Risk factors for conduct disorder among Navajo Indian men and women

Objectives: To describe the risk factors for conduct disorder before age 15 among Navajo Indians. Methods. The study was based on a survey of a strati fied random sample of adult Navajo Indians between the ages of 21 and 65 li ving on and adjacent to two different areas of the Navajo Reservation. Ther e were 531 male and 203 female respondents. The average age (SD) of the men was 38.7 (10.5) years and of the women 35.5 (9.0) years. Conduct disorder was diagnosed retrospectively using the Diagnostic Interview Schedule first developed for the Epidemiological Catchment Area study. The responses were combined into a continuous scale. Results: Significant risk factors for in creased scores on the conduct disorder scale were: histories of physical an d sexual abuse in childhood; abusive maternal drinking; a small number of h ouseholds per camp; younger age; and being male rather than female. Measure s of social status and religion in which subjects were raised were not sign ificant. Conclusions: Many of the risk factors that are associated with con duct disorder in other populations are also risk factors in the Navajo popu lation. There is suggestive evidence that some of these risk factors have b ecome more common since World War II, raising the possibility that conduct disorder has become more prevalent, as is thought to be the case nationwide .