Harsh discipline, childhood sexual assault, and MAOA genotype: An investigation of main and interactive effects on diverse clinical externalizing outcomes

Jaime Derringer, Robert F. Krueger, Daniel E. Irons, William G. Iacono

Research output: Contribution to journalArticlepeer-review

Abstract

We studied the impact of MAOA genotype, childhood sexual assault, and harsh discipline on clinical externalizing symptoms (substance problems, adult antisocial behavior, and conduct disorder). Participants were 841 individual twins from the Minnesota Twin Family Study assessed through age 25. MAOA genotype was not associated with differences in any phenotype, nor was there a significant interaction between MAOA and harsh discipline for any phenotype or a significant interaction between MAOA and childhood sexual assault for substance problems. We found evidence that childhood sexual assault interacted with MAOA genotype to predict antisocial behavior and conduct disorder symptoms. Individuals with the low MAOA activity genotype who reported childhood sexual assault had more symptoms than individuals with either the high MAOA activity genotype and/or no history of childhood sexual assault. These findings suggest that the previously reported interaction between MAOA and childhood maltreatment may be specific to the antisocial subset of externalizing disorders.

Original languageEnglish (US)
Pages (from-to)639-648
Number of pages10
JournalBehavior genetics
Volume40
Issue number5
DOIs
StatePublished - Sep 2010
Externally publishedYes

Keywords

  • Antisocial behavior
  • Childhood sexual assault
  • Conduct disorder
  • Gene-environment interaction
  • Harsh discipline
  • MAOA
  • Substance use disorders

ASJC Scopus subject areas

  • Ecology, Evolution, Behavior and Systematics
  • Genetics
  • Genetics(clinical)

Fingerprint

Dive into the research topics of 'Harsh discipline, childhood sexual assault, and MAOA genotype: An investigation of main and interactive effects on diverse clinical externalizing outcomes'. Together they form a unique fingerprint.

Cite this