Brain functional changes in juvenile delinquents: a preliminary meta-analysis

Juvenile delinquency is a serious social issue that poses significant challenges to public safety and mental health systems. However, the neurophysiological mechanisms underlying delinquent behaviour in juveniles remain unclear. In this meta-analysis, we aimed to investigate the functional brain characteristics during resting-state and task-based conditions in juvenile offenders.

A comprehensive literature search was conducted in PubMed, Web of Science and MEDLINE, focusing on whole-brain resting-state and task-based functional magnetic resonance imaging (fMRI) studies examining brain activation patterns in juvenile delinquents compared with controls.

Six task-based fMRI studies were incorporated into the meta-analysis. Our findings revealed increased activation in juvenile delinquents in the left medial orbital part of the superior frontal gyrus (SFG), amygdala and cerebellum vermis VI region across these task-based fMRI studies, and increased activation in the left medial orbital part of the SFG and vermis VI region in studies using emotional tasks. The other five resting-state fMRI studies reported different indicators. Therefore, no meta-analysis was performed on the resting-state data.

These findings suggest that overactivation in the fronto-amygdala-cerebellar circuit may be a key neurophysiological basis for impaired emotional and behavioural regulation, as well as increased violent behaviour in juvenile offenders.