An Analysis of the Relationship Between Premenstrual Syndrome and Aggression Tendencies Among Turkish Adolescent Girls

Abstract

Background: Premenstrual syndrome affects women’s physical, psychological, and social health negatively. Moreover, it causes behavioral disorders such as anger, crime, and aggression tendencies. However, there is a limited number of studies in the literature which examined the relationship between premenstrual syndrome and crime, aggression, or violence. Objective: The objective of this study was to identify the relationship between premenstrual syndrome and aggression tendencies. Methods: This is a descriptive study. The 774 voluntary adolescent girls studying at a state university in Turkey constituted the sample of the research. Results: The mean age of adolescent girls was 19.05 ± 1.64. The mean age of first menstruation for the participants was 13.35 ± 1.23. It was determined that 58.3% of the participants had a premenstrual syndrome. Premenstrual syndrome intensity levels were higher among adolescent girls whose menstruation interval was < 28 days, those who had “irregular” menstrual cycles, those who found their menstruation-related knowledge “inadequate”, those diagnosed with “anemia” and those who thought their anger/aggression tendencies increased in their “premenstrual period” (p<0.05). Moreover, aggression tendencies increased among adolescent girls as the intensity of premenstrual syndrome increased (p<0.05). Conclusion: Health professional's premenstural symptoms were carefully evaluated and individualized care and treatment plans were created.