Temperament of juvenile delinquents with history of substance abuse.
BACKGROUND
The etiological factors and interrelations of juvenile delinquents, with psychiatric morbidity and substance abuse have been continuously debated. Cloninger's Tridimensional Theory of Temperament has been reported to predict patterns of substance abuse and comorbidity. In the current study, we aimed to examine the usability of the theory in predicting juvenile delinquency and substance abuse.


METHODS
Sixty consecutive and newly incarcerated male delinquents with history of substance abuse were recruited from a juvenile correctional facility in northwestern Taiwan from January 2002 through December 2003. All subjects were assessed of their temperament, behavioral problems, and psychiatric disorders on an individual base.


RESULTS
The juvenile delinquent subjects with childhood history of attention deficit and hyperactivity disorder (ADHD) were significantly younger, consumed less betel nuts, and had more siblings with history of drug abuse.


CONCLUSIONS
Consistent with the results of Cloninger's studies, novelty seeking positively correlated to the amount of substance abuse, while harm avoidance inversely correlated in juvenile delinquents. Endemic trend of choice of substance abuse needs to be taken into consideration in future research projects.
Chang
Hsueh-Ling
HL
Department of Psychology, National Taiwan University, Taipei, Taiwan, R.O.C.
Chen
Sue-Huei
SH
Huang
Chien
C
D000293:Adolescent; D000328:Adult; D001289:Attention Deficit Disorder with Hyperactivity / Q000523:psychology; D006801:Humans; D007604:Juvenile Delinquency / Q000523:psychology*; D008297:Male; D019966:Substance-Related Disorders / Q000523:psychology*; D013694:Temperament