Psychopathy in instrumental and reactive violent offenders.

Can violent offenders who commit acts of instrumental aggression for goal-oriented purposes such as robbery be distinguished from those who commit acts of reactive (or hostile) aggression in response to provocation? Because violent offenders often have a history of both instrumental and reactive aggression, this study distinguished between offenders with a history of at least 1 instrumental violent offense and offenders with a history of reactive violent offenses. Two studies tested the hypothesis that instrumental offenders would score higher than reactive offenders and nonviolent offenders on R. D. Hare's (1991) Psychopathy Checklist. The first study sample consisted of 106 violent and nonviolent offenders recruited from a medium-security correctional facility. The second study sample consisted of 50 violent offenders referred for pretrial forensic evaluation. In both samples, instrumental offenders could be reliably distinguished from reactive offenders on the basis of violent crime behavior and level of psychopathy. Group differences could not be attributed to participant age, race, length of incarceration, or extent of prior criminal record. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

Temperamental and familial predictors of violent and nonviolent criminal convictions: Age 3 to age 18.

This study examined the relations between family characteristics, childhood temperament, and convictions for violent and nonviolent offenses at age 18 in a representative birth cohort of men who are part of a longitudinal study. Three groups of men were identified on the basis of their conviction status at age 18: Participants who had never been convicted (n?=?404), participants who had been convicted for nonviolent offenses only (n?=?50), and participants who had been convicted for violent offenses (n?=?21). Multivariate analysis of variance and logistic regression analyses indicated that family factors were associated with both types of conviction outcomes, whereas childhood temperament was associated primarily with convictions for violent offenses. The potentially distinct roles of social- and self-regulation in the development of antisocial behavior are discussed. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

Crime specialization, seriousness progression, and Markov chains.

Sequences of violent and nonviolent offenses by 300 male offenders (mean age 26.47 yrs) were subjected to log-linear analyses of the stabilities and magnitudes of their transition probabilities (TPs). Results show that all patterns resembled a Markov process wherein the TPs were stable. The relative magnitude of these TPs indicated that there was specialization in nonviolent offenses and little tendency toward consistently violent behavior. Seriousness progression from nonviolent to violent misconduct was infrequent; however, there was substantial retrogression from violent to nonviolent offenses. (11 ref) (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

Identifying violent offenders using a video measure of interpersonal distance.

73 imprisoned male offenders volunteered to complete a videotaped measure of preferred interpersonal distance (IPD). Prison records were then searched for information leading to the classification of each S as either violent or nonviolent and for data on 17 background variables. A discriminant function analysis (DFA) identified 7 of the variables beginning with current offense and including IPD, as discriminators between violent and nonviolent offenders. Inspection of discriminant scores revealed an optimal criterion score with which 92% of the Ss were correctly identified as either violent or nonviolent. A 2nd DFA, which omitted the variable current offense, showed that IPD was the next best discriminator between violent and nonviolent offenders, and a positive relationship between preferred IPD and violence was clearly demonstrated. Results also support studies that have shown no difference in the shapes of the body-buffer zones of violent and nonviolent offenders, but anticipated differences between the IPD scores of Polynesian and European ethnic groups were not found. (21 ref) (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

Neuropsychological differences between violent and nonviolent adolescents

Administered the MMPI and elements of a neuropsychological assessment battery to 40 violent and 40 nonviolent adolescent males (M = 14.6 years). Multivariate analysis showed significant differences between groups on neuropsychological tests, but not on the MMPI. Discriminant function analysis indicated that the neuropsychological assessment had greater power to predict group membership of violent and nonviolent Ss than did the MMPI. The results are consistent with the hypothesis that organic impairment contributes to the impulse dyscontrol and associated violent behavior seen in some delinquent adolescents.     

Predicting relapse: A meta-analysis of sexual offender recidivism studies.

Evidence from 61 follow-up studies was examined to identify the factors most strongly related to recidivism among sexual offenders. On average, the sexual offense recidivism rate was low (13.4%; n?=?23,393). There were, however, subgroups of offenders who recidivated at high rates. Sexual offense recidivism was best predicted by measures of sexual deviancy (e.g., deviant sexual preferences, prior sexual offenses) and, to a lesser extent, by general criminological factors (e.g., age, total prior offenses). Those offenders who failed to complete treatment were at higher risk for reoffending than those who completed treatment. The predictors of nonsexual violent recidivism and general (any) recidivism were similar to those predictors found among nonsexual criminals (e.g., prior violent offenses, age, juvenile delinquency). Our results suggest that applied risk assessments of sexual offenders should consider separately the offender's risk for sexual and nonsexual recidivism. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

Temperature and aggression: Effects on quarterly, yearly, and city rates of violent and nonviolent crime.

The hypothesized relation between uncomfortably hot temperatures and aggressive behavior was examined in two studies of violent and nonviolent crime. Data on rates of murder, rape, assault, robbery, burglary, larceny-theft, and motor vehicle theft were gathered from archival sources. The first three crimes listed are violent; the latter four are less violent (labeled nonviolent). On the basis of previous research and theory (Anderson & Anderson, 1984), it was predicted that violent crimes would be more prevalent in the hotter quarters of the year and in hotter years. Furthermore, it was predicted that this temperature–crime relation would be stronger for violent than for nonviolent crime. Study 1 confirmed both predictions. Also, differences among cities in violent crime were predicted to be related to the hotness of cities; this effect was expected to be stronger for violent than for nonviolent crimes. Study 2 confirmed both predictions, even when effects of a variety of social, demographic, and economic variables were statistically removed. Theoretical and practical implications are discussed. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

A further attempt to differentiate violent from nonviolent offenders by means of a battery of psychological tests.

30 male Ss who had been convicted of violent offenses and 30 convicted on nonviolent offenses (mean ages 17.5 and 17.4 yrs, respectively) were administered the WAIS, Buss-Durkee Hostility Inventory (BDHI), the Hostility and Direction of Hostility Questionnaire, and the Eysenck Personality Questionnaire. Only 6 of the dependent variables differentiated between the 2 groups at or beyond the .05 level of significance. They were Information, Comprehension, Verbal IQ, Object Assembly, Full Scale IQ, and Assault. With the exception of Assault (a BDHI subscale), all the variables come from the WAIS. There were no significant differences between the 2 groups on S. B. Eysenck and H. J. Eysenck's (1975) personality dimensions of extraversion, neuroticism, and psychoticism. (French abstract) (27 ref) (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

Attributing negative intent to wife behavior: The attributions of maritally violent versus nonviolent men.

Compared attributions for negative wife behavior offered by 3 groups of husbands: 22 maritally violent and distressed, 17 nonviolent but maritally distressed, and 17 nonviolent and nondistressed. Husbands rated wife behaviors presented in 9 hypothetical problematic marital situation vignettes. On a measure of responsibility attributions, violent husbands were more likely than nondistressed husbands to attribute negative intentions, selfish motivation, and blame to the wife. On a measure of possible negative wife intentions, violent husbands were more likely than either distressed or nondistressed men to attribute negative intentions to the wife. Exploratory analyses suggested that certain types of marital situations (e.g., jealousy and rejection from wife) were particularly likely to elicit attributions of negative intent from violent husbands. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

Studies of violent and nonviolent male parolees: I. Laboratory and psychometric measurements of aggression

Male parolees were recruited into a laboratory study to determine the relationship between their previous aggression history, psychometric measures of aggression, and behavioral measures of aggressive responding using a laboratory methodology: the Point Subtraction Aggression Paradigm. Subjects were assigned to a violent or nonviolent group based upon their criminal history. Subjects participated in sessions in which they were given three response options defined as: (1) nonaggressive responding which earned money, (2) aggressive responding which ostensibly subtracted money from another fictitious person, (This responding was defined as aggressive since it resulted in the ostensible delivery of an aversive stimulus (subtraction of money) to another person), and (3) escape which protected the subject's earnings from subtractions initiated by the other person. Results indicated that the violent subjects emitted significantly more aggressive responses than subjects in the nonviolent group. The number of aggressive responses parolees emitted was significantly correlated with most psychometric measures of aggression. This study provides external validity for our laboratory measurement of human aggressive responding, since aggressive responding was directly related to violent criminal histories.     

Comparing the responses of maritally violent and nonviolent spouses to problematic marital and nonmarital situations: Are the skill deficits of physically aggressive husbands and wives global?

This study compared the competency of responses offered by spouses in violent and nonviolent marriages to problematic marital and nonmarital situations. Twenty-five maritally violent and distressed, 10 nonviolent but maritally distressed, and 23 nonviolent and nondistressed couples participated. Each spouse listened to narratives of marital and nonmarital (e.g., boss or friend) problematic situation vignettes. Participants were asked what they would say and do in each situation. A coding system designed with input from nonviolent, happily married individuals showed that violent spouses provided less competent responses than nonviolent spouses for both marital and nonmarital situations and for both 1st and 2nd responses. The findings suggest that violent-distressed spouses have particular difficulty with marital situations. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

Anger, hostility, and depression in domestically violent versus generally assaultive men and nonviolent control subjects.

Anger, hostility, and depression were examined across four groups: a clinical sample of domestically violent men, two samples of more generally assaultive men, and a nonviolent control group. All subjects (N?=?129) were assessed using the Buss-Durkee Hostility Inventory, the Hostility and Direction of Hostility Questionnaire, and the Beck Depression Inventory. The domestically violent men and the generally assaultive men evidenced significantly higher levels of anger and hostility than the control subjects. The anger and hostility scores were very similar in the domestically violent and the generally assaultive men. However, the domestically violent men were more likely to be significantly depressed. The findings support the idea that anger dyscontrol is a key issue in the psychological profile of domestically violent men and indicate the need for clinical attention to depression as well as anger. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

Mother–son relationships of juvenile felons.

67 mother–son dyads from father-absent families were divided into 3 groups: violent felon, nonviolent felon, and normal control. Adolescent sons had a mean age of 14.5 yrs, while mothers had a mean age of 39.3 yrs. During the assessment session, mothers and sons completed self-report inventories and engaged in an interaction task that was audio-recorded. Consistent with prior research, mother–son relationships in families with juvenile offenders were less warm and tended to evidence less positive communication and more negative communication than did those in families with nonoffenders. Marginally significant results suggest that the 16 violent juvenile felons had even poorer relationships with their mothers than did the 15 nonviolent felons. (5 ref) (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

Buss-Durkee assessment and validation with violent versus nonviolent chronic alcohol abusers.

26 male 27–47 yr old chronic alcohol abusers who had been violent while intoxicated and 25 male 34–52 yr old nonviolent alcohol abusers were administered the Buss-Durkee Hostility-Guilt Inventory. All Ss were Caucasians with a reported daily intake of ethanol of 227 ml?±?89 ml for at least the last 5 yrs. Violence was documented by police records and by patient and family reports. Violent drinkers scored significantly higher than controls on the Total Hostility score and on subscales measuring Assault, Irritability, Verbal Hostility, Indirect Hostility, and Resentment. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

Violent versus nonviolent couples: A comparison of patterns.

Administered a research questionnaire to 3 groups of married couples (19 violent couples, 7 nonviolent couples in marital therapy, and 24 nonviolent couples not in therapy) to identify characteristics of violent couples. Violent Ss were engaged in counseling for wife battery. Results show that alcohol was the most significant factor operating in violent marriages. Violent couples were also found to have significantly more stereotyped sex-role attitudes, more aggressive and passive behaviors, less marital satisfaction, and a greater degree of dissatisfaction with decision making in the family. Violent couples usually witnessed more violence in their childhood homes. (25 ref) (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

Intelligence, personality, and criminal violence: A multivariate analysis.

The L. R. Huesmann et al (1978) Validity (F)?+?Psychopathic Deviate (Pd)?+?Hypomania (Ma) MMPT index of aggression and A. B. Heilbrun's (see record 1979-25100-001) hypothesis regarding the interaction of intelligence and psychopathy in relation to violent behavior were evaluated with 390 adult male offenders, mean age 26.2 yrs. The F?+?Pd?+?Ma composite did not differentiate significantly between inmates who had been classified according to the violent or nonviolent nature of their most recent offenses, although it was positively correlated with Ss' lifetime total number of violent convictions. Nonetheless, this latter correlation was of extremely small magnitude, and the combination of scales F, Pd, and Ma performed no better than Pd alone. Low levels of intellectual functioning were associated with violent crime in all analyses; however, contrary to Heilbrun, the relationship of intelligence and psychopathy to violence was found to be linear and additive rather than interactive, regardless of whether psychopathy was defined as F?+?Pd?+?Ma or as Pd only. (16 ref) (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

Female criminal violence and differential MMPI characteristics.

Used a cross-validational approach to compare MMPI scale elevations and profile patterns produced by 22 female murderers and 40 female nonviolent offenders in 2 geographic regions. Ss did not differ between groups in race distribution, age, education, age at or months served on current offense, total time incarcerated, or intellectual level. Ss also completed the Shipley-Institute of Living Scale for Measuring Intellectual Impairment and the Raven Progressive Matrices. Murderers from both prison sources produced subdued group mean profiles, whereas nonviolent offenders were characterized by elevations on Scale 4. Discriminant function classification was highly dependent on scores on Scales 4, 5, K, and A and correctly identified 82% of violent and 78% of nonviolent offenders. A principal-components analysis yielded 5 components of profile types, but only the component defined by high positive loadings for Scale 4 differentiated between the groups. (5 ref) (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

The relation of family functioning to violence among inner-city minority youths.

The relationship between family influences and participation in violent and nonviolent delinquent behavior was examined among a sample of 362 African American and Latino male adolescents living in the inner city. Participants were classified into three groups: (a) nonoffenders, (b) nonviolent offenders, and (c) violent offenders. Families in the violent delinquent group reported poorer discipline, less cohesion, and less involvement than the other two groups. These results were consistent across ethnic groups. However, the factor Beliefs About Family related to violence risk in opposite directions for African American and Latino families. These results highlight the need to look at ethnic group differences when constructing models of risk. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

Psychopathy and Comorbidity in a Young Offender Sample: Taking A Closer Look At Psychopathy's Potential Importance Over Disruptive Behavior Disorders.

The authors examined the construct of psychopathy as applied to 130 adolescent offenders using 3 psychopathy measures and a broad range of DSM-TV Axis I diagnoses and psychosocial problems. Measures used in the study included the following: (a) Psychopathy Checklist-Youth Version (PCL- PCLYV; A. E. Forth, D. S. Kosson, & R. D. Hare, 2003), (b) Antisocial Process Screening Device (APSD; YV; P. J. Frick & R. D. Hare, 2002), (c) a modified version of the Self-Report Psychopathy-II scale (SRP-II; R. D. Hare, 1991b), and (d) the Adolescent Psychopathology Scale (APS; W. M. Reynolds, 1998). Results from this study offer incremental support for the construct validity of psychopathy in youth. Psychopathy evidenced better convergent and discriminant validity results than did the disruptive behavior disorders (DBDs) such as oppositional-defiant disorder (ODD) and conduct disorder (CD). Despite this finding, psychopathy scales nonetheless correlated with other forms of psychopathology at a higher rate than was expected, suggesting that comorbidity is high even when psychopathy is used as a classification scheme. Also, hierarchical multiple regression was used to determine whether psychopathy offered an improvement in the prediction of previous violent and nonviolent offenses. The results for the current study were mixed, with only the PCL-YV significantly predicting previous violent and nonviolent offenses beyond the DBDs. The findings indicate that psychopathy may offer incremental improvement over DBDs with regard to level of comorbidity and perhaps even prediction. However, simply extending the adult construct of psychopathy to youth without considering the array of psychopathology that may accompany adolescent psychopathy could be misleading. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

Interaction between birth complications and early maternal rejection in predisposing individuals to adult violence: specificity to serious, early-onset violence

OBJECTIVE: The authors previously reported that birth complications interact with early maternal rejection in predisposing individuals to violence at age 18 years. This study extended the follow-up period for violent offending from 18 years to 34 years, thus increasing the sample of violent offenders threefold and allowing more detailed analyses on onset and type of violence, the form of maternal rejection, and the effect of maternal mental illness. METHOD: Complications in the births of 4,269 males in Denmark, maternal rejection of these individuals before the age of 1 year, and their histories of criminal offenses at age 34 years were assessed. RESULTS: The biosocial interaction previously observed held for violent but not nonviolent crime, was specific to more serious forms of violence and not threats of violence, held for early-onset but not late-onset violence, and was not accounted for by psychiatric illness in the mothers. Being reared in a public care institution in the first year of life and the mother's attempt to abort the fetus were the key aspects of maternal rejection that interacted with birth complications in predisposing a subject to violence. CONCLUSIONS: These findings 1) indicate that the mechanisms underlying early-onset, serious violence differ from those for less serious, late-onset violence, 2) implicate very early factors in the development of violence, 3) highlight the potential importance of integrating psychosocial with biological factors in understanding and preventing violence, and 4) suggest that interventions to reduce birth complications and maternal rejection may help reduce violence.