10 Facts About Conduct disorder

One of the symptoms of conduct disorder is a lower level of fear.

Research has shown that there is a greater number of children with adolescent-onset conduct disorder than those with childhood-onset, suggesting that adolescent-onset conduct disorder is an exaggeration of developmental behaviors that are typically seen in adolescence, such as rebellion against authority figures and rejection of conventional values.

Specifically, research has demonstrated continuity in the disorders such that conduct disorder is often diagnosed in children who have been previously diagnosed with oppositional defiant disorder, and most adults with antisocial personality disorder were previously diagnosed with conduct disorder.

Children with conduct disorder have a high risk of developing other adjustment problems.

Conduct disorder is highly associated with both substance use and abuse.

Children with conduct disorder have an earlier onset of substance use, as compared to their peers, and tend to use multiple substances.

For instance, antisocial behavior suggestive of conduct disorder is associated with single parent status, parental divorce, large family size, and the young age of mothers.

Conduct disorder is classified in the fourth edition of Diagnostic and Statistical Manual of Mental Disorders.

Almost all adolescents who have a substance use disorder have conduct disorder-like traits, but after successful treatment of the substance use disorder, about half of these adolescents no longer display conduct disorder-like symptoms.

The majority of research on conduct disorder suggests that there are a significantly greater number of males than females with the diagnosis, with some reports demonstrating a threefold to fourfold difference in prevalence.