Background
A number of important sociological, psychological, and biological predictors of adolescent
criminal behavior have been identified during the most recent decades. The aim of
this study was to replicate recent findings that interactions between a polymorphism
in the monoamine oxidase A (MAO-A) gene promoter region and psychosocial factors might
predict male adolescent criminal activity.
Methods
A cross-sectional study with a randomized sample from the total population of 16-
and 19-year-olds from the county of Västmanland, Sweden. Eighty-one male adolescents,
who volunteered to participate, were randomly selected from groups representing different
degrees of deviant risk behavior.
Results
The present study strongly supports the notion that carrying the 3-repeat allele of
the MAO-A–gene promoter increases the risk of male adolescent criminal behavior, when
interacting with psychosocial factors. No effects at all of the MAO-A genotype on
adolescent criminal activity were found when MAO-A genotype was considered alone (i.e.,
without its psychosocial context). The explained variance of the bio-psychosocial
model (controlling for MAO-A) in this study exceeded the psychosocial model by 12%.
Conclusions
The findings support the notion that genotype and psychosocial factors interact to
precipitate male adolescent criminal behavior.
Key Words
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Article info
Publication history
Published online: August 26, 2005
Accepted:
June 20,
2005
Received in revised form:
May 12,
2005
Received:
February 7,
2005
Identification
Copyright
© 2005 Society of Biological Psychiatry. Published by Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.
