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Individual and familial risk factors for adolescent psychopathy

University of British Columbia

Despite the wealth of research on psychopathy in adulthood, little is known about the developmental antecedents of the disorder. The purpose of the present investigation was to examine developmental risk factors to psychopathy in two adolescent offender populations. In Study 1, subjects were 233 adolescent sexual offenders who had participated in a sex-offender treatment program between 1985 and 1992. Archival data were used to retrospectively complete the Psychopathy Checklist: Youth Version (PCL:YV) and to code family background, individual, demographic, and criminological variables. PCL:YV scores were associated with physical abuse, parental social deviance, and adolescent Hyperactivity-Impulsivity-Attention (HIA) problems. In addition, relationships between PCL:YV scores and demographic and criminological variables were similar to those found in adult populations. In Study 2, mothers of 74 adolescent offenders completed questionnaires related to parenting strategies, physical abuse, maternal psychopathy, and child characteristics. The PCL:YV was completed using file information. PCL:YV scores were associated with physical abuse by father, maternal psychopathy, ineffective parenting strategies, and HIA. Results also indicated that the Psychopathy Screening Device, a measure of psychopathy in children, showed low concurrent validity with the PCL:YV. It was concluded that the investigation of risk factors is important to both our understanding of psychopathy and to early identification and treatment of those at risk for the disorder.

Thesis/Dissertation

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2009-06-24

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http://hdl.handle.net/2429/9575

Psychology

University of British Columbia

UBCV

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