Mental Disorders and Charges of Violent Offences: A Study of Male Adolescent Remand Prisoners

Niels Patrick Gosden, Peter Kramp, Gorm Gabrielsen, Tavs Folmer Andersen, Dorte Sestoft

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Abstract

This study describes associations between mental disorders and charges of violence among remanded adolescents.
100 15–17 year old boys from East Denmark, consecutively remanded during one year, were interviewed with SCAN, K-SADS and SCID-II to obtain past year ICD-10 diagnoses.
There was no statistically significant association between the occurrence of a violent charge and mental disorders in general (OR = 1.02, 95% confidence interval (CI)[0.24; 4.38]). An association was found between violent charge and non-danish ethnicity (OR = 7.58, [1.60; 35.92]).
Previously reported association between violence and mental disorder among adults were not replicated in this male adolescent remand population. A developmental hypothesis is proposed.
Original languageEnglish
JournalInternational Journal of Law and Psychiatry
Volume29
Issue number3
Pages (from-to)186-194
ISSN0160-2527
DOIs
Publication statusPublished - 2006

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