PSYCHOPATHY

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PSYCHOPATHY

• True taxon or
• the end of the continuum

2
Psychopathy

• Based on work of Robert Hare derived from
  conceptualization of Cleckley
• More emphasis on affective and interpersonal
  features
• Most (but not all) psychopaths will be antisocial
  personality disorders, but not all ASPDs will be
  psychopaths
• Most inmates will be ASPD, but only 25 or less
  will be psychopaths

3
Psychopathy

• Etiology unknown thought to be interaction of
  biological/genetic factors and social forces
• Expression of disorder depends on social and
  developmental context (shaped by environment)
• Most research with criminals, but construct
  important in general society
• Most studies to date on white males, but recent
  research suggests validity with females and other
  ethnic/cultural groups

Hare, 2001
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1
Psychopaths in General Population
Hare, 2001
5
10-30
Psychopaths in Prison Populations
Hare, 2001
6
44
Psychopaths as killers of Law Enforcement Officers
Hare, 2001
7
90
Psychopaths as Serial Killers
Hare, 2001
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Are psychopaths mad?

• Unless comorbid condition present, not usually in
  legal or psychiatric sense
• Know right from wrong, know the rules
• But own rules are more important than societys
• Knowledge of rules is intellectual, not emotional

9
Are all psychopaths criminals?

• Not in technical, legal sense
• Behaviour is often unethical, but may not end up
  in jail
• Hare undertaking studies of subclinical, white
  collar psychopaths

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Criminal vs White-Collar Psychopaths

• Although underlying personality structure is
  similar, other factors shape the outcome
• Physical attributes and appearance
• Intelligence
• Social and economic status
• Family social connections (its who you know, not
  what you know)
• Opportunities available in the environment

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Core Personality Traits
Attributes, Background, Opportunity
Good
Bad
Subcriminal psychopaths
Criminal psychopaths
Violation of legal and ethical standards
subtle
flagrant
Fame, fortune Minor setbacks
Prison Early death
Outcome
Hare, 2001
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ASPD 3-5
Psychopaths 1
Psychopathy and ASPD in General Population
Hare, 2001
13
ASPD 50-80
Psychopaths 15-25
Psychopathy and ASPD in Offender Populations
Hare, 2001
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20 Characteristics of Psychopaths

• Glib/Superficial Charm
• Grandiose Self Worth
• Need for Stimulation/ proneness to boredom
• Pathological Lying
• Conning/Manipulative
• Lack of Guilt or Remorse
• Shallow Affect
• Callous/Lack of Empathy
• Parasitic Lifestyle
• Poor Behavioral Controls

• 11. Promiscuous Sexual Behavior
• 12. Early Behavioral Problems
• 13. Lack of Realistic Long-Term Goals
• 14. Impulsivity
• 15. Irresponsibility
• 16. Failure to Take Responsibility for Own
  Actions
• 17. Many Short-Term Marital Relationships
• 18. Juvenile Delinquency
• 19. Revocation of Conditional Release
• 20. Criminal Versatility

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Features of Psychopathy

• Responsible of large proportion of crime
• More violent crimes
• Offend later into life
• Higher rates of recidivism
• More likely to use instrumental than reactive
  aggression (less often crimes of passion)
• Can be politicians, CEOs, rather than criminal
  justice offenders
• May get worse with treatment

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Neurobiological Differences in Psychopaths

• Psychopaths show absence of autonomic responses
  of anticipatory anxiety to punishment (e.g.
  electric shock)
• Criminal psychopaths show abnormalities in
  function of limbic system and frontal cortex
  while processing affective stimuli (e.g. words)
• Amydala and hippocampus less active (emotion and
  memory)
• Fronto-temporal cortex more active
• (need more cognitive, non-emotional neural
  resources to process emotional stimuli)

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Neurobiology and Psychopathy

• Fearlessness Hypothesis - higher threshold for
  experience of anxiety/fear dont respond at
  autonomic level to anticipated threat/punishment
• Cortical hypo-arousal brain is understimulated
  except by dangerous/thrill seeking behavior
• Different (non-limbic) processing of affective
  stimuli not processed on an emotional level

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Some conclusions from Robert Hare

• Psychopaths are not the same as you and I
• They think, feel and act differently
• Emotions and deep processing play little role in
  their thinking, language or behavior
• They may mimic emotions well, but its mostly an
  act
• Their approach to the world is instrumental they
  are viewed by us as predatory
• They do not play by our rules, nor do they care
  about our feelings or welfare
• They put on a good show, and its hard not to be
  taken in