Chapter 11

Question 1

What defines a personality disorder?

Answer 1

✔ A collection of interpersonal, affective, and behavioral characteristics.

Question 2

*Does psychopathy exist as a standalone diagnosis?

Answer 2

✔ No, it is not a formal DSM-5 diagnosis.

Question 3

*Key traits of psychopathy?

Answer 3

->Manipulation
->Lack of remorse
->Impulsivity
->Charm & deception
->Predatory mindset

Question 4

How are psychopaths described?

Answer 4

✔ They are described as “intraspecies predators” who use manipulation, charm, and violence to control others.

Question 5

How do psychopaths identify victims?

Answer 5

✔ They have an attuned sense to detect vulnerability in others.

Question 6

Does psychopathy exist across cultures?

Answer 6

✔ Yes, descriptions of psychopathy exist in most cultures.

Question 7

Is psychopathy a distinct category or a continuum?

Answer 7

There is debate:

->Category: A person must meet all diagnostic criteria.

->Continuum: Focuses on degrees of interpersonal and behavioral traits

Need to conduct more research

Question 8

*How do psychopathy and sociopathy differ?

Answer 8

Psychopathy: Believed to be genetically predisposed to a temperament that makes them difficult to socialize
->most with psychopathy fit criteria with APD
->

Sociopathy: is correlated to poor parenting and other environmental factors

Question 9

*Is sociopathy an official diagnosis?

Answer 9

✔ No, the term is rarely used in scientific literature, and no assessment tools exist for sociopathy.

Question 10

How are psychopaths assessed?

Answer 10

✔ Using the PCL-R (Psychopathy Checklist-Revised) assessment tool.

Question 11

*What is Antisocial Personality Disorder?

Answer 11

A personality disorder characterized by a history of behaviors (*makes it distinct) in which the rights of others are violated since the age of 15

Question 12

*How is APD different from psychopathy?

Answer 12

->APD focuses on behaviors, while psychopathy includes personality traits.

->Many with psychopathy meet APD criteria, but not all with APD are psychopaths

Question 13

*Is APD an official DSM-5 diagnosis?

Answer 13

✔ Yes, unlike psychopathy.

Question 14

What disorder might teens receive before an APD diagnosis?

Answer 14

✔ Conduct disorder, which is predictive of an APD diagnosis.

Question 15

Key adult symptoms of APD (must have 3+ for diagnosis)?

Answer 15

1. Engaging in criminal activity
2. Risk-taking
3. Being deceitful/lying
4. Having little guilt for one’s behaviors

Question 16

How old do you have to be to be diagnosed with APD?

Answer 16

18+

Question 17

How does the ICD-11 classify personality disorders?

Answer 17

Personality dysfunction is categorized into 3 levels:

1. Mild
2. Moderate
3. Severe

Question 18

What was the first major attempt to assess psychopathy?

Answer 18

Cleckley’s book The Mask of Sanity.

->highlighted:
—>16 different personality traits
—>Positive features of psychopathy
—>A link between intelligence and psychopathy

Question 19

*Who developed the PCL-R?

Answer 19

✔ Robert Hare.

Question 20

What is the PCL-R used for?

Answer 20

✔ The most popular method for assessing psychopathy in adults

Question 21

*How is the PCL-R structured?

Answer 21

->20-item scale

->Semi-structured interview + file review

->Scores range from 0 to 40

->Uses a 3-point scale

->Clinically a score of 25 = psychopathy

Question 22

What were the original PCL-R factors?

Answer 22

Factor 1: Interpersonal & affective traits (emotions).

Factor 2: Socially deviant & unstable traits (behaviors).

Question 23

What are the advantages and challenges of self-report measures?

Answer 23

Advantages:

✓ Measure attitudes and emotions that cannot be easily observed
✓ Easy to administer and score, relatively inexpensive
✓ Do not require inter-rater reliability
✓ Can detect faking (good and bad as built in validity scales)

Challenges:

→Psychopaths often lie, manipulate and malinger
→May not have sufficient insight into their own traits
→Difficulty reporting on emotions they don’t experience

Question 24

*What is the Affective Theory of Psychopathy? 💔

Answer 24

→Deep-rooted emotional deficit

→Disconnect between cognitive-linguistic processing and emotional experience

→Absence of emotions that would guide prosocial behavior

EX. feel bad/guilty so won’t do that behavior again

->Lexical decision task

Question 25

*What is the Lexical decision task?

Answer 25

→looking at non-psychopaths and psychopaths →non psychopaths identified emotional words faster on a list of words then psychopaths →psychopaths brain wave activity didn’t differentiate between emotional and neutral words, sharp tone of voice also didn’t catch their attention

Question 26

*What is the Amygdala Dysfunction Theory of psychopathy? 😈

Answer 26

->Amygdala controls aggression & fight-or-flight response. ->Dysfunction = emotional deficits in psychopaths. ->Some researchers suggest attention deficits may also play a role.

Question 27

What was the Cambridge Study in Delinquent Development?

Answer 27

->40-year prospective study (followed from ages 8 to 48). ->Showed multiple developmental pathways for psychopathy.

Question 28

What did the Cambridge Study find about psychopathy and crime?

Answer 28

Men scoring 10+ on PCL-SV: -> 97% had a conviction. -> 49% were chronic offenders.

Question 29

What are common predictors of adult psychopathy?

Answer 29

->Criminal or uninvolved parent. ->Low family income. ->Physical neglect. ->Combination of nature & nurture.

Question 30

How is psychopathy measured in the community?

Answer 30

Psychopathy Checklist-Screening Version (PCL-SV): ->12-item scale. ->Less emphasis on criminal behavior.

Question 31

How common is psychopathy in the general population?

Answer 31

-> rare ->Most people score 0 ~1% of the population may be psychopathic. ->Men score higher than women.

Question 32

How common is psychopathy in corporate settings?

Answer 32

->5% of corporate professionals met psychopathy criteria ->Create toxic work environments: --->Gossiping & spreading rumors. --->Blaming others. --->Manipulating subordinates.

Question 33

Where do most people get their knowledge of psychopathy?

Answer 33

->Most learn about psychopathy from media. ->Often associate it with violent criminals.

Question 34

How do psychopaths interact with law enforcement?

Answer 34

->Engage in high rates of crime. ->Frequent interactions with police. ->Almost half of police killers had psychopathic traits.

Question 35

*Why are psychopaths difficult to interrogate?

Answer 35

->Try to outwit investigators. ->Enjoy attention from investigations. ->Attempt to control the interrogation (power struggle between offender and investigators) ->Won’t be fooled by bluffs. ->May try to shock investigators (by revealing crimes they have committed)

Question 36

*What strategies help when interrogating psychopaths?

Answer 36

->Know the case inside-out ->Show confidence & experience (psychopaths detect weaknesses) ->Express admiration (play to their ego about how they got away with it for so long etc.) ->Avoid criticism ->Stay emotionally neutral

Question 37

In what types of legal cases is psychopathy expert testimony used?

Answer 37

->Parole eligibility hearings (should they be released?). ->Death penalty hearings. ->Associated with harsher sentencing.

Question 38

Does psychopathy qualify for the insanity defense (NCRMD)?

Answer 38

No, it does not. ->Psychopaths understand their actions and know they are wrong but they just don’t care.

Question 39

*What is adversarial allegiance in forensic testimony?

Answer 39

->Experts may be influenced by who hired them. ->Should remain neutral and unbiased. EX. Crown counsel hires an expert → they should not automatically favor harsher punishments.

Question 40

*How does psychopathy relate to violent crime?

Answer 40

->Account for a large proportion of crime. ->Lack emotions that inhibit aggression. ->Start criminal behavior younger. ->Persist longer, commit more violent crimes. ->More likely to reoffend. ->Do NOT commit homicide at higher rates, just more violence overall.

Question 41

*What are the characteristics of psychopathic violence?

Answer 41

Psychopathic violence is more likely to be: ->Predatory. ->Instrumental (premeditated, goal-driven, targeted at strangers, revenge-based). ->Callous & calculated. ->Not reactive (not impulsive or in response to provocation). ->More likely to involve instrumental homicides.

Question 42

How is psychopathy related to sexual violence?

Answer 42

->Weak correlation between psychopathy and sexual offending. ->BUT psychopaths with deviant sexual arousal → higher risk of sexual reoffending. ->Psychopaths report positive emotions before committing sexual offenses. (non-psycho would feel anxious) ->Linked to sexual sadism (aroused by causing pain, humiliation). ->Highest rates of psychopathy found in homicidal sexual offenders.

Question 43

*How effective is treatment for psychopathy and reoffending rates?

Answer 43

->one study did intensive therapeutic treatment over 2 yrs with 10 yr follow up Violent reoffending rates: ->Untreated non-psychopaths → 39% reoffended. ->Treated non-psychopaths → 22% reoffended (treatment works!). ->Untreated psychopaths → 55% reoffended. ->Treated psychopaths → 77% reoffended (treatment made them worse!). ->treatment to date hasn't worked with psychopaths

Question 44

What are the key factors for effective treatment?

Answer 44

->Intensive & long-term. ->Targets criminogenic needs (specific needs of the offender). ->Uses cognitive behavioral therapy (CBT). ->More research needed to improve success rates.

Question 45

How is psychopathy assessed in youth?

Answer 45

→Two ways to assess psychopathic traits in youth: 1. Antisocial Process Screening Device (APSD) →Observer rating scale to assess psychopathic traits in children 2. Hare Psychopathy Checklist: Youth Version (PCL:YV) →Scale designed to measure psychopathic traits in adolescents

Question 46

*What are the issues with labelling youth as a psychopath?

Answer 46

->Stigma. ->Harsher treatment in the criminal justice system. ->Influences jury decisions.

Question 47

How does labeling affect jury decisions?

Answer 47

->More likely to support the death penalty for psychopathic offenders (youth & adults). ->Less likely to support the death penalty for youth vs. adults.

Question 48

Are psychopathic traits in youth stable over time?

Answer 48

->High stability over 4 years ->Moderate stability from ages 13 to 24 ->Moderate stability from childhood to age 48, with most change during adolescence.

Question 49

What behaviors are associated with psychopathy in youth?

Answer 49

Boys scoring high on APSD → More police contact, more conduct issues. Youth scoring high on PCL:YV → Start criminal behavior younger, commit more violence, higher risk of reoffending.

Question 50

Is treatment effective for youth with psychopathic traits?

Answer 50

->Yes, youth may be more responsive to intervention. ->Intensive treatment is more effective than correctional treatment. --->Correctional treatment → 2x more violent reoffending. ->Parent–Child Interaction Therapy → Reduces callous-unemotional traits, decreases conduct problems, increases empathy.

Question 51

Why are youth with psychopathic traits considered difficult to treat?

Answer 51

1️⃣ Common assumptions: They lack motivation, manipulate, and show little emotion. 2️⃣ Some therapies may worsen traits (teaching social skills can improve manipulation). 3️⃣ Gold-standard approach: Early family interventions work best.

Question 52

Can treatment improve psychopathy traits in youth?

Answer 52

Yes, there is hope! ->Youth with psychopathic traits can improve with proper treatment. ->Effective therapies focus on family involvement, emotional processing, and targeting vulnerabilities. ->BUT treatment options are still very limited.