Risking antisociality : Individual & social-interaction factors

Antisociality is a major problem in societies all over the world. Knowledge that can help to prevent or change antisociality is thus important. Problems of antisocial nature usually begin in childhood or early adolescence and it is therefore important to study it in the course of development in order to trace its underlying causes. The overall aim of this thesis was to investigate individual and social-interaction factors that may contribute to the development of antisociality, i.e. psychopathy tendencies and juvenile delinquency. More specifically, early hyperactivity and later psychopathy tendencies were investigated by focussing on early relations with family and friends, adjustment ability and later personality traits. Juvenile delinquency was studied in terms of delinquent behaviour patterns and personality traits and associations between delinquency and school bonding. The studies were based on data from two longitudinal projects: Young Lawbreakers as Adults and A short-term longitudinal project of adolescent problem behaviour: 1998-2000. The former was initiated in 1956 and included early delinquent boys and a matched control group, where 199 out of the original 287 boys were followed-up in the 1980 s. The latter project included all adolescents (n=1243) in 8th grade in a medium-sized community in Sweden and was initiated in 1998. At follow-up in 2000, 1007 adolescents took part in the project. Our results indicated that there was a subgroup among hyperactive children with an elevated risk of developing psychopathy tendencies (Study II). More specifically, the hyperactive boys with subsequent psychopathy tendencies had more problems with friends andwere more aggressive in childhood than the boys with no subsequent psychopathy tendencies. Non-hyperactive boys with subsequent psychopathy tendencies experienced a poorer emotional home climate and had poorer adjustment abilities in childhood than non-hyperactive boys without subsequent psychopathy tendencies (Study I). We also found that hyperactive males with subsequent psychopathy tendencies exhibited more impulsivity than non-hyperactive males with subsequent psychopathy tendencies. Furthermore, our results indicated that it might be possible to assess psychopathy tendencies using personality questionnaires (Study II). Our analyses of juvenile delinquency identified four replicable clusters over an 18 monthperiod, indicating that a subdivision into minor, serious and violent delinquency may be useful in future research into juvenile delinquency. Particularly boys characterised by seriousdelinquency exhibited high somatic anxiety, low psychic strength and high non-conformity. Girls characterised by serious delinquency exhibited high impulsivity and sensation seeking, high out-acting aggression and high non-conformity (Study III). In the analyses of delinquency and school bonding it was found that adolescent boys delinquency propensity was affected by all school bonding dimensions, implying that it is crucial for boys to experience school itself, school work, and teacher relations as fruitful and harmonious in order to stay on a prosocial developmental path. In terms of adolescent girls delinquency propensity, only their perceived relationship with their teachers was suggested to be of major significance (Study IV). Finally, the findings suggest that it is beneficial to study antisocial individuals in smaller and more homogenous subgroups, as this can contribute to a deeper understanding of individual differences in antisociality

Jag är normal fast annorlunda : Att leva med cystisk fibros

Bakgrund. Föräldrar upplever oro över att cystisk fibros ska få deras barn att uppleva sig annorlunda. På grund av en långvarig relation upplever sjuksköterskor det känslomässigt krävande att vårda en patient med cystisk fibros i livets slutskede. Problem. Få kunskap om den som är drabbad av CF upplever att sjukdomen är ett hinder för att leva. Syfte. Beskriva upplevelser av att leva med cystisk fibros. Metod. En kvalitativ ansats har använts i form av en litteraturstudie med beskrivande syntes av publicerade artiklar. Resultat. Det framkommer att människor med cystisk fibros har varierande upplevelser av begränsningar och autonomi. De upplever sig som normala utifrån sin livsstil samtidigt som de känner sig annorlunda. Ungdomar upplever svårigheter i vardagen och genomgår en process för att acceptera sjukdomen som en del av livet. Att uppleva ansvar över sin vård och sitt liv skapar upplevelse av självständighet vilket underlättar för den drabbade att uppleva sig som normal. Slutsatser. Det är svårt att acceptera ett liv med CF, den drabbade upplever sig som annorlunda samtidigt som de kämpar för att uppleva sig som normala. Ytterligare forskning behövs om vårdrelationen mellan sjuksköterska och patienten som är drabbad av CF.Background. Parents experience concern because cystic fibrosis will make their children experience themselves different. Because of a lengthy nurse-patient relationship the nurses‟ experience it is emotionally demanding to care for a patient with cystic fibrosis in the final phase of life. Problem. To get knowledge if the one affected by cystic fibrosis experience that the disease is an obstacle in life. Purpose. To describe experiences of living with cystic fibrosis. Method. A qualitative approach was used in the form of a literature study with a descriptive synthesis of published articles. Results. It appears that people with cystic fibrosis experience varied perceptions of limitations and autonomy. They experience themselves as normal as seen from their lifestyle at the same time as they felt different. Young people experience difficulties in their everyday life and go through a process of accepting the disease as a part of life. To experience responsibility over your care and life creates an experience of independence which makes it easier for the ones‟ affected to experience themselves as normal. Conclusions. It is difficult to accept a life with cystic fibrosis, the affected ones experience themselves as different at the same time as they struggle to experience themselves as normal. Further research is needed about the nurse-patient relationship between the nurse and the patient that is affected by cystic fibrosis

Quality of Life in Different Male Offender Groups : Possible Underlying Effects of Intelligence and Psychopathic Tendencies

The role of psychopathic tendencies and intelligence on Quality of life (QoL) ratings in different male offender groups was explored. Participants were 199 Swedish males with a history of criminality at age 11-14 and matched controls from the longitudinal project Young Lawbreakers as Adults. Based on registered crimes prior to 15 years and up to 34 years of age, four criminal groups were yielded: non-criminals (NC); adolescence-limited (AL); persistent (P); and adult-onset (AO). The QoL construct consists of the following dimensions: Self-perception, Psychological health, Family, Children, Education, Work, and Finances, all self-rated at age 38-41 when also psychopathic tendencies were clinically assessed using the Psychopathy Check List (PCL). The P group reported lower QoL in all dimensions compared to the NC and AL groups and lower QoL regarding Family and Education than the AO group. When controlling for psychopathic tendencies, the group differences in QoL regarding Self-perception and Children was no longer significant. Generally, individuals with higher IQ scores rated higher QoL than individuals with lower IQ scores. IQ however did not explain the divergence in QoL between offender groups. Psychopathic tendencies are suggested to overtake the importance of group belonging regarding the QoL dimensions of Self-perception and Children

Poor school bonding and delinquency over time : bidirectional effects and sex differences

The association between poor school bonding and delinquency has only been partly addressed in earlier research. Using a longitudinal design, the objective of our study was to investigate possible bidirectional effects and sex differences between adolescents’ experienced school bonding and self-rated delinquency over time. A total of 788 adolescents (353 boys and 435 girls) were investigated by questionnaire at age 14 and 16. Poor school attachment and commitment as well as poor teacher attachment were found to be stronger determinants of delinquency for males than for females. Delinquency predicted poor school commitment for both boys and girls, and poor school attachment for girls, thus indicating bidirectional effects over time and sex differences in some of the bidirectional effects. The study concludes that the delinquency propensity of adolescent boys may be affected by all school bonding dimensions, whereas for girls it is their relationship with their teachers that is of significance