Lecture 10: Psychopathy Flashcards
PCL-R
The PCL-R refers to the Psychopathy Checklist-Revised, which is a method for determining whether someone is a psychopath (developed by Robert Hare). The measure consists of 20 items that tap into 3 features that are thought to define psychopathy: (1) interpersonal features (e.g., manipulative), (2) affective features (e.g., shallow emotion), and (3) lifestyle features (e.g., poor anger control).
psychopathy and serial killers
- Most serial killers are psychopaths but most psychopaths are not serial killers
- Serial killers are often described as psychopathic
psychopathy statistics
- 90% of serial killers are psychopaths
- 1% of the general population are psychopaths
- 10-25% of the prison population are psychopaths
- 44% of killers of police officers are psychopaths
what is psychopathy?
- A personality disorder characterized by:
1. An arrogant, deceitful interpersonal style
2. Deficient affective experiences
3. Impulsive and irresponsible behaviours
4. Early onset and diverse antisocial behaviours - Only an abstract, intellectual awareness of the feelings of others
Hare Psychopathy Checklist-Revised (PCL-R)
- 20 items scored using a semi-structured interview and file information
- 3-point scale
- Total ranges from 0 to 40
- Clinical cutoff for psychopathy: 30
PCL-R interpersonal features
- Glib/superficially charming
- Grandiose, inflated self-worth
- Manipulative
PCL-R affective features
- Shallow emotions
- Lack of guilt
- Callous
PCL-R lifestyle features
- Impulsive
- Irresponsible
- Poor anger control
- Criminal behaviours
DSM-IV criteria for APD
- Current age is at least 18
- Conduct disordered by age 15
- Adult criteria (3 of 7 symptoms)
1. Repeated criminal acts
2. Irritability
3. Recklessness
4. Lack of remorse
overlap between APD and psychopathy in offenders
In the prison population:
60-80% APD
10-25% psychopathy
Mean PCL-R scores
- 30 for psychopaths
- 21 for criminals
- 4 for the general population
methods for measuring psychopathy
- Unstructured clinical judgments (ex. “In my clinical opinion)
- Self-reports (ex. MMPI, MCMI, PPI)
- Informant ratings (APSD)
- Structured clinical judgment (DSM-V, PCL-R, PCL: YV)
distribution of psychopathy in male prisoners
- Mean = 22
- Base rate = 20%
distribution of psychopathy in female prisoners
- Mean = 19
- Base rate = 14%
importance of psychopathic traits: juvenile death penalty study method
- Does the presence or absence of psychopathic traits impact a layperson’s perceptions of what is an appropriate legal sanction?
- Juvenile capital defendant with either psychopathic traits (lacking remorse, callous, arrogant, deceptive) or
non-psychopathic traits (remorseful, accepting, responsible, respects others)
importance of psychopathic traits: juvenile death penalty study results
- More likely to select the death penalty for psychopaths
- Less likely to support rehabilitation for psychopaths
importance of psychopathic traits: juvenile death penalty study conclusion
“It seems that one would be particularly hard-pressed to justify the use of any of the psychopathy measures in a juvenile death penalty case.”
psychopathy: motives for murder study method
- 125 Canadian murderers
- Classified murders as reactive or instrumental
reactive murder
unplanned, crimes of passion, extreme provocation
instrumental murder
planned, settle a score
psychopathy: motives for murder study findings
- Inmates with low PCL-R scores were more likely to commit reactive murder
- Inmates with high PCL-R scores were more likely to commit instrumental murder
psychopathy and general reoffending study method
- Assessed 231 male adult offenders retrospectively
- Release decisions were blind to the PCL-R (parole or mandatory supervision)
- Follow-up period = 3.5 years
- Outcome: revocation or new offence
psychopathy and general reoffending study findings
- Those who were given parole were less likely to re-offend than those given mandatory supervision
- The higher one’s PCL-R score, the more likely they are to re-offend
psychopathy and treatment study method
- 176 treated patients/ - 146 untreated patients
- Follow-up period = 10 years
- Social therapy unit
- Minimum 2-year treatment program
- Foster responsibility and empathy
- Limited professional contact
- Entry to program nonvoluntary
psychopathy and treatment study findings
- Non-psychopaths had lower rates of violent offences following treatment
- Psychopaths had higher rates of violent offences following treatment
what makes psychopaths tick?
- We don’t know
- It’s not the sole result of poor parenting or abusive experiences
- There are some clues from neuroscience
psychopathy and affect language
- They know the words but not the music
- They know only the dictionary meaning of words
- They can learn to use ordinary words and reproduce the pantomime of feeling but the feeling itself does not come to pass
meaning of words
Words have both denotative (literal) and connotative (figurative) meanings
how can we evaluate words?
- Lexical decision times
- Brain activity associated with the decisions
lexical decision task method
- Neutral & emotional words and pronounceable nonwords were briefly presented in random order on a computer screen
- Participants were asked, “Was what you saw a word?”
lexical decision task findings
- Non-psychopaths identify both positive and negative emotional words quicker than neutral words
- The same trends are not found for psychopaths; there is little difference in their reaction times for emotional and non-emotional stimuli
Intrator et al., 1997 study method
- Substance abusers
- Lexical decision task
- Assessed with PCL-R
- Radioactive tracer injected
- Blocks of neutral, emotional (negative) words
Intrator et al., 1997 study findings
- Activation in non-psychopaths is widespread and primarily anterior
- Activation in psychopaths is more localized to posterior regions
- Implies that psychopaths perform the task in a superficial manner
startle reflex
reflex occurs when something unexpected occurs
when does startle blink occur?
- Primed if a person is in a negative emotional state or feeling treated
- Reduced if a person is in a positive emotional state
psychopathy and startle reflex study method
- Incarcerated offenders: psychopaths vs. non-psychopaths
- Affective pictures: pleasant, unpleasant, or neutral
- Present startle probes
psychopathy and startle reflex study findings
- Non-psychopaths had a significantly greater eye blink magnitude for unpleasant stimuli followed by neutral, then pleasant stimuli
- Psychopaths showed similar magnitudes for all types of stimuli
