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Aggression as a mediator of genetic contributions to the association between negative parent–child relationships and adolescent antisocial behavior

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Abstract

Previous research suggests that the association between conflictual parent–child relationships and maladjustment among adolescents is influenced by genetic effects emanating from the adolescents. In this study, we examined whether these effects are mediated by childhood aggression. The data come from the Twin study of CHild and Adolescent Development (TCHAD), a Swedish longitudinal study including 1,314 twin pairs followed from age 13–14 to 16–17. Early adolescent aggression, parental criticism, and delinquency in later adolescence were rated by parents and children at different time points. Multivariate genetic structural equation models were used to estimate genetic and environmental influences on these constructs and on their covariation. The results showed that approximately half of the genetic contribution to the association between parental criticism and delinquency was explained by early adolescent aggression. It suggests that aggression in children evokes negative parenting, which in turn influences adolescent antisocial behavior. The mechanism proposed by these findings is consistent with evocative gene–environment correlation.

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Acknowledgment

This research was funded by Swedish Council for Working Life and Social Research, the Swedish Research Council, and the Bank of Sweden Tercentenary Foundation.

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Authors and Affiliations

  1. Dept. of Medical Epidemiology and Biostatistics, Karolinska Institutet, Box 281, 171 77, Stockholm, Sweden

    Jurgita Narusyte & Paul Lichtenstein

  2. Center for Developmental Research, BSR, Örebro University, Örebro, Sweden

    Anna-Karin Andershed

  3. Dept. of Psychiatry and Behavioral Sciences, George Washington University, Washington, USA

    Jenae M. Neiderhiser

Authors
  1. Jurgita Narusyte
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  2. Anna-Karin Andershed
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  3. Jenae M. Neiderhiser
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  4. Paul Lichtenstein
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Correspondence to Jurgita Narusyte.

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Narusyte, J., Andershed, AK., Neiderhiser, J.M. et al. Aggression as a mediator of genetic contributions to the association between negative parent–child relationships and adolescent antisocial behavior. Eur Child Adolesc Psychiatry 16, 128–137 (2007). https://doi.org/10.1007/s00787-006-0582-z

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