Testing for behavioral contagion in a case-control design. 1994

M B Jones, and D R Jones
Department of Behavioral Science, Pennsylvania State University College of Medicine, Hershey 17033.

'Behavioral contagion' refers to an increased tendency for a behavior to be performed when socially related persons have already performed it. So understood, behavioral contagion may be involved in criminality, conduct disorder, drug abuse, suicide, and teenage pregnancy. In a recent paper we showed that contagion, when present, generates highly distinctive result patterns in survey data. These patterns allow one to infer that contagion is present even though it has not been directly observed. The present paper extends this approach to case-control designs, where, it will be shown, contagion has equally distinctive but different consequences. The analysis is illustrated with a Canadian study of conduct disorder and further evidence is presented that this condition is contagious. Limitations of the approach and alternative interpretations of results are discussed.

UI MeSH Term Description Entries
D007604 Juvenile Delinquency The antisocial acts of children or persons under age which are illegal or lawfully interpreted as constituting delinquency. Delinquency, Juvenile
D008297 Male Males
D008399 Mass Behavior Collective behavior of an aggregate of individuals giving the appearance of unity of attitude, feeling, and motivation. Collective Behavior,Group Behavior,Behavior, Collective,Behavior, Group,Behavior, Mass,Collective Behaviors,Group Behaviors,Mass Behaviors
D009864 Ontario A province of Canada lying between the provinces of Manitoba and Quebec. Its capital is Toronto. It takes its name from Lake Ontario which is said to represent the Iroquois oniatariio, beautiful lake. (From Webster's New Geographical Dictionary, 1988, p892 & Room, Brewer's Dictionary of Names, 1992, p391)
D002648 Child A person 6 to 12 years of age. An individual 2 to 5 years old is CHILD, PRESCHOOL. Children
D002653 Child Behavior Disorders Disturbances considered to be pathological based on age and stage appropriateness, e.g., conduct disturbances and anaclitic depression. This concept does not include psychoneuroses, psychoses, or personality disorders with fixed patterns. Childhood Behavior Disorders,Behavior Disorder, Child,Behavior Disorder, Childhood,Child Behavior Disorder,Childhood Behavior Disorder,Disorder, Childhood Behavior
D002675 Child, Preschool A child between the ages of 2 and 5. Children, Preschool,Preschool Child,Preschool Children
D005191 Family Characteristics Size and composition of the family. Family Size,Couples,Family Demography,Family Life Surveys,Family Size, Average,Family Size, Completed,Family Size, Desired,Family Size, Expected,Family Size, Ideal,Family and Household,Generations,Head of Household,Households,One-Person Household,Average Family Size,Average Family Sizes,Completed Family Size,Completed Family Sizes,Demography, Family,Desired Family Size,Desired Family Sizes,Expected Family Size,Expected Family Sizes,Family Characteristic,Family Demographies,Family Life Survey,Family Sizes,Family Sizes, Ideal,Household,Household Head,Household Heads,Household and Family,Household, One-Person,Ideal Family Size,Ideal Family Sizes,One Person Household,One-Person Households,Survey, Family Life
D005260 Female Females
D006801 Humans Members of the species Homo sapiens. Homo sapiens,Man (Taxonomy),Human,Man, Modern,Modern Man

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