The relationship between conduct disorder and parents' psychiatric disorders, social capital, lifestyle, and comorbid disorders: A structural equation modeling study

Since the global burden of conduct disorder is considerable, its determinants have yet to be discovered. The aim of this study was to determine the relationship between conduct disorder and parents' psychiatric disorders, social capital, lifestyle, and comorbid disorders using a structural equation modeling (SEM). Data were collected from the National Epidemiology of Iranian Children and Adolescents Psychiatric Disorders (IRCAP), which included 30,532 children and adolescents aged 6 to 18 years and their parents in all provinces of Iran. Trained psychologists performed the diagnostic assessment of the adolescents and children's parents using the Persian version of the Kiddie Schedule for Affective Disorders and Schizophrenia for School-Age Children-Present and Lifetime Version (K-SADS-PL). Parents completed the Millon Clinical Multiaxial Inventory, 3rd edition (MCMI-III), Social Capital, and Lifestyle Questionnaires. Three models were developed demonstrating direct and indirect associations between conduct disorder and the variables, with or without considering covariates. By considering the covariates, we found that fathers' psychiatric disorders and social capital were more associated with children's conduct disorder as compared to mothers' psychiatric disorders and lifestyle; we also found that mothers' psychiatric disorders had an indirect association with children's conduct disorder. Only mothers' psychiatric disorder and lifestyle had significant associations with comorbid disorders; and the relationships between conduct disorder and the variables were mediated through comorbid disorders. Longitudinal studies are needed to replicate the findings of this study and explore the causality between the variables.

Automated summary

This study found that there is a direct relationship between parents' psychiatric disorders and social capital with children's conduct disorder, while mothers' psychiatric disorders have an indirect relationship with children's conduct disorder. Only mothers' psychiatric disorders and lifestyle have significant associations with comorbid disorders, and the relationships between conduct disorder and the variables are mediated through comorbid disorders.