Exam 3 Flashcards
an individual who continually commits crimes (does not usually qualify as a psychopath)
sociopath
a person who demonstrates a discernible cluster of psychological, interpersonal, and neurophysical features that distinguish that person from the general population
psychopath
what are the three categories of psychopaths?
primary, secondary (neurotic), and dyssocial
the “true” psychopath - this individual demonstrates those physiological and behavioral features that represent psychopathy
primary psychopath
individual with psychopathic characteristics, but who commits antisocial acts because of severe emotional problems or inner conflicts (distinct from primary psychopath)
secondary psychopath
individual with psychopathic characteristics who is antisocial because of social learning and does not possess the features of the primary psychopath
dyssocial psychopath
a disorder characterized by a history of continuous behavior in which the rights of others are violated
antisocial personality disorder (APD)
a primary psychopath who engages in repetitive antisocial or criminal behavior
criminal psychopath
a characteristic found in psychopaths whereby the words they speak are devoid of emotional sincerity
semantic aphasia
developed by Robert Hare, currently the best known instrument for the measurement of criminal psychopathy
psychopathy checklist (PCL)
this checklist assesses the affective (emotional), interpersonal, behavioral, and social deviance facets of psychopathy from various sources, including self-reports, behavioral observations, and collateral sources, such as parents, family members, friends, and arrest and court records
PCL-R
a statistical procedure by which underlying patterns, factors, or dimensions are identified among a series of scale items
factor analysis
a behavioral dimension, identified through factor analysis, representing the interpersonal and emotional aspects of psychopathy
factor 1
factor 1 relates to ____
interpersonal and emotional components
lying, conning, and manipulating others; superficial charm; grandiose self-worth are characteristic of which factor?
factor 1
a behavioral dimension representing the socially deviant lifestyle characteristics of psychopaths
factor 2
factor 2 relates to ____
socially deviant lifestyle
irresponsibility; sensation seeking; lack of realistic goals; poor planning; impulsivity relate to which factor?
factor 2
a core feature of psychopathy that refers to emotional shallowness, callousness, and lack of empathy
factor 3
factor 3 relates to ____
affective
shallow emotions; callousness; little empathy; failure to accept responsibility for actions relate to which factor?
factor 3
model of psychopathy that incorporates antisocial behavior
four-factor model
factor 4 relates to ____
antisocial tendencies
poor self-regulation; persistent criminal activity; antisocial behavior; early behavior problems relate to which factor?
factor 4
recent model focusing on callous-unemotional traits, disinhibition, and boldness
triarchic psychopathy model (TriPM)
what are the three dimensions of the triarchic psychopathy model?
meanness, disinhibition/externalizing proneness, and boldness/fearless dominance
in psychopathy research, meanness is proposed as an additional feature characterizing the psychopathic personality (refers to generally cruel verbal or physical behavior toward others)
meanness trait
collection of traits in juveniles believed to be precursors of adult psychopathy (also a key characteristic of adult psychopaths)
callous-unemotional (CU) traits
this trait refers to impulsivity, poor self-regulation, low frustration tolerance, irresponsibility, alienation, and unreasonable risk taking
disinhibition trait (externalizing proneness)
this trait consists of personality characteristics of charisma, fearlessness, novelty seeking, calmness in the face of danger, and low stress reactivity
boldness trait (fearless dominance)
a cluster of personality traits that are associated with criminal psychopathy
dark triad
three components of the dark triad:
psychopathy, narcissism, and machiavellianism
what is machiavellianism?
master manipulation of others
there are _____ female than male psychopaths, both in the general population and among persons convicted of crime
fewer
in the general population, the estimated prevalence of psychopathy among men is ____%
1%
prevalence rate of psychopathy for female offenders in the jail setting
15.5%
estimated prevalence rate of psychopathy for male offenders in the jail setting
25-30%
the branch of psychology that combines theory and research from the neurosciences and traditional psychology
neuropsychology
term used for the neurological indicators of a particular phenomenon, such as psychopathy
markers
criminal psychopaths manifest an abnormal or unusual balances between the two hemispheres of the brain, both in language processing and in emotional or arousal states
hemisphere asymmetry
the research observation that psychopaths seem to be able to talk about emotional cues but lack the ability to use them effectively in the real world
emotional paradox
higher-order mental abilities involved in goal-directed behavior (include organizing behavior, memory, inhibition processes, and planning strategies)
executive function
a process whereby someone responds in time to a warning signal in order to avoid a painful or aversive stimulus
avoidance learning
term used for a variety of psychiatric diagnoses that indicate that the individual has problems in living (also referred to as mental disorder)
mental illness
limitations in cognitive capacity, determined by IQ tests and a variety of performance measures (cannot be cured, but can be compensated by care and training) - formerly called mental retardation
intellectual disability
the official guidebook or manual, published by the American Psychiatric Association, used to define and diagnose specific mental disorders
diagnostic and statistical manual of mental disorders (DSM)
which revised edition is the DSM currently in?
fifth (DSM-5)
which four categories of mental disorders are most relevant in the DSM?
- the schizophrenia spectrum and other psychotic disorders
- bipolar disorder
- major depression
- antisocial personality disorder
mental disorder characterized by severe breakdowns in thought patterns, emotions, and perceptions
schizophrenia
things or events that a person with mental disorder sees or perceives (characteristic of schizophrenia and some forms of dementia)
hallucinations
mental disorder characterized by a system of false beliefs or delusions
delusional disorder
this disorder is characterized by episodes of behavior that are alternately characterized by such features as euphoria, hyperenergy, and distractibility (manic phase) and diminished interest or pleasure in all activities and depressed mood (depressive phase)
bipolar disorder
in essence, bipolar disorder is a ____ disorder
mood
lifetime risk of suicide among persons with bipolar disorder is estimated to be at least ____ times that of the general population
15 times
general label for symptoms that include an extremely depressed state, general slowing down of mental and physical activity, and feelings of self-worthlessness
major depressive disorder
disorder characterized by a history of continuous behavior in which the rights of others are violated
antisocial personality disorder (APD)
a diagnostic label used to identify children who demonstrate habitual misbehavior
conduct disorder (CD)
it is estimated that between ____% and ____% of the population qualifies for an antisocial personality disorder diagnosis
0.2% and 3.3%
the ability to participate in a variety of court proceedings
adjudicative competence
the legal requirement that a defendant is able to understand the proceedings and to help the attorney in preparing a defence
competency to stand trial
a judicial ruling that a criminal defendant, because of mental illness, defect, or other reasons, is unable to understand the nature and objective of the criminal proceedings or is unable to assist his or her defense lawyer (may apply to a variety of judicial stages, including plea bargaining, trial, and sentencing)
incompetent to stand trial (IST)
a criminal defendant’s argument that his or her mental illness relieves him or her from responsibility for a crime
-legal tests of insanity vary widely, with the most common being the ability to know right from wrong
insanity defense
a legal determination that a defendant was so mentally disordered at the time of the crime that he or she cannot be held criminally responsible
not guilty by reason of insanity (NGRI)
an insanity standard based on the conclusion that if a defendant has a defect of reason, or a disease of the mind, so as not to know the nature and quality of his or her actions, then he or she cannot be held criminally responsible
m’naughten rule