Chapter 7 - Psychopathy

Question 1

Psychopath

Answer 1

Broken down into three definitions:

• primary psychopath
• secondary psychopath
• dyssocial psychopaths

Question 2

Primary psychopath

Answer 2

• a “true” psychopath
• has certain identifiable, psychological, emotional, cognitive, and biological differences that distinguish him or her from the general and criminal population.

Question 3

Secondary psychopath

Answer 3

• commit antisocial or violent acts because of severe emotional problems or inner conflicts.
• sometimes called acting out neurotics, neurotic delinquents, symptomatic psychopaths, or emotionally disturbed offenders
• demonstrates more emotional instability than the primary psychopath, and appear more aggressive and violent.
• secondary psychopathy is more rooted in parental abuse or rejection

Question 4

Dyssocial psychopathy

Answer 4

• display aggressive, antisocial behavior that they have LEARNED from their subculture (gangs, terrorist groups, families)

Question 5

Antisocial personality disorder (APD)

Answer 5

• “a pervasive pattern of disregard for, and violation of, the rights of others, occurring since age 15…”
• DSM-5 has 7 additional criteria, at least 3 of which must be met for diagnosis, including pervasive lying, impulsiveness, and disregard for others safety
• individual must be at least 18 years or older
• must be evidence that behavior occurred prior to age 15
• Not all children diagnosed with CD qualify for APD, all adults with APD would have or did qualify for CD

Question 6

Differences between APD and psychopathy

Answer 6

• definition of APD is narrower than psychopathy
• APD focuses on behavior, psychopathy includes behavior and also emotional, neurological, cognitive, etc
• APD by definition always includes criminal activity
• psychopathy does NOT always mean criminal activity
• not all psychopaths are criminals, and not all criminals are psychopaths
• psychopathy is not a category but exists on a continuum, i.e. “psychopaths differ in degree, not in kind, from non-psychopaths”

Question 7

Criminal psychopath

Answer 7

Those primary psychopaths who engage in repetitive antisocial or criminal behavior

Question 8

Semantic aphasia

Answer 8

Articulating regrets for having done something, but the word are devoid of emotional meaning

Question 9

PCL-R (Psychopathy Checklist)

Answer 9

The dominant psychological instrument for measuring criminal psychopathy. Contains a “family of measures”, other versions of PCL-R that address different “regions”of psychopathy. Largely based on Cleckley’s conception of psychopathy.

Question 10

Psychopathy Checklist: Screening Version (PCL:SV)

Answer 10

12-item short form version

Question 11

Psychopathy Checklist: Youth Version (PCL: YV)

Answer 11

Version used for juvenile offenders

Question 12

P-scan: Research Version

Answer 12

A screening instrument that serves as a rough screen for psychopathic features and as a source of working hypotheses to deal with managing suspects, offenders, or clients. Designed for use in law enforcement, probation, corrections, civil and forensic facilities, and other areas.

Question 13

factor analysis

Answer 13

A statistical procedure designed to find different dimensions or factors in test data. Includes 2-factor position, 3-factor position, and 4-factor model. Also the boldness factor and meanness factor

Question 14

Two-factor position

Answer 14

Factor 1: Reflects the interpersonal and emotional components of psychopathy and consists of items measuring remorselessness, callousness, and selfish use and manipulation of others. The typical psychopath feels no compunctions about using others strictly to meet his or her own needs.
Factor 2: Most closely associated with a socially deviant or antisocial lifestyle, as characterized by poor planning, impulsiveness, an excessive need for stimulation, proneness to boredom, and a lack of realistic goals.

Question 15

Associations with Factor 1:

Answer 15

• related to planned predatory violence
• resistance and inability to profit from psychotherapy and treatment programs
• more connected to biopsychosocial influences
• MAY be a more powerful indicator of psychopathy
• definitively does a better job of identifying psychopathy in general

Question 16

Associations with Factor 2:

Answer 16

• related to spontaneous and impulsive violence
• socioeconomic status, educational attainment, and cultural/ethnic background
• perhaps less of an indicator of psychopathy than factor 1
• does a better job predicting general recidivism rates and violent recidivism

Question 17

Three-factor position

Answer 17

• suggested by Cooke, Michie, Hart, and Clark in 2001
• psychopathy should be divided into three factors, not only the original two, with the third factor referring to the emotional shallowness, callousness, and lack of empathy that is characteristic of most psychopaths.

Question 18

3 Core dimensions of the 3-factor position

Answer 18

1) Impression management, defined by an arrogant and deceptive interpersonal style
2) Impulsive and irresponsible behavioral style; stimulation-seeking, parasitic lifestyle
3) Low affect and deficit of emotional experience; low remorse and guilt levels, weak conscience, lack of fear, anxiety, empathy, and accepting responsibility

Question 19

Dimensions of the Four-factor Model

Answer 19

1) Interpersonal, such as pathological lying and conning
2) Lifestyle, such as irresponsible behavior, sensation-seeking, and impulsiveness
3) Affective (shallow affect or emotional reactions, lack of remorse)
4) Antisocial tendencies, such as poor self-regulation, wide array of antisocial behavior including delinquency

Question 20

The Boldness Factor

Answer 20

Also described as “fearless dominance”, refers to an interpersonal style that is characterized by fearlessness, being relatively immune to stress or anxiety, an being successful in negotiating social interactions to achieve desired goals.

Question 21

The Meanness Factor

Answer 21

Refers to deficient empathy, disdain for and lack of close attachments with others, rebelliousness, excitement-seeking, exploitativeness, and empowerment through cruelty. Expressed often through extreme arrogance, defiance of authority, destructive excitement seeking, and physical cruelty toward people and animals.

Question 22

Notes of female psychopaths

Answer 22

• tend to be more subtle and skillful in their aggression, exploitive relationships, and manipulation of others
• harmful acts may go largely unnoticed by authorities
• evidence that they experience greater levels of environmental deprivation and sexual and physical victimization
• their recidivism rates are no different than female nonpsychopaths

Question 23

Gender differences in psychopaths

Answer 23

probably due to a number of social influences and neuropsychological differences that occur across the developmental trajectory of males and females

Question 24

Ethnic/minority differences in psychopathy

Answer 24

Meta-analysis shows that the differences between ethnic minorities and white offenders on psychopathic scores is minimal.

Question 25

Cons for labeling juvenile psychopathy

Answer 25

1) the label has too many negative connotations
2) It will lead to those working in the justice system to give up on juveniles that are so labeled
3) that psychopathy assessments of youth are invalid because a diagnosis requires high levels of self-confidence, which usually does not exhibit itself at that young age.
4) it may be very difficult to measure reliability because of the transient and constantly changing developmental patterns across a life span (i.e., some features of the adult psychopath are simply normal developmental phases for the average juvenile)

Question 26

Measures of Juvenile psychopathy

Answer 26

• Psychopathy Screening Device (PSD)
• Childhood Psychopathy Scale (CPS)
• Youth Psychopathic Traits Inventory (YPI)
• Psychopathy Checklist: Youth Version (PCL:YV)

Question 27

Psychopathy Checklist: Youth Version (PCL:YV)

Answer 27

• 20 item rating scale adapted from the adult PCL-R
• Adopts 4-factor model approach, scoring individuals on interpersonal, affective, behavioral, and antisocial factors
• is deemed one of the more reliable and valid methods

Question 28

Neurobiological factors and psychopathy

Answer 28

Contemporary research favors the view that psychopathic behavior results from a complex interaction between neuropsychological and learning or socialization factors.

Question 29

Markers

Answer 29

Neuropsychological indicators that have been repeatedly found in psychopaths, as reflected in electrodermal (skin conductance) measures and cardiovascular and other nervous system indices.

Question 30

Central nervous system

Answer 30

CNS, comprises brain and spinal cord. CNS is the processor of info brought by PNS

Question 31

Peripheral Nervous system

Answer 31

PNS, comprises all nerve cells (neurons) and nerve pathways located outside CNS. PNS cannot interpret info, it only transmits information to CNS and carries communication back. Divided into somatic division and autonomic division.

Question 32

Hemisphere asymmetry

Answer 32

An abnormal or unusual balance between the two hemispheres, both in language processing (left) and in emotional or arousal states (right). Studies show that criminal psychopaths manifest this asymmetry

Question 33

Left-hemisphere activation hypothesis

Answer 33

States that psychopaths exhibit deficits on a variety of tasks that require activation of the left hemisphere

Question 34

Emotional paradox

Answer 34

Psychopaths demonstrate normal appraisal of emotional cues and situations in the abstract (i.e., verbal discussion), but they are deficient in using emotional cues to guide their judgements and behavior in the process of living.

Question 35

Executive functions

Answer 35

refer to higher-order mental abilities involved in goal-directed behavior. Studies seem to show that psychopaths, as a group, do show executive function deficits, which may result in faulty impulse control, judgement, and planning under certain conditions. There may be some difference between “successful” psychopaths and those used for these experiments, “unsuccessful” psychopaths who are imprisoned.

Question 36

Somatic division

Answer 36

of the PNS, comprises the motor nerves that stimulate the muscles involved in body movement

Question 37

Autonomic division

Answer 37

of the PNS, controls the heart rate, gland secretion, and smooth muscle activity. Activates emotional behavior and responsivity to stress and tension. Subdivided into Sympathetic system and Parasympathetic System.

Question 38

Skin Conductance Response (SCR)

Answer 38

Also known as galvanic skin response, this is the most commonly used physiological indicator of emotional arousal. Perspiration corresponds very closely to changes in emotional states and has been found to be a highly sensitive indicator of even slight changes in the autonomic nervous system. Low skin conductance (SC) has been reported in psychopaths.

Question 39

Avoidance learning

Answer 39

How quickly subjects would learn to avoid the introduction of negative reinforcement

Question 40

Orienting response (OR)

Answer 40

Complex physiological response to strange, unexpected changes in the environment. A nonspecific, highly complicated cortical and sensory response. Pavlov referred to it as the “what-is-it” reflex. Data suggests psychopaths show a slower OR, due to their insensitivity to the environment.

Question 41

Hypo-emotionality

Answer 41

Something that Hare suggested psychopaths suffer from; that is, they fail to experience the full impact of any kind of emotion - positive or negative. Psychopaths may be born with hypo-emotionality that is then built upon by negative social and environmental influences.

Question 42

Dual-processing model

Answer 42

Proposes that instead of a single low-fear pathway that accounted for all aspects of psychopathy, there are at least two temperament conditions that interact with social environmental influences to produce developmental pathways that ultimately lead to psychopathy. This model hypothesizes that the two temperament processes involved in the emergence of psychopathy are low-fear temperament and impaired cognitive-executive functioning.

• low-fear temperament is associated most with the affective-interpersonal factors 1 & 2
• impaired cognitive-executive-function is associated most with lifestyle-antisocial factors 3 & 4

Question 43

Summary of autonomic functioning of psychopaths

Answer 43

1) psychopaths appear to be autonomically and cortically underaroused under rest and stress conditions. More psychologically fearless than nonpsychopaths
2) Due to issues of autonomic functioning, they are deficient in avoidance learning, which might account for high recidivism rates.
3) Adrenaline or other drugs can induce emotional arousal, helping psychopaths to learn from past experiences and avoid harmful aversive conditions (prison, etc.)
4) With the proper incentive (money?), psychopaths can learn from past experiences and learn to avoid aversive conditions as well as anyone.

Question 44

Summary of treatment for psychopaths

Answer 44

• complicated and with no proven method
• therapy community is divided on whether psychopaths can be successfully treated.
• some studies show that group therapy/insight-oriented treatment programs only seek to help the psychopath fine-tune their deception skills, and their recidivism rates are higher post-therapy.
• early intervention is key
• some indicators of successful treatment are:
  1) highly trained mental health professionals
  2) lots of one-on-one patient-psychologist contact