Antisocial Minds Chapter 7

what is a primary psychopath?

the true psychopath. has certain identifiable psychological, emotional, cognitive, and biological differences that distinguish the person from the general and criminal populations

secondary psychopath

commits antisocial or violent acts because of severe emotional problems or inner conflicts. they are sometimes called acting out neurotics, neurotic delinquents, symptomatic psychopaths, or simply emotionally disturbed offenders

dyssocial psychopath

displays aggressive, antisocial behavior they have learned from their subculture, like their gangs, terrorist groups, or families.

why can secondary and dyssocial psychopaths be confused with primary psychopaths

because of their high recidivism rates

behavioral characteristics of psychopaths

superficial charm, above average intelligence, friendly and outgoing, many interests, verbally skillfull

principal traits of psychopaths

selfishness, inability to love or gain affection, egocentricity, flat affect, little contact with family, disregard for truth, and lack of remorse or guilt

what trait is always present in psychopaths and considered unmodifiable?

egocentricity

the criminal psychopath is what percentage of the general population?

1%

how does the criminal psychopath tend to act

demonstrate a wide range of persistent and serious behavior. tend to be dominant, manipulative individuals characterized by an impulsive, risk-taking and antisocial lifestyle who obtain their greatest thrill from diverse sexual gratification and target diverse victims over time

prevalence of criminal psychopathy

in the general population its about 1%, in the adult prison population its about 15-25%

criminal psychopaths are considered to be what among offenders?

the most violent and persistent offenders

offending patterns of criminal psychopaths

dispassionate violence
sex crimes of psychopaths are more brutal and sadistic. more motivated by thrill seeking and excitement than sexual arousal

recidivism of criminal psychopaths

they commit crimes again and again, regardless of the methods used to stop or rehabilitate them.
psychopaths reoffend faster, violate parole sooner, and commit more institution violence than nonpsychopaths

core factors of psychopathy: two factor position

factor 1- interpersonal and emotional components of psychopathy and consists of items measuring remorselessness, callousness, and selfish use and manipulation of others.
factor 2- socially deviant lifestyle as characterized by poor planning, impulsiveness, and an excessive need for stimulation

core factors of psychopathy: three factor position

factor 1- an arrogant and deceptive interpersonal style which includes a grandiose sense of self worth, glibness, superficial charm, lying, conning, manipulation, and deceitfulness
factor 2- an impulsive and irresponsible behavioral style including a failure to think before acting and a lack of long term goals
factor 3- deficient affective or emotional experience characterized by low remorse, low guilt, a weak conscience, the absence of anxiety, fearlessness, callousness, little empathy, and a failure to accept responsibility for one’s actions

core factors of psychopathy: four factor model

factor 1- interpersonal, such as pathological lying and conning
factor 2- lifestyle, such as irresponsible behavior, sensation seeking, and impulsiveness
factor 3- affective (shallow affect or emotional reactions, lack of remorsefulness)
factor 4- antisocial tendencies, such as poor self-regulation and a wide array of antisocial behavior including delinquency

the dark triad

psychopathy, machiavellianism, and narcissism

the female psychopath

less prevalent than males, score lower on the PCL-R
less violent and aggressive and lower in recidivism
demonstrate relational aggression more than physical aggression

why have researchers resist searching for psychopathy in juveniles?

because features of the adult psychopath represent normal adolescent development. they can appear callous and narcissistic sometimes to hide their own fears and anxieties. they also tend to be impulsive and engage in sensation seeking behaviors.
they psychopathic-like characteristics represent either a passing phase in the difficult transition to adulthood and/or the adolescents “cover” to make themselves appear noncaring

ethical considerations to juvenile psychopathy

labelling kids as psychopathic can be a self-fulfilling prophecy
juveniles may be transferred to adult criminal courts
treatment is then believed futile

genetic factors of psychopathy

temperament is linked to low arousal and fear responses is associated with psychopathy. a temperament of this nature may disrupt the formation of guilt, conscience, or concern about punishment.

neuropsychology and psychopathy

neuropsychological markers have been repeatedly found in psychopaths as reflected in electrodermal (skin conductance) measures and cardiovascular/other NS systems

automatic nervous system

have an under-responsive autonomic NS and as a result do not learn to avoid aversive situations as well as others b/c they lack anxiety
primary psychopaths have significantly lower skin conductance while resting than nonpsychopaths
have a lack of fear

childhood of the psychopath

begins in childhood and continues throughout adulthood
hyperactivity, impulsivity, attention problems and conduct problems, parental neglect, and negative school experiences

psychopathy in childhood: environmental factors

toxicity (lead paint) in utero or early childhood, birth difficulties, temperament, and other early developmental factors may affect certain processes in the nervous system, rendering some children vulnerable to develop conduct problems and psychopathic characteristics

psychopathy in childhood: social factors

problematic temperamental predisposition at 6 months and low socioeconomic status at birth and early life experiences of physical abuse combine to predict clinically significant conduct problem outcomes in adolescence

treatment of criminal adult psychopaths

adult psychopaths are not responsive to treatment whether in prisons, psychiatric treatment centers, or in the community

why are adult criminal psychopaths considered impossible to treat

their manipulative nature
they are an extreme, qualitatively distinct category
persistent throughout life
has biological causes which cannot be changed by psychological interventions

adult criminal psychopaths recidivism rates

very difficult to evaluate the effectiveness of programs designed to help psychopaths because oftentimes they will manipulate the sytem
they will show remarkable improvement when in reality they are just very skillful at convincing therapists, counselors, and parole boards they have changed.
upon release, however, they are even more likely to engage in violent crime