title: The association between common mental disorders and violence: to what extent is it influenced by prior victimization, negative life events and low levels of social support?
abstract: BACKGROUND
  Few studies have been published on the association between mental disorders and violence based on general population studies. Here we focus on different types of violence, adjusting for violent victimization and taking account of the limitations of previous population studies.
  
  
  METHODS
  Data were used from the first two waves of the Netherlands Mental Health Survey and Incidence Study-2 (NEMESIS-2), a nationally representative face-to-face survey of the general population aged 18-64 years (n = 6646). Violence was differentiated into physical and psychological violence against intimate partner(s), children or any person(s) in general. DSM-IV diagnoses were assessed with the Composite International Diagnostic Interview Version 3.0 (CIDI 3.0).
  
  
  RESULTS
  Psychological violence occurs considerably more frequently than physical violence, but both showed almost identical associations with mental disorders. After adjustment for sociodemographic characteristics, most of the main categories of common mental disorders were associated with violence. The strongest associations were found for externalizing disorders (substance use, impulse-control, antisocial personality disorder). After additional adjustment for violent victimization, negative life events and social support, most diagnostic correlates lost their significance whereas substance use (in particular alcohol) disorders were still associated with most types of violence.
  
  
  CONCLUSIONS
  The increased risk of violent offending among people with common mental disorders, other than substance use disorders, can be attributed to factors other than their mental illness.
authors.affiliation: Netherlands Institute of Mental Health and Addiction, Utrecht, The Netherlands.
authors.forename: M
authors.initials: M
authors.lastname: Ten Have
authors.affiliation: Netherlands Institute of Mental Health and Addiction, Utrecht, The Netherlands.
authors.forename: R
authors.initials: R
authors.lastname: de Graaf
authors.affiliation: Tilburg University, Tilburg, The Netherlands.
authors.forename: J
authors.initials: J
authors.lastname: van Weeghel
authors.affiliation: Netherlands Institute of Mental Health and Addiction, Utrecht, The Netherlands.
authors.forename: S
authors.initials: S
authors.lastname: van Dorsselaer
mesh_terms: D000293:Adolescent; D000328:Adult; D019548:Crime Victims / Q000523:psychology / Q000706:statistics & numerical data*; D005260:Female; D006801:Humans; D008016:Life Change Events; D008297:Male; D001523:Mental Disorders / Q000453:epidemiology* / Q000209:etiology; D008875:Middle Aged; D009426:Netherlands; D012944:Social Support; D014754:Violence / Q000523:psychology / Q000706:statistics & numerical data*; D055815:Young Adult