Norwegian version of this page

Forensic psychiatry

The research group explores biological, psychological, and societal aspects regarding violence and antisocial behaviour committed by persons with severe mental disorders. Our goal is to inform prevention and treatment and contribute to legal justice.

About the group

We study biological, psychological, and societal mechanisms underpinning the association between severe antisocial behaviour and serious mental disorders.

Our approach is broad and interdisciplinary, combining clinical studies, studies of registry data and neuroimaging using novel methods, and studies of historical and legal documents.

The research is conducted in collaboration with national and international experts in neuroscience, clinical psychosis research, criminology, criminal law, and philosophy.

Aims

  • Develop stratification tools for targeted treatment of forensic psychiatry patients.
  • Validate and remodel clinical assumptions in the criminal insanity discourse.
  • Identify shared genetic, neuroanatomical, and environmental underpinnings of antisocial behaviour and severe mental disorders.
  • Identify neurodevelopmental trajectories and targets for prevention of antisocial behaviour in severe mental disorders.

 

Projects

Selected publications

  1. Vaskinn A, Rokicki J, Bell C, Tesli N, Bang N, Hjell G, Fischer-Vieler T, Haukvik UK, Friestad C. Violent Offending in Males With or Without Schizophrenia: A Role for Social Cognition? Schizophr Bull. 2023 Oct 20:sbad151. doi: 10.1093/schbul/sbad151. Epub ahead of print. PMID: 37861424.
  2. Hjell G, Rokicki J, Szabo A, Holst R, Tesli N, Bell C, Fischer-Vieler T, Werner MCF, Lunding SH, Ormerod MBEG, Johansen IT, Djurovic S, Ueland T, Andreassen OA, Melle I, Lagerberg TV, Mørch-Johnsen L, Steen NE, Haukvik UK. Impulsivity across severe mental disorders: a cross-sectional study of immune markers and psychopharmacotherapy. BMC Psychiatry. 2023 Sep 7;23(1):659. doi: 10.1186/s12888-023-05154-4. PMID: 37674162; PMCID: PMC10483855.
  3. Tesli M, Nesvåg R, Haukvik UK, Gustavson K, Tesli N, Friestad C, Skardhamar T, Naess Ø, Czajkowski N, Kendler KS, Reichborn-Kjennerud T, Ystrom E. Common genetic and environmental risk for personality disorders and psychotic-like experiences in young adult twins. Acta Psychiatr Scand. 2023 Jul 27. doi: 10.1111/acps.13596. Epub ahead of print. PMID: 37497694.
  4. Fischer-Vieler T, Ringen PA, Kvig E, Bell C, Hjell G, Tesli N, Rokicki J, Melle I, Andreassen OA, Friestad C, Haukvik UK. Associations between clinical insight and history of violence in psychosis patients. Schizophrenia Bulletin Open, Volume 4, Issue 1, January 2023, sgad011, https://doi.org/10.1093/schizbullopen/sgad011
  5. Friestad C, Haukvik UK, Johnsen B, Vatnar SK. Prevalence and characteristics of mental and physical disorders among female prisoners: a mixed-methods systematic review. Int J Prison Health. 2023 May 10. doi: 10.1108/IJPH-12-2022-0080.
  6. Bell C, Tesli N, Gurholt TP, Rokicki J, Hjell G, Fischer-Vieler T, Melle I, Agartz I, Andreassen OA, Ringen PA, Rasmussen K, Dahl H, Friestad C, Haukvik UK.  Psychopathy subdomains in violent offenders with and without a psychotic disorder. Nord J Psychiatry 2022 Oct 19;1-10. doi: 10.1080/08039488.2022.2128869.
  7. Tesli N, Bell C, Hjell G, Fischer-Vieler T, I Maximov I, Richard G, Tesli M, Melle I, Andreassen OA, Agartz I, Westlye LT, Friestad C, Haukvik UK, Rokicki J. The age of violence: Mapping brain age in psychosis and psychopathy. Neuroimage Clin. 2022 Sep 6;36:103181. doi: 10.1016/j.nicl.2022.103181. Epub ahead of print. PMID: 36088844; PMCID: PMC9474919.
  8. Rokicki J, Kaufmann T, de Lange AG, van der Meer D, Bahrami S, Sartorius AM, Haukvik UK, Steen NE, Schwarz E, Stein DJ, Nærland T, Andreassen OA, Westlye LT, Quintana DS. Oxytocin receptor expression patterns in the human brain across development. Neuropsychopharmacology. 2022 Jul;47(8):1550-1560. doi: 10.1038/s41386-022-01305-5. Epub 2022 Mar 28. PMID: 35347267; PMCID: PMC9205980.
  9. Hjell G, Szabo A, Mørch-Johnsen L, Holst R, Tesli N, Bell C, Fischer-Vieler T, Werner MCF, Lunding SH, Ormerod MBEG, Johansen IT, Dieset I, Djurovic S, Melle I, Ueland T, Andreassen OA, Steen NE, Haukvik UK. Interleukin-18 signaling system links to agitation in severe mental disorders. Psychoneuroendocrinology. 2022 Jun;140:105721. doi: 10.1016/j.psyneuen.2022.105721. Epub 2022 Mar 12. PMID: 35301151.
  10. Gröning L, Haukvik UK, Morse SJ, Radovic S. Remodelling criminal insanity: Exploring philosophical, legal, and medical premises of the medical model used in Norwegian law. Int J Law Psychiatry. 2022 Mar-Apr;81:101776. doi: 10.1016/j.ijlp.2022.101776. Epub 2022 Jan 31. PMID: 35101774.
  11. Bell C, Tesli N, Gurholt TP, Rokicki J, Hjell G, Fischer-Vieler T, Melle I, Agartz I, Andreassen OA, Rasmussen K, Johansen R, Friestad C, Haukvik UK. Associations between amygdala nuclei volumes, psychosis, psychopathy, and violent offending. Psychiatry Res Neuroimaging. 2022 Jan;319:111416. doi: 10.1016/j.pscychresns.2021.111416. Epub 2021 Nov 24. PMID: 34847406.
  12. Tesli N, Jaroslav Rokicki R, Maximov I, Bell C, Hjell G, Gurholt T, Fischer-Vieler T, Bang N, Tesli M, Westlye LT, Andreassen OA, Melle I, Agartz I, Rasmussen K, Johansen R, Friestad C, Haukvik UK.  White Matter Matters: Unraveling Violence in Psychosis and Psychopathy, Schizophrenia Bulletin Open, Volume 2, Issue 1, January 2021, sgab026, https://doi.org/10.1093/schizbullopen/sgab026
  13. Haukvik UK, Gurholt TP, Nerland S, Elvsåshagen T, Akudjedu TN, Alda M, Alnaes D, Alonso-Lana S, Bauer J, Baune BT, Benedetti F, Berk M, Bettella F, Bøen E, Bonnín CM, Brambilla P, Canales-Rodríguez EJ, Cannon DM, Caseras X, Dandash O, Dannlowski U, Delvecchio G, Díaz-Zuluaga AM, van Erp TGM, Fatjó-Vilas M, Foley SF, Förster K, Fullerton JM, Goikolea JM, Grotegerd D, Gruber O, Haarman BCM, Haatveit B, Hajek T, Hallahan B, Harris M, Hawkins EL, Howells FM, Hülsmann C, Jahanshad N, Jørgensen KN, Kircher T, Krämer B, Krug A, Kuplicki R, Lagerberg TV, Lancaster TM, Lenroot RK, Lonning V, López-Jaramillo C, Malt UF, McDonald C, McIntosh AM, McPhilemy G, van der Meer D, Melle I, Melloni EMT, Mitchell PB, Nabulsi L, Nenadić I, Oertel V, Oldani L, Opel N, Otaduy MCG, Overs BJ, Pineda-Zapata JA, Pomarol-Clotet E, Radua J, Rauer L, Redlich R, Repple J, Rive MM, Roberts G, Ruhe HG, Salminen LE, Salvador R, Sarró S, Savitz J, Schene AH, Sim K, Soeiro-de-Souza MG, Stäblein M, Stein DJ, Stein F, Tamnes CK, Temmingh HS, Thomopoulos SI, Veltman DJ, Vieta E, Waltemate L, Westlye LT, Whalley HC, Sämann PG, Thompson PM, Ching CRK, Andreassen OA, Agartz I; ENIGMA Bipolar Disorder Working Group. In vivo hippocampal subfield volumes in bipolar disorder-A mega-analysis from The Enhancing Neuro Imaging Genetics through Meta- Analysis Bipolar Disorder Working Group. Hum Brain Mapp. 2022 Jan;43(1):385-398. doi: 10.1002/hbm.25249. Epub 2020 Oct 19. PMID: 33073925; PMCID: PMC8675404.
  14. Hjell G, Mørch-Johnsen L, Holst R, Tesli N, Bell C, Lunding SH, Rødevand L, Werner MCF, Melle I, Andreassen OA, Lagerberg TV, Steen NE, Haukvik UK. Disentangling the relationship between cholesterol, aggression, and impulsivity in severe mental disorders. Brain Behav. 2020 Sep;10(9):e01751. doi: 10.1002/brb3.1751. Epub 2020 Jul 17. PMID: 32681586; PMCID: PMC7507477.
  15. Gröning L, Haukvik UK, Meynen G, Radovic S. Constructing criminal insanity: The roles of legislators, judges and experts in Norway, Sweden and the Netherlands. New Journal of European Criminal Law. 2020;11(3):390-410. doi:10.1177/2032284420950485
  16. Storvestre GB, Jensen A, Bjerke E, Tesli N, Rosaeg C, Friestad C, Andreassen OA, Melle I, Haukvik UK. Childhood Trauma in Persons With Schizophrenia and a History of Interpersonal Violence. Front Psychiatry. 2020 May 5;11:383. doi: 10.3389/fpsyt.2020.00383. PMID: 32431632; PMCID: PMC7214725.
  17. Tesli N, van der Meer D, Rokicki J, Storvestre G, Røsæg C, Jensen A, Hjell G, Bell C, Fischer-Vieler T, Tesli M, Andreassen OA, Melle I, Agartz I, Haukvik UK. Hippocampal subfield and amygdala nuclei volumes in schizophrenia patients with a history of violence. Eur Arch Psychiatry Clin Neurosci. 2020 Sep;270(6):771-782. doi: 10.1007/s00406-020-01098-y. Epub 2020 Jan 24. PMID: 31980898; PMCID: PMC7423802.
  18. Grøning L, Haukvik UK, Melle KH. Insanity, Psychosis and Impaired Reality Testing in Norwegian Law Bergen Journal of Criminal Law and Criminal Justice, Volume 7, Issue 1, 2019, pp. 1-33
Published Nov. 13, 2018 10:36 AM - Last modified Mar. 21, 2024 12:21 PM

Contact

Group leader

Participants

Detailed list of participants

Associated members

  • Christine Friestad
  • Ingeborg Jensen Sandbukt 
  • Petter Andreas Ringen
  • Ragnhild Johansen
  • Hilde Dahl