NCJ Number
178489
Journal
Comprehensive Psychiatry Volume: 39 Issue: 4 Dated: July/August 1998 Pages: 203-205
Date Published
1998
Length
3 pages
Annotation
Recognizing violent crime has been associated with the abuse of anabolic-androgenic steroids (AAS) in several reports, this hypothetical relationship was tested among individuals in a Stockholm, Sweden, jail who had been arrested for violent crimes and were screened for AAS in urine.
Abstract
The study screened 50 violent offenders who were arrested for unlawful threat, assault and battery, manslaughter, murder, robbery, rape, and kidnapping, and the 50 participants gave a urine sample. Findings revealed no AAS in the urine samples of the 50 violent offenders who volunteered to participate in the study, although AAS abuse was admitted by 2 participants. The study did not demonstrate a relationship between AAS abuse and violent crime but did illustrate some of the difficulties in establishing such a relationship. The authors believe there is reason to suspect that AAS abuse increases the risk of violent outbursts among susceptible individuals. 22 references