Criminal Psychopathy Flashcards
What are Robert Hare’s three categories of a psychopath?
Primary, Secondary, Dyssocial
What is the primary category? (4)
- True psychopath.
- Fearlessness.
- Lack of anxiety.
- Guiltlessness.
What is the secondary category? (4)
- Acting out. Neurotics.
- Emotional instability.
- More aggressive and violent.
- Disturbed conscious vs. absent conscious.
What is the dyssocial category?
Learned antisocial behaviour from subculture
What are the behavioural descriptions of psychopathy?
- Superficial Charm
- Average to above average intelligence
- Shallow feelings
- Manipulative / Deceitful
- Selfishness
- Egocentricity
- Impulsivity
- Lack of remorse or guilt
- Semantic aphasia
- Instrumental aggression
What is semantic aphasia?
When these individuals use language, they use words in unusual ways. They mimic people’s language (don’t always know what it means.)
“They know the words but don’t know the song.”
What is instrumental aggression?
What are the components of a psychopath? (3)
- Psychological
- Interpersonal
- Neurobiological
What is the relationship between psychopathy and aspects of mental disorder?
- Usually no symptoms of mental disorder
What is the emotional affect of psychopaths?
Lack of any affect. (Lack of emotional arousal)
Why do psychopaths never commit suicide?
- People who tend to take their lives have a sense of anxiousness, sadness, hopelessness. Psychopaths don’t feel these things.
What is an exception of suicide with psychopaths?
- They are easily frustrated so they may build up
narcissistic agression and that may manifest in self-harm. Very few actually kill themselves.
Literal translation of “psychopath?”
Sick mind.
What type of criminals show signs of psychopathy?
- Serial killers
- Drug dealers
- Sexual offenders (few)
- Pimps
- Contract killers
- White collar criminals (CEO, politician)
What is the prevalence of psychopathy in the general population?
Roughly 1%
Because many psychopaths engage in legal but unethical/immoral behaviours, what differentiates the criminal from the “sub-criminal?”
- Upbringing
- Neurophysiology
What are the three operations used to assess psychopathy?
- Clinical Judgement
- Self-Report Inventories
- Structured Dx
What is the MMPI/2?
Minnesota multiphasic personality inventory
What is the ICD-10?
International version of the DSM. Used everywhere except north america.
What is the PCL-R?
Psychopathy checklist revised.
What is the PCL-R meant to do?
Distinguish the criminal psychopaths from criminal non-psychopaths.
What is the clinical cutoff (#) in the Hare PCL-R?
30 is the clinical cutoff. Anything from 21-29 still show clinical issues.
* This is on final exam
What does factor 1 assess in the Hare PCL-R?
Interpersonal, emotional traits.
What does gator 2 assess in the Hare PCL-R?
Lifestyle / antisocial factors
Which factor is more highly correlated with recidivism rates?
Factor 2.
Which have higher recidivism rates: psychopathic offender or non-psychopathic offender?
Psychopathic offender.
What kind of lying do psychopaths usually engage in?
They tend to lie just because they can. Not always because they are trying to gain/avoid something.
What is the prevalence of the prison population that qualify as a psychopath?
15%-30%
Most criminal psychopaths meet criteria for ____ ______ ___________ _______?
Antisocial personality disorder.
Most individuals with ASPD are not ___________?
Psychopaths
What is the difference in violence perpetrated by non-psychopaths and psychopaths?
Non-psychopaths - High emotional arousal
Psychopaths - Less emotionally motivated
What are two factors high predictive of violent recidivism?
- Persistent offending behaviour
- High PCL-R scores
