Anti-social Behaviour

Anti-social Behaviour

Anti-social behavior (with or without hyphen) is behaviour that lacks consideration for others and may cause damage to the society, whether intentionally or through negligence. This is opposed to pro-social behaviour, which is behaviour that helps or benefits the society. Criminal and civil laws in various countries offer remedies for anti-social behaviour. Antisocial behavior is labeled as such when it is deemed contrary to prevailing norms for social conduct. This encompasses a large spectrum of actions. Murder, rape, use of illegal substances, and a wide variety of activities are deemed anti-social behaviours. In addition to actions that oppose established law, anti-social actions also include activities that members of society find objectionable even if they are legal, such as drunkenness and sexual promiscuity. In psychiatry, particularly in the Diagnostic and Statistical Manual of Mental Disorders, persistent anti-social behaviour is part of a diagnosis of antisocial personality disorder. The ICD-10 defines a conceptually similar dissocial personality disorder.