ABSTRACT
Based on a meta-analysis of 45 independent effect sizes from 40 studies, Ortiz and Raine (2004) concluded “low resting heart rate appears to be the best-replicated biological correlate to date of antisocial and aggressive behavior in children and adolescents” (p. 154). Research included in the Ortiz and Raine (2004) metaanalysis and subsequent studies show that low resting heart rate is predictive of crime and antisocial behavior among adults (Farington, 1997; Raine et al., 1990, 1995; Wadsworth, 1976) and that the link between resting heart rate and antisocial behavior remains net of controls for variables from traditional criminological theories (Armstrong et al., 2009; Cauffman et al., 2005; Farrington, 1997). Recent research also indicates that low resting heart rate (LRHR) is related to serious and violent antisocial behavior (SVASB), but not to more general delinquency (Armstrong et al., 2009). In their meta-analysis, Ortiz and Raine (2004) find an average effect size of 0.44 among studies testing the relationship between low resting heart rate (LRHR) and antisocial behavior (ASB). The effect size for the subset of studies testing the relationship between low heart rate reactivity (LHRR) and antisocial behavior was in an effect size of 0.76. This suggests that particular attention to LHRR may be warranted.
