psychopathy

Question 1

definition of psychopathy

Answer 1

• disorder characterized by shallow emotion responses, lack of empathy, impulsively, and increased likelihood of antisocial behaviour
• in extreme cases: serial killers

Question 2

recidivism

Answer 2

likelihood of committing another crime

Question 3

PCL-R

Answer 3

• psychopathy checklist revised
• score used by: thorough observation, review of court docs, interviews with people that know patient
• each item is scored either 0- doesnt apply, 1- applies to a certain extent, or 2= applies
• cut off of 30+

Question 4

symptoms on the PCL-R

Answer 4

• glibness/superficial charm: grandiose sense of self worth, need for stim, proneness to boredom, pathological lying, conning/manipulative, lack of remorse/guilt, shallow affect, callous/lack of empathy, parasitic lifestyle
• poor behavioural control/impulsivity: promiscuous sexual behaviour, early behaviour probs, lack of realistic long term goals, failure to accept responsibility, many short term marital probs, juvenile delinquency, revocation of conditional release, criminal versatility

Question 5

psychopathy vs sociopathy

Answer 5

• sociopaths: less organized/nervous/easily agitated, quick to display anger, spontaneous (w/out thinking of consequences), forms attachments and can feel guilt/remorse for hurting someone they have a deep bond with. the antisocial behaviour can lesson overtime with learning to avoid consequences of actions
• psychopaths: callous/charming, can mimic feelings to blend in, organized, good emotional and physical control, aware that what they are doing is wrong and does not care

Question 6

dark triad (hint: psychopathy)

Answer 6

• psychopathy: impulsive, emotionally cold, remorseless
• Machiavelliaism: manipulative, self interested, domineering
• narcissism: grandiosity, perceived superiority, entitlement

Question 7

fearlessness and insensitivity to punishment in psychopaths is associated with deficits in _____

Answer 7

• behavioural inhibition system (BIS)
• difficulty avoiding responses to previously punished stim, low eye blink startle response to aversive stim, impaired aversive conditioning, low electrodermal response in anticipation of aversive effects

Question 8

psychopathy and conditioned fear

Answer 8

• psychopath men did not develop a conditioned fear and had no difference in brain activity
• non psychopath men had higher arousal and skin conductance

Question 9

three brain areas looked at in psychopathy and reaction

Answer 9

amygdala, anterior insula, and anterior cingulate

Question 10

___% of men and ___% of women incarcerated in max security prison meet criteria for psychopathy using 30 score cut off on PCL-r

Answer 10

15-25%, 17%

Question 11

is depression, anxiety, and borderline personality disorder more related to psychopathy in men or women

Answer 11

women

Question 12

in a study where women were split into high or low psychopathy and reaction to pleasant, neutral, and unpleasant and neutral, victim, and direct threat clips, what was found?

Answer 12

• low psychopathy: pleasant lowest, neutral slightly above, and unpleasant significantly higher and neutral lowest, victim way higher and direct threat slightly below victim
• high psychopathy: pleasant, neutral, and unpleasant in order with small gaps and all slightly higher than the last in order: neutral, victim, direct threat (but still not a large reaction)