Age structure at diagnosis affects aggression in a psychiatric inpatient population: age structure affecting inpatient aggression.

Study of inpatient aggression in psychiatric inpatient units (PIUs), where vulnerable patients interact intensely in small groups, is hampered by a lack of systematic monitoring of aggressive events in the context of group dynamics. Our current study examines the relationship between aggression and group structure in the PIU of a general tertiary-care hospital over a 9-month period. The severity of aggression was monitored daily using the Overt Aggression Scale (OAS).