Interpersonal violence in the context of affective and psychotic disorders

Some mental and neurobiological disorders are associated with an increased risk for violence against others. The stigmatization of people with mental illnesses essentially emerges from a distorted perception of this condition. This review article summarizes the available literature on the determinants, prevention, therapy and tools for prediction of serious interpersonal aggression in the context of people with mental disorders. The risks for violence against other people show substantial variation between the various diagnoses. Schizophrenia and mania carry a clearly increased risk particularly at the onset of the disorder but disease-specific pharmacological therapy can reduce these risks. The highest risk factors are in particular previous violence, misuse of alcohol and drugs, male gender and young age. Probabilistic predictions of subsequent aggression against others on an individual-specific basis are only feasible in enriched populations (especially persons with mental illnesses and a previous history of assaults). Valid individual-specific predictions of future violence in the general population or on the basis of diagnoses of mental illness are, however, currently not feasible with sufficient accuracy.