title: The Interplay of MAOA and Peer Influences in Predicting Adult Criminal Behavior.
abstract: Evidence concerning the ability of genetic risk factors to moderate the effects of environments has continued to accumulate over the last decade or so. For the behavioral sciences, this means that genetic risk factors might interact with environmental triggers to influence various human outcomes, including antisocial and aggressive behaviors. The current study seeks to further expand this line of inquiry by examining data drawn from the National Youth Survey Family Study. More specifically, we examined whether a polymorphism in the promoter region of the MAOA gene might condition the influence of exposure to deviant peer groups in the prediction of criminogenic behavior. Our findings offer some mixed evidence that genotype might condition the influence of delinquent peer affiliation on antisocial behavior during the course of human development.
authors.affiliation: Department of Criminal Justice and Criminology, Sam Houston State University, P.O. Box 2296, Huntsville, TX, 77341-2296, USA. yxl007@shsu.edu.
authors.forename: Yi-Fen
authors.initials: YF
authors.lastname: Lu
authors.affiliation: Department of Criminal Justice and Criminology, Sam Houston State University, P.O. Box 2296, Huntsville, TX, 77341-2296, USA.
authors.forename: Scott
authors.initials: S
authors.lastname: Menard
mesh_terms: D000293:Adolescent; D000328:Adult; D000374:Aggression; D000483:Alleles; D002648:Child; D000066479:Criminal Behavior; D059647:Gene-Environment Interaction; D005838:Genotype; D006801:Humans; D008137:Longitudinal Studies; D008297:Male; D008995:Monoamine Oxidase / Q000235:genetics*; D010379:Peer Group; D000067074:Peer Influence; D011110:Polymorphism, Genetic; D011446:Prospective Studies; D055815:Young Adult
chemical_list: D008995:Monoamine Oxidase; C579458:monoamine oxidase A, human
keywords: Adulthood; Criminality; Delinquent peers; Gene-environment interaction; Monoamine oxidase A