Introduction: Physical and verbal violence toward staff or other detained individuals is a reoccurring problem within correctional facilities. Screening for violence risk within the prison setting... Show moreIntroduction: Physical and verbal violence toward staff or other detained individuals is a reoccurring problem within correctional facilities. Screening for violence risk within the prison setting could provide a valuable first step in the prevention of institutional violence. The brief and compact Risk Screener Violence (RS-V) has shown to be an efficient new method for assessing concerns regarding post-release violent offending for incarcerated persons. This study aimed to find out whether the RS-V is also able to predict future violent and aggressive incidents during imprisonment.Methods: The predictive validity of the RS-V for future violent and aggressive incidents during a follow-up time of 4 months within prison was analyzed, using a file-based design. Violent incidents toward staff and other inmates (physical violence and violent threats), other aggressive incidents (aggression toward objects and verbal disruptive behavior), and both categories combined, were included as outcome measures based on disciplinary reports.Results: The RS-V showed medium to large predictive values for both violent and aggressive behavior during prison stay. In particular, good predictive values of the RS-V were found for violence toward prison staff.Discussion: This study shows that, besides post-release violent recidivism, the RS-V is able to accurately predict future violent and aggressive incidents during prison stay. By correctly differentiating between low concern and high concern individuals, the RS-V aims to contribute to more personalized interventions and risk management and, subsequently, to improved prison safety. Future studies using prospective prison practice data are needed to further support the validity of the RS-V regarding institutional violence. Show less
Research on precursors of empathy, and on the association between empathy and aggression in early childhood is scarce and contradictory. It is likely that these contradictory results can be... Show moreResearch on precursors of empathy, and on the association between empathy and aggression in early childhood is scarce and contradictory. It is likely that these contradictory results can be explained by taking into account other factors that are related to empathy and aggression. Therefore, our main aim was to study early manifestations of empathy as a predictor of aggression during the first years of life, while taking into account the role of precursors of empathy and possible moderators of the association between empathy and aggression. Early manifestations of empathy could be predicted from emotional responses in infancy, as infants who were more emotionally reactive themselves were also more sensitive to emotions of others during toddlerhood. In addition, impaired empathy already was a risk factor of aggression from the age of 20 months. High levels of aggression were associated with low levels of affective empathy, but not cognitive empathy. The negative association between empathy and aggression was stronger for girls, children with high levels of inhibition, and children with low levels of social attention. It is important to take these factors into account in further research and intervention programs that target empathy and its association with aggression in early childhood. Show less
This thesis examined the extent to which relationships between emotional experiences and aggressive behaviours in adolescents are affected by culture. While existing studies often compare... Show moreThis thesis examined the extent to which relationships between emotional experiences and aggressive behaviours in adolescents are affected by culture. While existing studies often compare individuals from different countries to study cultural influences, this thesis also took a between-country approach by comparing Dutch and Malaysian adolescents; groups that reflect individualistic and collectivistic cultures, respectively. Also, the effect of individualistic and collectivistic values at an individual level was examined. First, the outcomes show that many relationships were culturally universal. Regardless of country or cultural orientation, adolescents who had more problems with anger control tended to be more aggressive; and those who experienced intense anger, fear and shame were more often bullied. Also, guilt was related to less aggressive behaviours in both Malaysian and Dutch samples. Yet, this thesis also revealed country/cultural specific relationships. Whereas shame was related to more aggression in Dutch adolescents, the opposite was true for Malaysian adolescents.Remarkably, this thesis found that the traditional classification between individualistic Western countries and collectivistic Eastern countries was not fully supported when cultural values were assessed at individual levels. For example, while higher levels of shame were related to less aggressive behaviours in individualistic-oriented adolescents, the opposite was true for collectivistic-oriented adolescents. Show less
Experiencing shame and guilt is painful but these emotions have an important social function. They prevent socially inappropriate behaviors as they make us aware of norms and values that are... Show moreExperiencing shame and guilt is painful but these emotions have an important social function. They prevent socially inappropriate behaviors as they make us aware of norms and values that are necessary for creating and maintaining social harmony. Participation in the social world is crucial for the development of shame and guilt, and less access to the social world could therefore be detrimental to this development. In this thesis, the influence of access to the social world on the development of self-conscious emotions is examined in two groups with less access to the social world: adolescents with an autism spectrum disorder (ASD) and adolescents with hearing loss. In addition, this thesis aimed to unravel the longitudinal contributions of shame and guilt on the development of adolescent aggression. Adolescents with diminished access to the social world reported lower levels of shame and guilt. The longitudinal relationships applied to both adolescent with diminished access and typically developing adolescents. It was demonstrated that shame is a risk factor for the development of reactive aggression, and that guilt is an inhibiting force on the development of bullying and proactive aggression Show less
Suurland, J.; Heijden, K.B. van der; Huijbregts, S.C.J.; Goozen, S.H.M. van; Swaab, H. 2017
Nonreciprocal action of the parasympathetic (PNS) and sympathetic (SNS) nervous systems, increases susceptibility to emotional and behavioral problems in children exposed to adversity. Little is... Show moreNonreciprocal action of the parasympathetic (PNS) and sympathetic (SNS) nervous systems, increases susceptibility to emotional and behavioral problems in children exposed to adversity. Little is known about the PNS and SNS in interaction with early adversity during infancy. Yet this is when the physiological systems involved in emotion regulation are emerging and presumably most responsive to environmental influences. We examined whether parasympathetic respiratory sinus arrhythmia (RSA) and sympathetic pre-ejection period (PEP) response and recovery at six months, moderate the association between cumulative prenatal risk and physical aggression at 20 months (N = 113). Prenatal risk predicted physical aggression, but only in infants exhibiting coactivation of PNS and SNS (i.e., increase in RSA and decrease in PEP) in response to stress. These findings indicate that coactivation of the PNS and SNS in combination with prenatal risk is a biological marker for the development of aggression. Show less
Kinderen met een oppositioneel opstandige gedragsstoornis (ODD) of antisociale gedragsstoornis (CD) hebben een verhoogd risico op toekomstig probleemgedrag zoals delinquentie, werkeloosheid en... Show moreKinderen met een oppositioneel opstandige gedragsstoornis (ODD) of antisociale gedragsstoornis (CD) hebben een verhoogd risico op toekomstig probleemgedrag zoals delinquentie, werkeloosheid en psychiatrische problemen. Om beter te begrijpen waarom kinderen agressief en antisociaal gedrag vertonen en dit gedrag positief te kunnen beïnvloeden is het nuttig om naar de onderliggende cognitieve en neurobiologische processen te kijken, welke onderliggend zijn aan (probleem)gedrag. Eén van die mechanismen is zelfregulatie: het vermogen om controle uit te kunnen oefenen over onze gedachten, emoties en gedrag. In dit onderzoek hebben we zelfregulatie onderzocht door vier aspecten van zelfregulatie te onderzoeken: neurobiologie (ANS, HPA-as), emotieregulatie; executieve functies en gedrag. We onderzochten 65 jongens met ODD/CD en 38 normaal ontwikkelende controle jongens in de leeftijd van 8-12 jaar in rust en in een stressvolle situatie. We ontdekten dat jongens met ODD/CD een heterogene groep vormen zowel op gedragsniveau als neurobiologisch niveau. Daarnaast zagen we dat er specifieke relaties zijn tussen neurobiologische factoren en verschillende gedragsproblemen en dat de neurobiologie voorspellend is voor het verloop van agressie over een jaar tijd. Deze informatie is belangrijk omdat het laat zien dat interventies moeten aansluiten op het individu, passend bij het mechanisme dat onderliggend is aan het probleemgedrag en verstoord is. Show less
Het terugdringen van agressie is in de afgelopen jaren in toenemende mate een maatschappelijke prioriteit geworden. Agressie in de vroege kindertijd vergroot de kans op latere agressieproblemen en... Show moreHet terugdringen van agressie is in de afgelopen jaren in toenemende mate een maatschappelijke prioriteit geworden. Agressie in de vroege kindertijd vergroot de kans op latere agressieproblemen en antisociaal gedrag. In de peutertijd is er al een groep hoog-agressieve kinderen te identificeren die later in de ontwikkeling meer persistente, ernstigere vormen van agressie laat zien. Belangrijk is om veranderbare factoren te identificeren die samenhangen met het ontstaan en/of de instandhouding van het probleemgedrag. Het ouderlijk reflectief functioneren (RF) is in dat kader een interessant concept, aangezien deze vaardigheid te trainen is. In dit proefschrift is de invloed van het RF-vermogen van moeder op de ontwikkeling van (voorlopers van) gedragsproblemen in de vroege kindertijd, in het bijzonder fysieke agressie, bekeken. Geconcludeerd kan worden dat het RF-vermogen van de moeder een belangrijke rol speelt bij het ontwikkelen van (voorlopers van) gedragsproblemen. Over het algemeen genomen lijkt een beter prenataal RF-vermogen van de moeder samen te hangen met een kleinere kans op het ontwikkelen van vroege fysieke agressie. De bevindingen suggereren dat het bij de preventie en aanpak van vroege gedragsproblemen belangrijk is om te investeren in het verbeteren van het ouderlijk RF, bij voorkeur al tijdens de zwangerschap. Show less
Dit proefschrift beschrijft studies over prosociaal en antisociaal gedrag bij kinderen en de hieraan gerelateerde situationele en dispositionele factoren. De resultaten beschreven in dit... Show moreDit proefschrift beschrijft studies over prosociaal en antisociaal gedrag bij kinderen en de hieraan gerelateerde situationele en dispositionele factoren. De resultaten beschreven in dit proefschrift laten zien dat, ondanks de hoge kosten en lage baten, een substantieel deel van de kinderen uit de diverse studies zich prosociaal gedroeg richting een kind in nood of tijdens sociale uitsluiting van een ander. Uit het onderzoek blijkt daarnaast dat specifieke kenmerken van de situatie ten grondslag liggen aan zowel prosociaal als antisociaal gedrag. Kinderen doneren bijvoorbeeld meer geld aan een goed doel wanneer zij dit een ander kind ook zien doen. Maar er is ook een verband gevonden tussen dispositionele factoren en prosociaal en antisociaal gedrag. Hoeveel geld kinderen doneren hangt bijvoorbeeld samen met de anatomie van hun hersenen en kinderen die volgens hun ouders hoge niveaus van agressie laten zien, vertonen ook in een andere situatie (op school) meer antisociaal gedrag. Dit proefschrift laat bovendien zien dat dispositionele factoren zoals angst en autistische trekken een kind meer of juist minder gevoelig kunnen maken voor situationele factoren. Show less
In DSM 5, conduct disorder (CD) has been expanded with a new specifier ‘with Limited Prosocial Emotions’ (LPE) in addition to the age-of-onset (AoO) subtyping, and is thought to identify a severe... Show moreIn DSM 5, conduct disorder (CD) has been expanded with a new specifier ‘with Limited Prosocial Emotions’ (LPE) in addition to the age-of-onset (AoO) subtyping, and is thought to identify a severe antisocial subgroup of CD. However, research in clinical practice has been scarce. Therefore, the current study will examine differences in clinical symptoms between subtypes of CD, based on both subtyping schemes. Subsequently, it will investigate whether the LPE specifier explains unique variance in aggression, added to the AoO subtyping. A sample of 145 adolescents with CD (51 % male, mean age 15.0) from a closed treatment institution participated in this study. CD diagnoses and AoO subtype were assessed using a structured diagnostic interview. The LPE specifier was assessed using the callous–unemotional dimension of the Youth Psychopathy Traits Inventory (YPI). Self-reported proactive and reactive aggression, rule-breaking behavior and internalizing problems within the subtypes were compared. Youth with childhood-onset CD and LPE showed significantly more aggression than adolescent-onset CD without LPE (proactive aggression: F = 3.1, p < 0.05, reactive aggression: F = 3.7, p < 0.05). Hierarchical regression revealed that the LPE specifier uniquely explained 7 % of the variance in reactive aggression, additionally to the AoO subtyping. For proactive aggression, the interaction between AoO and the LPE added 4.5 % to the explained variance. Although the LPE specifier may help to identify a more aggressive subtype of CD in adolescents, the incremental utility seems to be limited. Therefore, clinical relevance of the LPE specifier in high-risk adolescent samples still needs to be investigated thoroughly. Show less
Much of the previous work investigating the impact of honor on conflict management has focused on how people endorsing honor values respond to possibly offensive interactions. Despite the... Show moreMuch of the previous work investigating the impact of honor on conflict management has focused on how people endorsing honor values respond to possibly offensive interactions. Despite the accumulation of this research, it is yet unclear why people endorsing the ideal of honor respond more fiercely after being offended. Moreover, hardly any systematic attempts have been undertaken to identify ways in which these negative ramifications of offensive encounters can be prevented or reduced. The discoveries made in the context of this dissertation paint a more balanced picture of the effect of honor concern on conflict management and inform us on possible avenues of effective conflict intervention. Show less
The aim of this thesis was to enhance our understanding of the concept of psychopathic traits in preadolescent children. It did so by investigating a new assessment tool providing a previously... Show moreThe aim of this thesis was to enhance our understanding of the concept of psychopathic traits in preadolescent children. It did so by investigating a new assessment tool providing a previously unexplored perspective on psychopathic traits in preadolescent children: that of the child itself. This is important because children are in the unique position to report on feelings, attitudes and behaviors across a range of situations, including the home, the classroom and the playground. Furthermore, it sought to provide a deeper understanding of the nature of psychopathic traits and their relations to problematic socio-emotional functioning. It was concluded that psychopathic traits can be indeed measured reliably and meaningfully through self-report in 9 to 12 year olds. Furthermore, children with high levels of psychopathic traits were shown to suffer from impaired social functioning emotionally, motivationally, and interpersonally. These problems may be important targets for future interventions for this group. Finally, it was demonstrated that that children with psychopathic traits are prone to act aggressively, but also that this aggression is dynamic and is dependent upon circumstances. Their aggression can be attenuated by a salient display of others__ distress. These results suggest that empathy based treatment techniques may reduce aggression in children with psychopathic traits. Show less
The great Lakes of East Africa are inhabited by a great number of haplochromine cichlid species, which form a diverse group in both ecology and nuptial coloration. The large number of sympatrically... Show moreThe great Lakes of East Africa are inhabited by a great number of haplochromine cichlid species, which form a diverse group in both ecology and nuptial coloration. The large number of sympatrically occuriring closely related species has raised questions about the underlying mechanism for reproductive isolation. In this thesis I describe experiments that test for the effects of early experience on their species assortative behaviour in the contexts of mate choice and male territorial interactions. The maternal care in haplochromine cichlids provides the opportunity for early learning, but do the young cichlids take this opportunity to learn:? And, if so, can this promote reproductive isolation under sympatric conditions? With cross-fostering experiments, I found that young female cichlid fish are affected by experiences with their mothers__ phenotype in their later mate preferences. Maternal imprinting proved to be a mechanism favourable for sympatric speciation in a mathematical comparison of female preference development. This indicates that the propensity that the Lake Victoria cichlid fish appear to have for assortative mating may be fuelled by learning. The behaviour of the males, in contrast, was not affected by learning about their mothers__ phenotype, but male-male interactions were influenced by experiences with siblings. Show less
In this thesis the development, stability, and correlates of early childhood aggression were investigated. The normative development was examined in a general population sample using questionnaires... Show moreIn this thesis the development, stability, and correlates of early childhood aggression were investigated. The normative development was examined in a general population sample using questionnaires completed by the parents of 12-, 24-, and 36-month-old children and again one year later. Results showed an early childhood aggression curve, with increasing rates of aggression in the second year of life and decreasing rates in the fourth year. One-year stabilities were moderate for 12-month-olds and high for 24- and 36-month-olds. In a subsample of mother-child dyads child physical aggression and parenting were observed from videotapes recorded when the children were 1-3 years old and again one year later. Results indicated that negative discipline was positively related to child aggression one year later, but only when mothers were low in initial sensitivity. Finally, a meta-analysis of the literature showed that basal cortisol levels are positively related to aggression in preschoolers, but that this relation is reversed in school-aged children. The association is stronger in children with clinical levels of problem behavior. This study sheds light on the normative course of early childhood aggression and its physiological and parental correlates. Show less
