Frontal-lobe cognitive dysfunction in conduct disorder adolescents.

Behavioral similarities between antisocial behavior disorders and frontal-lobe cerebral impairment have led to suggestions that conduct disorders are attributable to disinhibition deficit associated with frontal-lobe cerebral functions. This study compared the performance of 21 conduct disorder adolescents on measures of cognitive processes associated with frontal-lobe functions with that of a matched comparison sample. Conduct disorder adolescents performed more poorly on measures sensitive to frontal-lobe dysfunction (conceptual perseveration, poorly sustained attention, impaired sequencing on memory and motor tasks), but not on non-frontal-lobe specific cognitive measures. Although the findings support a neurobehavioral explanation of antisocial behavior as a product of cerebral disinhibition, caution is urged in overinterpreting causal relationships through neurobehavioral data.