Lecture 6 - Psychopathy Flashcards
20 psychopathic traits (read only)
- Glibness and superficial
- Grandiose sense of self worth
- High need for stimulation
- Pathological lying
- Cunning/Manipulative
- Lack of remorse or guilt
- Shallow affect
- Callous, lack of empathy
- Parasitic lifestyle
- Poor behavioural controls
- Promiscuous sexual behaviour
- Early behavioural problems
- Lack of realistic long-term goals
- Impulsivity
- Irresponsibility
- Failure to accept responsibility for actions
- Many short-term marital relationships
- Juvenile delinquency
- Revocation of conditional release
- Criminal versatility
Psychopathy
Psychopathy is a personality disorder characterized by the 20 personality traits
Antisocial personality disorder (APD)
A pervasive pattern of disregard for, and violation of , the rights of others.
- DSM-V
- failure to conform to norms, aggressive, irresponsible, impulsive, deceitful, reckless disregard, lack of remorse
Difference between psychopathy and antisocial personality disorder
- APD is narrower than psychopathy as it restricts to behavioural conditions
- APD is a diagnosable mental disorder, while psychopathy is not
- APD always includes criminal behaviour, not all psychopaths are criminal
- research shows psychopathy is a much rarer occurrence than APD; 50-80% male inmates had APD, only 15-25% were psychopaths
3 types of psychopathy
Primary:
* psychopathy is innate at birth
Secondary:
* psychopathy results from severe emotional problems
Dyssocial:
* psychopathic behaviour is adopted based on peer culture
What is the PCL-R
- short Psychopathy Checklist revised
It is a psychological assessment tool used to measure the presence of psychopathic traits in individuals
Assesses emotional, social, behavioural, and deviant traits.
- the assessment is based on a combination of self-reports, observations, and information from collateral sources (family or friends)
2 approaches of PCL-R:
Categorical model
Categorical model:
- psychopathy is viewed as a yes/no classification
- if an individual reaches a threshold of typically 30 they are considered a psychopath if not then they are normal
This method is considered arbitrary, as its classification does not have a precise scientific basis.
- creating a clear line of 30 between who is a psychopath is challenging and based on personal judgement
2 approaches to PCL-R:
Dimensional model
This model measures pyschopathy on a continuum
* it says that everyone has some characteristics of psychopathy although some have it to a greater degree
Psychopathy: Two Factor Position
Factor 1 -
Focuses on the internal, emotional, and interpersonal aspects of psychopathy
- for example: shallow affect, remorselessness, manipulative
- associated with planned predatory violence
It predicts psychopathy in general
Psychopathy: Two Factor Position
Factor 2 - socially deviant lifestyle
Focuses on the external, lifestyle and behavioural aspects of psychopathy
- for example: stimulation-seeking, impulsive, lacks goals
- associated with impulsive violence
It predicts general and violent psychopathy
Psychopathy: four factor position
(Hare & Neumann, 2008)
Revision of the early two factor model
Factor 1: Interpersonal
- arrogant & deceptive, e.g. glibness, lying
Factor 2: Lifestyle
- impulsive, parasitic, stimulation-seeking, lack of goals
Factor 3: Affective
- lack of remorse, failure to accept responsibility
Factor 4: antisocial behaviour
- poor behavioural controls, criminal behaviour
How common is psychopathy
(Hare, 1998)
- 1% in general population
- 15-25% in adult prison population
What caused psychopathy?
- Environmental factors
- social factors such as parenting, early physical/sexual abuse, peer rejection play a role
- Neuropsychology: central nervous system difficulties
Deficiency in left hemisphere:
- deficiency in language, processing skills
Deficiency in right hemisphere:
- deficiency in emotions
Psychopaths respond to emotions inappropriately
Effect of Prefrontal Damage
- Psychopathic-like personality
This occurs because damage to the prefrontal cortex is associated with changes in personality that resemble psychopathy
Ex. Impaired emotional responses, lack of empathy, impulsivity
Effect of Amygdala Deficiency
The amygadala plays a role in processing emotions, and an abnormality results in deficits in the frontal lobe.
For example: amygdala plays a crucial role in emotions like fear and aggression. A deficiency can potentially make an offender not fearful of the consequences of committing a crime
