Adelle E. Forth

The revised Psychopathy Checklist: Reliability and factor structure.

The revised Psychopathy Checklist (PCL) is a 20-item scale scored from interview and file information. Analyses of data from 5 prison samples (N= 92 5) and 3 forensic psychiatric samples (N= 356) indicate that the revised PCL resembles its 22-item predecessor in all important respects. It has excellent psychometric properties, and it measures 2 correlated factors that were cross-validated both within and between samples. Correlations between the original PCL and the revised version approached unity for both the factors and the full scale. We conclude that the revised PCL measures the same construct as the original and that the PCL is a reliable and valid instrument for the assessment of psychopathy in male forensic populations.

Psychopathy : theory, research, and implications for society

1. The Alvor Advanced Study Institute R.D. Hare. 2. Psychopathy Across Cultures D.J. Cooke. 3. Psychopathy and Normal Personality T.A. Widiger. 4. The Phenotypic and Genotypic Structure of Psychopathic Traits W.J. Livesley. 5. Psychopathic Behavior: An Information Processing Perspective J.P. Newman. 6. Psychopathy, Affect and Behavior R.D. Hare. 7. Biology and Personality: Findings from a Longitudinal Project B.A. Klinteberg. 8. Callous-Unemotional Traits and Conduct Problems: Applying the Two-Factor Model of Psychopathy to Children P.J. Frick. 9. Comorbidities and Biological Correlates of Conduct Disorder K. McBurnett, L. Pfiffner. 10. Psychopathy in Adolescence: Assessment, Violence, and Developmental Precursors A.E. Forth, H.C. Burke. 11. Major Mental Disorder and Crime: An Etiological Hypothesis S. Hodgins, et al. 12. Comorbidity of Psychopathy with Major Mental Disorders N. Nedopil, et al. 13. Psychopathy and Personality Disorder: Implications of Interpersonal Theory R. Blackburn. 14. Treatment and Management of Psychopaths F. Losel. 15. Psychopathy and Risk for Violence S.D. Hart. 16. Psychopathy and Crime: Recidivism and Criminal Careers J.F. Hemphill, et al. 17. Legal Issues Associated with the Concept of Psychopathy J.P. Ogloff, D.R. Lyon. Index. List of Contributors.

The assessment of psychopathy in male and female noncriminals: Reliability and validity

The present study examined the reliability and validity of the Psychopathy Checklist-Revised: Screening Version (PCL-R:SV; Hart, Cox & Hare, 1995, Manual for the Screening Version of the Hare Psychopathy Checklist—Revised (PCL-R:SV)) in a sample of 75 male and 75 female university students. We examined the internal structure of the PCL-R:SV and its relationship to a battery of self-report measures relevant to the construct of psychopathy. Results indicated that the PCL-R:SV had good internal consistency and interrater reliability. The distribution of psychopathy scores were significantly higher among the males than the females. A factor analysis failed to confirm the two factor structure of psychopathy previously found in forensic samples. PCL-R:SV Total scores were significantly correlated with Antisocial Personality Disorder symptoms, substance use, self-reported criminal activity, and observer ratings of interpersonal behavior. Overall, the results suggest that the PCL-R:SV is a reliable and valid measure of psychopathic traits in nonforensic populations.

Psychopathy in Adolescence: Assessment, Violence, and Developmental Precursors

Psychopathy is a serious personality disorder that first manifests itself early in life and persists throughout most of the lifespan. Most clinicians and researchers agree that psychopathy is associated with a constellation of affective, interpersonal, and behavioral characteristics, central to which are a profound lack of remorse or guilt and a callous disregard for the feelings, rights, and welfare of others (Cleckley, 1976; Hare, 1991; Tennent, Tennent, Prins, & Bedford, 1990). Individuals with this disorder are typically described as impulsive, selfish, deceitful, sensation-seeking, and irresponsible. Given these characteristics it is not surprising that psychopaths commit a disproportionate amount of serious repetitive crime and violence and frequently come into contact with the criminal justice system. Despite a substantial body of work dealing with psychopathy in adults, surprisingly little work has focused on the precursors of this disorder. Understanding the antecedents of psychopathy may lead not only to a better understanding of its etiology but also its treatment and perhaps, ultimately, its prevention.

Factor structure of the Hare Psychopathy Checklist: Youth Version (PCL: YV) in incarcerated adolescents.

Two studies are reported on the underlying dimensions of the psychopathy construct in adolescents as measured by the Hare Psychopathy Checklist-Youth Version (PCL: YV; Forth, Kosson, & Hare, 2003). In Study 1, the PCL: YV item ratings for 505 male adolescents incarcerated in 5 different settings in North America were used to test the fit of 3 models that have been hypothesized to represent the structure of psychopathy in adults. A 4th model based on parceling PCL: YV items was also tested. In Study 2, these models were tested with a sample of 233 male adolescents incarcerated in 2 facilities in the United Kingdom. Model fit results indicated that the 18-item 4-factor model developed by Hare (2003) and a modified version of a 13-item 3-factor model developed by Cooke and Michie (2001) were associated with generally good fit. Because the 4-factor model is a less saturated model than the 3-factor model (better parameter to data point ratio), it survived a riskier test of disconfirmation. Implications for the nature of psychopathy in youth are discussed.

Instrumentally violent youths - the roles of psychopathic traits, empathy, and attachment

Psychopathy in adults has been well documented as a robust predictor of violence. Explanations for this relation have focused on the affective deficit that characterizes psychopathy. This study examined the relations among psychopathic traits, empathy, attachment, and motivations for violence in 51 incarcerated adolescent offenders. Psychopathy scores were related to both instrumental and reactive violence. Youths who were classified as instrumentally violent scored higher on psychopathy than those who were not, which could be attributed to the interpersonal and affective features of psychopathy. These findings provide support for the construct of psychopathy existing in youths. Implications of the current study for potential interventions and prevention of persistent violent offending are discussed.

Performance of criminal psychopaths on selected neuropsychological tests

Screening batteries of standard neuropsychological tests were administered to 2 different samples (Ns = 90 and 167) of male prison inmates. Scores on the revised Psychopathy Checklist were used to divide inmates in each sample into high, moderate, and low psychopathy groups. There were no group differences in test performance in either of the samples, even when the effects of self-reported psychopathology and substance abuse were taken into account. The overall prevalence of both test-specific and global neuropsychological impairment was low and did not vary significantly across the 3 groups. The results provide no support for traditional brain-damage explanations of psychopathy.

Measures of Criminal Attitudes and Associates (MCAA) Development, Factor Structure, Reliability, and Validity

Recent meta-analysis has demonstrated that attitudes and associates are among the best predictors of antisocial behavior. Despite this finding, there are few psychometrically developed and validated measures of criminal and antisocial attitudes and associates. This study reviews the theoretical and empirical development of the Measures of Criminal Attitudes and Associates (MCAA), which is composed of two parts. Part A is a quantified self-report measure of criminal friends. Part B contains four attitude scales: Violence, Entitlement, Antisocial Intent, and Associates. The MCAA showed reasonable reliability (internal consistency and temporal stability) and appropriate convergent and discriminant validity. Criterion validity was evidenced in the scale’s relationship with criminal history variables, and a factor analysis confirmed the four distinct scale domains.

Remembering details of emotional events: A comparison between psychopathic and nonpsychopathic offenders

Abstract Recent research indicates that recall of the central details of a negative emotional event is better than is recall for peripheral details. We predicted that psychopaths—because of their difficulty in processing emotional information—would not show this narrowing of attention for negative events. Criminal psychopaths and nonpsychopaths, defined by the Hare Revised Psychopathy Checklist (PCL-R; Hare, 1991), were shown a series of 15 color slides. The content of the eighth (critical) slide was either emotional or neutral; in each case the critical slide contained a central detail (the color of a womans coat) and a peripheral detail (the color of a car in the background). There were no group differences in recall of the details of the neutral slide; in each case, the central and peripheral details were recalled equally well. The nonpsychopaths recalled the central detail of the emotional slide far better than they did the peripheral detail; that is, they showed the expected narrowing of attention with negative emotion. The psychopaths, on the other hand, failed to show this effect; their recall of the central and peripheral details was the same for the emotional slide as it was for the neutral slide. The results provide further support for the hypothesis that psychopaths have difficulty in processing emotional information.

Novaco Anger Scale: Reliability and Validity within an Adult Criminal Sample:

This study investigated the reliability and validity of the Novaco Anger Scale (NAS; Novaco, 1994) with two groups of correctional offenders, General Admissions and Violent Admissions. Predominantly White male offenders (N = 204), ranging in age from 18 to 69 years, participated in the study. One-month test-retest reliability for the General Admissions group ranged from .78 to .91 using both similar (paper-pencil) and dissimilar (computerized) retesting methods, with lower scores occurring on retest. Significantly lower scores were found for the Violent Admissions group as compared with the General Admissions group. Concurrent validity was examined in the Violent Admissions group using three anger/aggression measures and clinical ratings of eight anger dimensions. Stronger correlations with other similar anger measures than with negative affect indices revealed concurrent and discriminant validity. Implications for clinical use in an offender population are discussed.