Sheen has a long history as a problem child and I am not defending either his self-destructive or violent behavior.

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According to research from the Society for Neuroscience, a confluence of disruptions and dysfunctions occur in the brains of people who exhibit anti-social and violent behavior.

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He exhibited "self-destructive, aggressive and violent behavior" and suffered extreme depression, withdrawing from his family and children, court documents said.

CNN: January 23, 2013 -- Updated 2220 GMT (0620 HKT)

Damage or abnormalities in the frontal lobe -- a brain area that regulates movement, inhibition, emotions and general behaviors -- has been linked to violent behavior.

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After analyzing data from 47 independent brain imaging studies, researchers found that the rule-breaking behavior common to people with antisocial, violent, and psychopathic tendencies may result partly from damage to the neural circuitry in the brain that underlies moral decision-making.

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While she knows of no research examining the long-term impact of reality TV, a several decades-long study shows people who watched aggressive and violent behavior on TV as kids were more likely to be aggressive, hit their spouses and engage in other inappropriate behavior later in life.

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