Life course persistent and adolescence limited conduct disorder in a nationally representative US sample: prevalence, predictors, and outcomes.
The course of conduct disorder (CD) is heterogeneous. Moffitt proposed the heuristic of life course persistent (LCP) and adolescence limited (AL) to differentiate etiologically distinct forms of antisocial behavior (AB), each with distinct predictors and consequences, although a few studies have assessed this demarcation within the context of CD. The objective of this study was to apply Moffitt's taxonomy in a nationally representative US sample to investigate the prevalence, predictors, and outcomes of LCP and AL CD.



Data come from the Collaborative Psychiatric Epidemiology Studies, a set of population-based nationally representative cross-sectional surveys (N = 20,130). Predictors included harsh discipline, maternal and paternal closeness, poverty in childhood, history of learning disability, parental deviance, and nativity. Outcomes included substance use, employment status, education attainment, marital status, income level, and self-rated mental and physical health.



The prevalence of LCP and AL CD was 0.5 and 4.6%, respectively, for females, and 1.9 and 5.1%, respectively, for males. Low childhood SES [Odds Ratio (OR) = 3.49], lack of maternal closeness (OR = 2.50), and history of harsh discipline (OR = 2.17) increased odds of LCP group membership. The LCP group had higher odds of developing substance use disorders (OR = 2.00) relative to AL.



LCP CD is more strongly influenced by childhood environment and confers increased odds for substance use problems in adulthood relative to AL CD.
Center for Clinical and Translational Research, Virginia Commonwealth University, Richmond, VA, USA. mooreaa2@vcu.edu.|Virginia Institute for Psychiatric and Behavioral Genetics, Virginia Commonwealth University, Richmond, VA, USA. mooreaa2@vcu.edu.
Ashlee A
0000-0002-6577-3050
AA
Moore
Virginia Institute for Psychiatric and Behavioral Genetics, Virginia Commonwealth University, Richmond, VA, USA.|Department of Human and Molecular Genetics, Virginia Commonwealth University, Richmond, VA, USA.|Department of Psychiatry, Virginia Commonwealth University, Richmond, VA, USA.
Judy L
JL
Silberg
Virginia Institute for Psychiatric and Behavioral Genetics, Virginia Commonwealth University, Richmond, VA, USA.|Department of Psychiatry, Virginia Commonwealth University, Richmond, VA, USA.
Roxann
R
Roberson-Nay
Virginia Institute for Psychiatric and Behavioral Genetics, Virginia Commonwealth University, Richmond, VA, USA.|Department of Family Medicine and Population Health, Division of Epidemiology, Virginia Commonwealth University, Richmond, VA, USA.|Department of Epidemiology, University of Michigan School of Public Health, Ann Arbor, MI, USA.
Briana
B
Mezuk
D000328:Adult; D000368:Aged; D000369:Aged, 80 and over; D019955:Conduct Disorder / Q000453:epidemiology* / Q000209:etiology; D003430:Cross-Sectional Studies; D005260:Female; D006803:Human Development; D006801:Humans; D008297:Male; D008425:Maternal Behavior / Q000523:psychology*; D008875:Middle Aged; D016487:Parenting / Q000523:psychology*; D015995:Prevalence; D012923:Social Class; D014481:United States / Q000453:epidemiology; D055815:Young Adult
Adolescence limited; Conduct disorder; Epidemiology; Life course persistent; Moffitt’s taxonomy