Anti-social behaviour

Antisocial behaviours, sometimes called dissocial behaviours, are actions which are considered to violate the rights of or otherwise harm others by committing crime or nuisance, such as stealing and physical attack or noncriminal behaviours such as lying and manipulation.[1] It is considered to be disruptive to others in society.[2] This can be carried out in various ways, which includes, but is not limited to, intentional aggression, as well as covert and overt hostility.[2] Anti-social behaviour also develops through social interaction within the family and community. It continuously affects a child's temperament, cognitive ability and their involvement with negative peers, dramatically affecting children's cooperative problem-solving skills.[2] Many people also label behaviour which is deemed contrary to prevailing norms for social conduct as anti-social behaviour.[3] However, researchers have stated that it is a difficult term to define, particularly in the United Kingdom where many acts fall into its category.[4] The term is especially used in Irish English and British English.[5]

Although the term is fairly new to the common lexicon, the word anti-social behaviour has been used for many years in the psychosocial world where it was defined as "unwanted behaviour as the result of personality disorder."[4] For example, David Farrington, a British criminologist and forensic psychologist, stated that teenagers can exhibit anti-social behaviour by engaging in various amounts of wrongdoings such as stealing, vandalism, sexual promiscuity, excessive smoking, heavy drinking, confrontations with parents, and gambling.[4] In children, conduct disorders could result from ineffective parenting. Anti-social behaviour is typically associated with other behavioural and developmental issues such as hyperactivity, depression, learning disabilities, and impulsivity. Alongside these issues one can be predisposed or more inclined to develop such behaviour due to one's genetics, neurobiological and environmental stressors in the prenatal stage of one's life, through the early childhood years.[2][6]

The American Psychiatric Association, in its Diagnostic and Statistical Manual of Mental Disorders, diagnoses persistent anti-social behaviour starting from a young age as antisocial personality disorder.[7] Genetic factors include abnormalities in the prefrontal cortex of the brain while neurobiological risk include maternal drug use during pregnancy, birth complications, low birth weight, prenatal brain damage, traumatic head injury, and chronic illness.[2] The World Health Organization includes it in the International Classification of Diseases as dissocial personality disorder.[8] A pattern of persistent anti-social behaviours can also be present in children and adolescents diagnosed with conduct problems, including conduct disorder or oppositional defiant disorder under the DSM-5.[9] It has been suggested that individuals with intellectual disabilities have higher tendencies to display anti-social behaviours, but this may be related to social deprivation and mental health problems.[10] More research is required on this topic.

  1. ^ CALKINS, SUSAN D.; KEANE, SUSAN P. (2009). "Developmental origins of early antisocial behavior". Development and Psychopathology. 21 (4): 1095–1109. doi:10.1017/S095457940999006X. ISSN 0954-5794. PMC 2782636. PMID 19825259.
  2. ^ a b c d e "Antisocial behavior". Encyclopedia.com. Archived from the original on 25 March 2018.
  3. ^ Anti Social Behaviour Team (2014). "Anti Social Behaviour". Breckland.gov.uk. Archived from the original on 18 October 2014. Retrieved 29 April 2014.
  4. ^ a b c Millie, Andrew (1 December 2008). Anti-Social Behaviour. McGraw-Hill Education (UK). ISBN 9780335237623. Archived from the original on 30 March 2018.
  5. ^ "Antisocial". Oxford Dictionaries. Archived from the original on 25 September 2016. Retrieved 2 October 2016.
  6. ^ Patterson, G. R.; DeBaryshe, Barbara D.; Ramsey, Elizabeth (1989). "A developmental perspective on antisocial behavior". American Psychologist. 44 (2): 329–335. doi:10.1037/0003-066x.44.2.329. ISSN 1935-990X. PMID 2653143.
  7. ^ "Antisocial Personality Disorder". BehaveNet. Archived from the original on 19 July 2012. Retrieved 1 May 2013.
  8. ^ "International Statistical Classification of Diseases and Related Health Problems 10th Revision". Archived from the original on 17 July 2009.
  9. ^ McCart MR, Priester PE, Davies WH, Azen R (August 2006). "Differential effectiveness of behavioral parent-training and cognitive-behavioral therapy for antisocial youth: a meta-analysis". Journal of Abnormal Child Psychology. 34 (4): 527–43. doi:10.1007/s10802-006-9031-1. PMID 16838122. S2CID 9940360.
  10. ^ Dickson K, Emerson E, Hatton C (November 2005). "Self-reported anti-social behaviour: prevalence and risk factors amongst adolescents with and without intellectual disability". Journal of Intellectual Disability Research. 49 (Pt 11): 820–6. doi:10.1111/j.1365-2788.2005.00727.x. PMID 16207279.