European Journal of Behavioral Sciences

From Adversity to Aggressive Behaviour: A Longitudinal Study of Institutional Misconduct Among Romanian Juvenile Inmates

2025-09-22T03:35:24+00:00

This study examines the predictors of violent conduct among juvenile inmates within the Romanian correctional system, with a specific emphasis on property-destructive behaviours occurring during incarceration. Responding to a critical gap in the national literature, the research utilizes a longitudinal design to follow a cohort of 439 adolescents (Mage = 16.21; 5.2% female) over a two-year observation period. Findings from survival analyses demonstrate that incidents of violence directed at institutional infrastructure, such as the destruction of windows, doors, furniture, and walls, are significantly associated with both pre-incarceration adversities and institutional conditions. In addition, psychological variables, including low frustration tolerance, impaired self-esteem, and emotion dysregulation, emerge as salient predictors of such misconduct. These results advance current theoretical and empirical understandings of institutional violence and carry important implications for correctional policy development and targeted intervention strategies.

Quality of Life in Tetany Syndrome: The Role of Symptomatology, Attack Frequency, and Panic Disorder Comorbidity

2026-01-31T10:38:54+00:00

This study investigates the quality of life among individuals with tetany syndrome focusing on symptomatology of tetany syndrome, frequency of tetany attacks and comorbidity of panic disorder. The research utilised the WHOQOL-BREF Quality of Life questionnaire together with additional questions addressing socio-demographic data and respondents' health status. The research sample consisted of 427 respondents, of whom 158 were diagnosed with tetany syndrome. The results demonstrated that respondents with tetany syndrome scored significantly lower across the various domains of quality of life. The presence of specific symptoms showed the strongest correlations between poor concentration, weakness, fatigue, malaise, and feelings of anxiety or anxiety attacks, migraine and dull or sharp headaches and overall quality of life, physical health, psychological and environment domain. Conversely, the weakest correlations were observed in the domain of social relationships. The frequency of tetany attacks indicated that respondents who experienced a higher frequency of attacks scored lower in overall quality of life as well as in the environment and social relationships domains. Individuals with tetany syndrome who also had panic disorder scored significantly lower in overall quality of life and in the environmental domain as in comparison to those without panic disorder.

Self-Harming Behaviour and Its Comorbidities

2026-02-19T12:04:01+00:00

Self-harming behavior represents a clinically significant and multifaceted phenomenon that frequently co-occurs with a broad spectrum of psychiatric conditions; however, data on its comorbidities within the Slovak population remain scarce. The present exploratory study aimed to provide an overview of the prevalence of mental disorders among individuals engaging in self-harm, to examine potential sex differences in comorbidity patterns, and to explore associations between age and the occurrence of selected comorbidities. Data were collected from 135 psychologists and psychiatrists, each reporting on one self-harming client (N = 135; 85.2% women; age range 12–55 years), using an anonymous checklist based on the DSM-5 diagnostic framework, supplemented with additional clinically relevant categories. Due to non-normal distribution and unequal group sizes, non-parametric statistical procedures were applied. The results indicated that self-harm rarely occurred in isolation and was most frequently associated with relational problems in the family, anxiety disorders, depressive disorders, suicidal behavior disorder, and personality disorders. Positive associations with age were observed for personality disorders, depressive disorders, substance-related and addictive disorders, and abuse and neglect. Sex differences emerged in several domains, largely reflecting established epidemiological trends. These findings underscore the necessity of comprehensive, multidimensional clinical assessment of individuals who self-harm, while also highlighting the need for longitudinal and methodologically rigorous research to clarify developmental mechanisms and causal relationships underlying psychiatric comorbidity in self-harming populations.