Violent behaviours in drug addiction: differential profiles of drug-addicted patients with and without violence problems

Abstract

This study explored the prevalence of violent behaviours in patients who are addicted to drugs. A sample of 252 addicted patients (203 male and 49 female) who sought outpatient treatment was assessed. Information on violent behaviours, socio-demographic factors, consumption factors (assessed by the EuropAsi), psychopathological factors (assessed by SCL-90-R) and personality variables (assessed by MCMI-II) was collected. Drug-addicted patients who were associated with violent behaviours were compared on all variables to patients who were not associated with violent behaviours. The rate of drug-addicted patients with violent behaviours in this sample was 39.68% (n=100). There were significant differences between the numbers of patients who did and did not demonstrate violence on some variables. Patients with violence problems were younger than those without violence problems and were more likely to report having been a victim of abuse. Moreover, they were significantly more likely to have experienced an overdose and showed a significantly higher score on several EuropAsi, SCL-90-R and MCMI-II variables. According to these results, patients with violence control problems present with both a more severe addiction and several comorbid problems. The implications of these results for further research and clinical practice are discussed.