression scale and mimic the expected developmental pattern of aggressive behavior in extant literature. Future development of an aggressive CBCL dimensional subscale, however, must eliminate redundant and non-contributing items, and include severe aggressive behavior items exhibited by persistently aggressive youths.

Sexual Dimorphism: Can You Smell the Difference?

A powerful new technique for visualizing neurons in the fly brain has uncovered fine neuroanatomical differences between the olfactory circuitries of male and female Drosophila.

Continuity and Pathways from Aggression in Childhood to Family Violence in Adulthood: A 30-year Longitudinal Study

Literature suggests that early patterns of aggressive behavior in both girls and boys are predictive of later violent behavior, including violence that takes place within family contexts. Utilizing the Concordia Longitudinal Risk Project, a study of individuals recruited as children in the 1970s from inner-city schools in Montreal, this study examined different pathways whereby aggressive behavioral styles in childhood may place individuals at risk for continuing patterns of violence towards children and spouses. Childhood aggression directly predicted self-reported violence towards spouse for both sexes, with indirect routes through lowered educational attainment and marital separation. Aggression in childhood was also found to predict parents’ self-reports of using violence with their children. For mothers, educational attainment and current absence of the biological father from the child’s home also played important roles in predicting violent behavior towards offspring. These findings provide evidence of both continuity of aggressive behavior and indirect risk paths to family violence, via lower educational attainment and parental absence. In both men and women, childhood aggression may be an identifiable precursor of family violence and child abuse.

Unintentional Injury Risk in Children with Externalizing Behavior Disorders at Summer Camp

Children with externalizing behavior disorders such as attention-deficit/hyperactivity disorder (ADHD), oppositional defiant disorder (ODD), and conduct disorder (CD) have greatly increased risk of unintentional injury, but it is unclear what mechanisms are responsible for that increased risk. This study followed 22 children participating in a summer camp for children with ADHD. Injury incidents were recorded daily and a set of primary symptoms of behavioral disorders were recorded at 15-min intervals over the course of the 6-week summer camp experience (roughly 300 h of observing each child). We predicted symptoms of ODD and CD would be more strongly related to injury incidence than symptoms of ADHD. Results from univariate Poisson regression models confirmed our prediction. Symptoms of ODD and CD—violations and intentional aggression in particular—were related to injury incidence but symptoms of ADHD were not. This finding is consistent with a growing body of evidence that oppositional, noncompliant, and aggressive behavior patterns might be primarily responsible for increased risk for injury among children with externalizing behavior disorders.

Modified progesterone receptor expression in the hypothalamus of cysticercotic male mice

Progesterone participates in numerous developmental and behavioral processes in the mammalian brain. The intracellular (is this really intracellular? nuclear membrane?) progesterone receptor is expressed as two isoforms: a full-length form (PR-B) and the N-terminally truncated one (PR-A). Experimental intraperitoneal infections with Taenia crassiceps in mice exhibit the tendency of the parasites to develop more rapidly in females. Male mice undergo a feminization process characterized by their oestrogenisation, deandrogenisation and loss of sexual and aggressive patterns of behavior. Hence, we suspected that changes in PR expression in the brain could be involved in the feminization of the infected male mice and in the loss of the sexual and aggressive behaviors. We have studied the expression of PR isoforms in the normal and infected male mouse brain. Transcripts of both receptor isoforms (PR-A and -B) were readily detectable in normal and infected mice, but differentially regulated during infection depending on the area of the brain studied. Although the precise role of progesterone in mediating the behavioral changes noted during infection is not fully understood, our data implicate a role for PR signaling in the feminization process. CNS activity is potentially involved in the network that regulates the oestrogenisation and deandrogenisation observed in chronically infected male mice, as well as in the behavioral peculiarities observed in this parasitic infection.

Stress exposure and affective modulation of aggressive behavior in men and women.

To study differences in the effects of stress exposure and affective responding on aggression in men and women, the authors examined the effects of an acute stressor (air blast) on subsequent aggressive behavior, measured as the intensity of shocks men and women delivered to a putative employee. The authors measured participants' affective responding using the startle reflex. Results showed that although men and women did not differ in their startle responses to the actual stressor, high stress led to contrasting patterns of subsequent aggressive behavior. Women under high stress responded with less aggression than women under low stress, whereas men exposed to high stress exhibited increases in aggression relative to those under low stress. Affective responding during the stressor differentially modulated aggression in men and women: Startle responses predicted increasing levels of aggression in men and less aggression in women. These findings suggest that although men and women show similar basic affective processing in response to stressors, the behavioral profiles associated with stress differ in men and women. These findings have implications for understanding gender differences in the prevalence of internalizing and externalizing psychopathology.

“Accept Me, or Else…”: Disputed Overestimation of Social Competence Predicts Increases in Proactive Aggression

It has been proposed that aggressive behavior may result from unrealistically positive self-evaluations that are disputed by others (Baumeister, Smart, & Boden, 1996). The present three studies tested this proposition concurrently and longitudinally for the domain of self-perceived social competence (SPSC) in 3-6th grade children on two continents. Each study tested whether aggressive behavior is related to general overestimation of SPSC compared to competence as perceived by peers, or to disputed overestimation, that is, overestimation disputed through rejection by peers. Specificity of relations with reactively or proactively aggressive behavior patterns was assessed and the predictive value of overestimation to the development of these types of aggressive behavior was investigated. Concurrently, disputed overestimation explained more variance in aggressive behavior than general overestimation, and was uniquely related to proactive aggression. Longitudinally, disputed overestimation also uniquely predicted changes in proactive, not reactive aggression.

Anger rumination and self‐reported aggression amongst British and Hong Kong Chinese athletes: A cross cultural comparison

Previous work has determined relationships between provocation, anger rumination, and aggression in British athletes (Maxwell, 2004); however, the reliability of these findings and their generality across diverse cultures have not been examined. Therefore, a comparison of British and Hong Kong (HK) Chinese athletes’ propensity for rumination and aggression was undertaken. Provocation and thoughts of revenge were significantly associated with the self‐reported aggression of both British and HK Chinese athletes. Frequency of aggression was similar across cultures except for a tendency for British male contact sport athletes to report greater frequency of aggressive behavior. HK Chinese athletes tended to report higher frequencies of thoughts relating to understanding the causes of anger and higher incidence of perceived provocation. It was concluded that the pattern of aggressive behavior was similar across the two cultures when opportunities for aggression are infrequent, but that HK Chinese athletes may inhibit aggressive responding even when opportunities are frequent

Aggression, Social Status, and Affiliation in Kindergarten Children: A Preliminary Study

While much work has shown that aggressive and disruptive behavior in schools may be reinforced by friends and, for some individuals, enhanced social status in the classroom, few studies have examined these phenomena at school entry. This study sought to examine aggressive behavior patterns in kindergarten children in relation to other individual characteristics, peer affiliations, and classroom social positions. Subgroups of aggressiveunpopular and unaggressive-popular children were found, while a group of aggressive-popular students was not evident. Both aggressive and popular children tended to belong to groups composed of similar associates, indicating selective affiliation on these characteristics. RESULTS are discussed in terms of their implications for intervention with and prevention of aggressive behavior through elementary school. Language: en

Personality and aggressive behavior under provoking and neutral conditions: A meta-analytic review.

The authors conducted a comprehensive review to understand the relation between personality and aggressive behavior, under provoking and nonprovoking conditions. The qualitative review revealed that some personality variables influenced aggressive behavior under both neutral and provocation conditions, whereas others influenced aggressive behavior only under provocation. Studies that assessed personality variables and that directly measured aggressive behavior were included in the quantitative review. Analyses revealed that trait aggressiveness and trait irritability influenced aggressive behavior under both provoking and neutral conditions but that other personality variables (e.g., trait anger, Type A personality, dissipation-rumination) influenced aggressive behavior only under provoking conditions. The authors discuss possible relations between these patterns of aggressive behavior and the personality dimensions of Agreeableness and Neuroticism and consider implications for theories of aggression.

Schizophrenia and violence: a search for neurobiological correlates

Compelling evidence suggests that a small group of men who develop schizophrenia display a stable pattern of antisocial behaviour from childhood onwards, causing considerable suffering to victims and to themselves and imposing a significant financial burden on society. We reviewed the literature on the neurobiological correlates of antisocial behaviour and violence to further the understanding of this subgroup of persons with schizophrenia and develop testable hypotheses for future research. Few studies have been conducted, sample sizes are small and measures vary greatly. Taken together, the results suggest that among men with schizophrenia, those who have displayed a stable pattern of antisocial and aggressive behaviour since childhood, as compared with those with no such history, perform better on neuropsychological tests tapping specific executive functions and more poorly on assessments of orbitofrontal functions. We hypothesize that individuals in this subgroup are less compromised neurologically and display structural brain abnormalities in the amygdala-orbitofrontal system and in the prefrontal cortex and hippocampus. A better understanding of the distinctive neurobiological characteristics of this subgroup of men with schizophrenia will contribute to developing treatments tailored to their needs, to prevent antisocial behaviours and to reduce the symptoms of schizophrenia.

Callous-unemotional features, behavioral inhibition, and parenting: independent predictors of aggression in a high-risk preschool sample

A behaviorally-uninhibited temperament, callous-unemotional (CU) features, and harsh parenting have been associated with specific patterns of aggressive behavior in older children and adolescents. We tested the additive and interactive effects of these factors in predicting different types of aggressive behavior in a high-risk preschool sample. Forty-nine preschoolers and their parents registering for Head Start programs were recruited for participation. Behavioral inhibition, CU features, and attitudes toward various types of parenting were assessed through parent rating scales completed at the time of registration. Behavioral inhibition, CU features, and aggression were assessed by teacher ratings approximately six months later. Analyses revealed that behavioral inhibition, CU features, and harsh parental attitudes all contributed independently to the prediction of aggressive behavior. These associations were strongest for proactive types of aggression. Our results suggest that a behaviorally uninhibited temperament, CU features, and attitudes favoring harsh parenting are all important for understanding the development of aggression in preschool children.

Re: Motivation and Mechanism in Motor Vehicle Collisions

This article comments on a paper by Dumais et al. (Psychiatric Risk Factors for Motor Vehicle Fatalities in Young Men, Canadian Journal of Psychiatry, November 2005). It is posited that the original authors did not discuss the possible underlying mechanisms leading to fatal collisions, and that they did not make mention of a key Axis I diagnosis strongly associated with motor vehicle crashes: Attention Deficit-Hyperactivity Disorder (ADHD). Demographic details of the accidents could provide information about the underlying mechanisms involved in motor vehicle crashes. It is unclear from the description of the methodology whether information concerning the nature or circumstances of these deaths was available. Importance of a careful evaluation of possible comorbidities in categorical diagnoses with the potential for problem driving lies in the emerging literature about the protective value of medications for managing impulsive and aggressive behavior patterns.