Guns and Behavior Disorders

Conduct disorder is a persistent pattern of behavior in which someone violates major age-appropriate social norms and the basic rights of others. Many boys with conduct disorder have problems controlling their impulses. Research has shown that boys with conduct disorder are more likely to use a weapon, but no research has been done to see if they are more likely to carry a concealed gun. That is the purpose of this new study.

The study includes 177 boys ages 7 to 12, all of whom were referred by mental health clinics. They were first assessed in 1987, and they were interviewed annually until they were 19. Half of the boys were from one site in Pennsylvania, and the others were from two sites in Georgia. All the boys lived with at least one biological parent and none had a history of mental retardation or psychosis. Many came from poor families. Seventy percent were white and 30 percent were African American.

At the age of 17, almost one in three (32 percent) were diagnosed with oppositional defiant disorder, 20 percent with conduct disorder and 18 percent with attention deficit with hyperactivity disorder (ADHD). It?s important to remember that all the boys had been referred by a clinic because of problems at an early age.

Between the ages of 12 and 17, twenty percent had carried a concealed gun at least once. This is not much higher than the 18 percent reported in a more nationally representative sample of boys. The boys started carrying guns as early as age 10, and were more likely to do so as they got older. However, many boys who started carrying guns later stopped; for example, 61 percent had carried a gun for only a year or less.

The boys who carried a concealed gun were four times as likely to be diagnosed with conduct disorder and less likely to be diagnosed as overanxious. Carrying a concealed gun was not related to oppositional defiant disorder, depression, separation anxiety or ADHD.

Carrying a concealed gun was more likely among boys who were violent, older or African American, had low socio-economic status or lived in urban areas. Those who were monitored more closely by their parents were less likely to carry a concealed gun.
The number of arrests per participant ranged from 0 to 16, with a mean of 1.6. Nearly half were arrested at least once in adulthood. Those who carried concealed guns as adolescents were more likely to commit crimes as adults.

The findings thus illustrate the many reasons for youth workers to worry about youths carrying concealed guns.