L4 Psychopathy and Mental Health Conditions

Question 1

What is ADHD in DSM?

Answer 1

Persistent pattern of inattention and hyperactivity
Symptoms before 12 yrs
Symptoms interfere with functioning
No better explained by anything else

Question 2

What are the symptoms of ADHD?

Answer 2

Inattention to detail
Trouble paying attention to a task
Does not follow instruction
Trouble organising
Loses things
Easily distracted
Forgetful

Fidgets
Run and climbs about
Trouble enjoying leisure activities quietly
Trouble waiting for their turn
Interrupts

Question 3

What is the prevalence of ADHD?

Answer 3

3 different types:
- predominantly inattentive (20-30%)
- hyperactive-impulse subtypes (15%)
- combined presentation of 1 and 2 (50-75%)
In UK 3% of the population
Male to female ration 3:1

Question 4

How does ADHD link to offending?

Answer 4

Young and Thome 2011
45% of youths and 24% of male adults in the CJS have a history of ADHD
14% have persisting symptoms

Question 5

Is there a link to age for the onset of criminal activity?

Answer 5

Those with ADHD in childhood committed their first crime before 15
Significantly younger than controls at the time of arrest
Men with ADHD have an earlier onset of crime

Question 6

What is the age dependant decline in offending?

Answer 6

Declining rates of ADHD with age in offender populations
Findings of an overrepresentation of ADHD in adolescent and young adult offender

Question 7

What research has been done into the types of crimes committed?

Answer 7

Vaa 2014 - ADHD increases risk for violations of road traffic rules compared to those without ADHD
Mohr-Jensen 2016 meta analysis - assault, theft, drugs were among the most frequent for contact with the CJS

Question 8

What was Young’s key findings from their research in the Scottish Prison?

Answer 8

Examined effects of ADHD on critical incidents of aggression
Self report ADHD and antisocial personality disorder
Results were higher in those with ADHD symptoms
But SD was much bigger in those with ADHD symptoms

Question 9

What did Retz 2004 find about the age of offending?

Answer 9

Those with ADHD would be 15yrs old by the time they commit first crime
Those without ADHD would not commit crime until 17

Question 10

What is Retz 2004 big five findings?

Answer 10

Neuroticism
Openness
Conscientiousness
Extraversion
Agreeableness

Question 11

How does medication influence the outcome?

Answer 11

Associated with reduced risk of offending
Boland 2020 - ADHD medication is associated with decrease in offending behaviours (better moods)
But not everyone has access to medication

Question 12

What is conduct disorder in the DSM?

Answer 12

Disregard for others
No self control
Antisocial behaviour
Violate the rights of others
Inappropriate behaviour for age
Starts as early as 10

Question 13

What is the diagnostic criteria for conduct disorder?

Answer 13

Aggression to people and animals
Bullies and intimidate
Weapon usage
Cruel to animals
Forced sexual activity
Destroy property
Theft
Violation of rules

Question 14

What is the prevalence of CD?

Answer 14

2-2.5%
3-4% in boys and 1-2% in girls
Minimal research on genders
Increased in the prevalence of CD in recent years ??
Research in US concluded no difference in ethnic groups or SES
Little evidence that it varied between countries

Question 15

What is the prevalence of CD in offenders?

Answer 15

23-87% of those in juvi have CD
- poor educational performance
- social isolation
- substance misuse
- increased contact with CJS

Question 16

What are the cognitive factors of CD?

Answer 16

Executive function difficulties
Interact with environmental factors
IQ one standard deviation below the mean

Question 17

What are the structural and functional brain differences?

Answer 17

Decreased response in OFC regions during stimulus reinforcement
Decrease grey matter volume in the amygdala
Difficulty processing social economic stimuli
Neurochemical differences - decreased serotonin

Question 18

How do genetics influence CD?

Answer 18

Sibling or parent with CD increases likelihood of heritability
Stronger genetic link for childhood-onset compared to adolescent onset
Genetic contribution is not stable over time - partly different genes contribute to CD

Question 19

How does poverty influence CD?

Answer 19

Decreased parental involvement and inadequate supervision reinforces defiant behaviour

Question 19

How do parents and peers influence a child?

Answer 19

CD associated with single parents, large family size, young mothers

Question 20

How are CD and ADHD linked together?

Answer 20

Foley 1996 found:
Both are associated with juvenile delinquency
CD reported to be present in 50% of people diagnosed with ADHD
ADHD leads to poor school performance leading to dropouts and CD risk?

Question 21

What are the differences between ADHD and CD according to Ferfusson?

Answer 21

CD - highly linked to offending behaviour, but unrelated to school achievement when accounting for combined ADHD
ADHD - correlated with academic difficulty, but unrelated to offending behaviour when CD was controlled

Question 22

What is the diagnostic criteria for Antisocial Personality Disorder (ASPD) according to the DSM?

Answer 22

Pervasive pattern of disregard and violation of rights
18+
Evidence of CD before 15 yrs
Not during course of schizophrenia or bipolar
- failure to conform to social norms
- impulsive
- irritable
- irresponsible

Question 23

What is the prevalence of ASPD?

Answer 23

Increase prevalence in families
Increase in lower SES due to middle class judgement???
Symptoms in the childhood tend to diminish across lifespan
4% of people age 25-34
2-5% of the UK

Question 24

How does ASPD link to offending?

Answer 24

Strong predictors of offending behaviour
ASPD exists much higher prevalence among incarcerated populations
Higher recidivism risk in adulthood than non-afflicted offenders

Question 25

What is Moffitt’s Dual Taxonomy Theory?

Answer 25

Life-course persistent offenders
Offending initiated at early ages
Chronic offending patterns through life

Question 26

What was Black et al 2010 research into ASPD and offending?

Answer 26

Random sample of 320 incarcerated offenders
Less female than male
ASPD in 113 subjects - no gender different
Combined with ADHD - increased suicide risk, decrease MH functioning

Question 27

What is a psychopath?

Answer 27

No ability to feel empathy or remorse
Manipulation and narcissism

Question 28

What are the early signs of psychopathy?

Answer 28

Lack of guilt
Shallow
Lack of empathy
Manipulation
Grandiose sense of self-worth

Question 29

What is the prevalence of Psychopathy?

Answer 29

0.3-2%
Slightly higher rates in men
Higher in prison - 15-25% is it because its a risk factor

Question 30

What have different psychologists found about psychopathy and recidivism?

Answer 30

Hart 1988 - 80% recidivism in psychopaths compared to 25% in non-psychopaths
Serin and Amos - 65% recidivism in psychopaths compared to 25% in non-psychopaths
Hare 2000 - 80% recidivism in psychopaths compared to 40% in non-psychopaths

Question 31

How does gang membership link to offending?

Answer 31

Company of others make it appealing
Want to be the best
Watchmen during crime
Rewards
Active interaction with delinquents
Limited research into gangs and psychopathy

Question 32

How does substance us link to psychopathy?

Answer 32

Small number of adolescents with psychopathic traits accounted for a disproportionate amount of delinquency and substance use
Facilitates the display of psychopathic features - risky decisions, aggression
Alcohol lowers remorse even more

Question 33

What is the neural bases of psychopathy?

Answer 33

Amygdala lesions
Aversive conditioning
Startle response
Passive avoidance learning
Recognition of fearful faces - less reactive
Orbital and ventrolateral frontal cortex regulates amygdala
Linked to reactive aggression

Question 34

What is passive avoidance learning?

Answer 34

Slower at picking the task up
Individuals with psychopathic traits - deficient capability to learn to avoid stimuli predicting punishment

Question 35

What did Finger 2011 find out about those with psychopathic traits?

Answer 35

Decreased responsivity to early stimulus reinforcement exposure
Disruption in the neural systems responsible for faulty decision making
Less likely to learn from mistakes
Learn emotional feedback slower

Question 36

What is the role of the amygdala and reinforcement?

Answer 36

Shown a spectrum of facial expressions
Fear and sadness usually has negative social reinforcements - less so in psychopaths
Indifferent to punishment
Do not learn to avoid

Question 37

What are the social and environmental influences of psychopathy?

Answer 37

Little evidence
Inconsistent parenting and antisocial background
This did not have an influence if there were early signs of psychopathy
Those from disadvantaged backgrounds were more violent

Question 38

What are the genetic influences of psychopathy?

Answer 38

Those with callous-unemotional traits engage in more aggression, lack remorse, lower anxiety compared to those without

Question 39

What did Vining 2005 find about genetic influence of psychopathy?

Answer 39

3,500 twin pairs - those who have CD vs those who don’t
Environment does not account for the variance in high CU in twins

Question 40

What did Pasalich et al find out about warm parenting?

Answer 40

Warm parenting may help those with high CU and alter the course
Instead of inconsistent parenting