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Background: The default mode network (DMN) is a set of brain regions typically activated at rest and suppressed during extrinsic cognition. Schizophrenia has been associated with deficient DMN suppression, though the extent to which DMN dysfunction predate

OBJECTIVE: The 'default mode' has been defined as a baseline condition of brain function and is of interest because its component brain regions are believed to be abnormal in schizophrenia. It was hypothesized that the default mode network would show abnormal activation and connectivity in patients with schizophrenia. METHOD: Patients with schizophrenia (N=21) and healthy comparison subjects (N=22) performed an auditory oddball task during functional magnetic resonance imaging (fMRI). Independent component analysis was used to identify the default mode component. Differences in the spatial and temporal aspects of the default mode network were examined in patients versus comparison subjects. RESULTS: Healthy comparison subjects and patients had significant spatial differences in the default mode network, most notably in the frontal, anterior cingulate, and parahippocampal gyri. In addition, activity in patients in the medial frontal, temporal, and cingulate gyri correlated with severity of positive symptoms. The patients also showed significantly higher frequency fluctuations in the temporal evolution of the default mode. CONCLUSIONS: Schizophrenia is associated with altered temporal frequency and spatial location of the default mode network. The authors hypothesized that this network may be under- or overmodulated by key regions, including the anterior and posterior cingulate cortex. In addition, the altered temporal fluctuations in patients may result from a change in the connectivity of these regions with other brain networks. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Background. Patients with schizophrenia have an impaired ability to generate activity that is appropriate to current circumstances and goals.Method. We report a study using functional magnetic resonance imaging (fMRI) to examine cerebral activity during a three-tone auditory oddball target detection task in a sample of 28 patients with schizophrenia and 28 healthy controls.Results. The patients exhibited significantly less activation in response to target stimuli relative to baseline in an extensive set of sites in association neocortex, paralimbic cortex, limbic structures and subcortical nuclei, yet demonstrated a normal level of activation in the sensorimotor cortex. Comparison of activity elicited by rare target stimuli with that elicited by equally rare novel stimuli makes it possible to distinguish cerebral activity associated with attention to behaviourally salient stimuli from activity associated with attending to other attention-capturing stimuli. This comparison revealed that the patients with schizophrenia also exhibited a deficit in activation of basal forebrain areas that mediate motivation during the processing of behaviourally salient stimuli, including the amygdala, ventral striatum, orbital frontal cortex and rostral anterior cingulate cortex.Conclusion. Patients with schizophrenia have a deficit in function of the brain system concerned with mediating motivation, in addition to a more general deficit in the cerebral response to attention-captivating stimuli. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Background. In a recent longitudinal study of first-episode schizophrenia patients, we found that while dysfunction of the right dorsolateral prefrontal cortex (DLPFC), right thalamus, left cerebellum and cingulate gyrus normalized with antipsychotic treatment and significant reduction in symptomatology, the left DLPFC, left thalamus, and right cerebellum remained disturbed. In the present study we investigated whether these abnormalities are also present in clinically stable, relatively well-functioning schizophrenia patients in comparison to control subjects during performance of the N-back working-memory task.Method. Twelve schizophrenia and 12 control subjects completed the study. The functional images collected during scanning were analyzed using a random-effects model in a restricted set of six regions of interest (ROIs). In addition, the exploratory search in the entire brain volume was performed.Results. The ROI analyses revealed relative underactivation in the region of the left DLPFC and the right cerebellum, as well as overactivation in the left cerebellum. The exploratory whole-brain search exposed additional overactivation in the medial frontal, anterior cingulate, and left parietal cortices.Conclusions. The present study provides evidence of significant underactivations in stable schizophrenia patients in regions that we have previously observed to be dysfunctional in acutely psychotic and partially remitted patients, together with extensive overactivations in several regions that potentially reflect some compensatory mechanism or increased effort on the working-memory task. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

A floodplain-restoration project along the Danube between Neuburg and Ingolstadt (Germany) aims to bring back water and sediment dynamic to the floodplain. The accompanied long-term monitoring has to document the changes in biodiversity related to this new dynamics. Considerations on and results of the vegetation monitoring concept are documented in this paper. In a habitat rich ecosystem like a floodplain different habitats (alluvial forest, semi-aquatic/aquatic sites) have different demands on the sampling methods. Therefore, different monitoring designs (preferential, random, systematic, stratified random and transect sampling) are discussed and tested for their use in different habitat types of the floodplain. A stratified random sampling is chosen for the alluvial forest stands, as it guarantees an equal distribution of the monitoring plots along the main driving factors, i.e. influence of water. The parameters distance to barrage, ecological flooding, height above thalweg and distance to the new floodplain river are used for stratifying and the plots are placed randomly into these strata, resulting in 117 permanent plots. Due to small changes at the semi-aquatic/aquatic sites a transect sampling was chosen. Further, a rough stratification (channel bed, river bank adjacent floodplain) was implemented, which was only possible after the start of the restoration project. To capture the small-scale changes due to the restoration measures on the vegetation, 99 additional plots completed the transect sampling. We conclude that hetereogenous study areas need different monitoring approaches, but, later on, a joint analysis must be possible

Childhood trauma exposure is prevalent among incarcerated youth and associated with antisocial traits and behavior. It has been proposed as a risk factor for the development of sadistic traits, which has been shown to predict future violence in youth. Using regression analyses, we examined the association between self-report and expert-rated measures of childhood trauma, sadistic traits (i.e., verbal, physical, vicarious sadism), and violence (i.e., homicide and non-homicide violent acts) in 54 incarcerated juveniles. Expert-rated (but not self-report) severity of physical abuse was associated with physical and vicarious sadistic traits. Other trauma types (e.g., emotional or sexual abuse) were not significantly associated with sadistic traits. Physical abuse coupled with vicarious sadistic traits conferred the highest risk of non-homicide violence. The findings support and clarify links between childhood trauma, sadistic traits, and violent behavior in youth, and are distinct from those found in other antisocial profiles., (© 2023. The Author(s), under exclusive licence to Springer Science+Business Media, LLC, part of Springer Nature.)

Traumatic brain injury (TBI) is a global public health problem and is highly prevalent among justice-involved populations. Pediatric TBI is linked with long-term negative outcomes and is correlated with substance use, criminal behavior, psychiatric disorders, and disruptions in neurocognition. These same TBI correlates are evident among youth with psychopathic traits. Given ongoing neurobiological and social development in adolescence, understanding the link between psychopathic traits and TBI in justice-involved youth is critical. A sample of 263 male adolescents were recruited from a maximum-security juvenile justice facility. Using a structural equation modeling (SEM) framework, measurement invariance of psychopathic traits (TBI ±) was tested, and psychopathy scores were accounted for in terms of TBI variables (severity, age of first TBI, total number), participant's age, IQ, substance use, and internalizing psychopathology. There was evidence of strong invariance across TBI status and those with TBI had higher affective and impulsive lifestyle psychopathic traits than adolescents without TBI. The SEM indicated that TBI severity was associated with lower IQ scores, which in turn were associated with increased lifestyle/antisocial (Factor 2) psychopathic traits. Total number of TBIs was associated with higher substance use, which was associated with both increased interpersonal/affective (Factor 1) and Factor 2 psychopathic traits. These TBI variables also had indirect associations with psychopathic traits through IQ and substance use. The findings indicate that TBI is associated with psychopathic traits and suggest that disturbances in cognition and substance use may be treatment targets for youth with TBI and psychopathic traits., Competing Interests: Compliance with Ethical Standards Funding This work is supported by the National Institute of Health (R01 MH071896; R01 HD092331) Conflict of Interests The authors declare no conflicts of interest and do not have any financial or non-financial competing interests. Ethics Approval The Ethical and Independent Review Services and Office for Human Research Protections approved all research protocols. Informed Consent Informed assent with parent/guardian consent was collected for participants under 18 years of age; participants 18 years of age and older provided informed written consent. Human and Animal Rights Participants were made aware that they could discontinue participating in the study at any point, without consequence, and were compensated at a rate consistent with the hourly labor wage of the facility., (© 2024. The Author(s), under exclusive licence to Springer Science+Business Media, LLC, part of Springer Nature.)

The mortality rate among adolescents has been steadily increasing in recent years. Researchers have previously identified forms of externalizing psychopathology measured during adolescence associated with an increased risk for premature mortality, including attention-deficit/hyperactivity disorder (ADHD), substance use disorders (SUDs), oppositional defiant disorder (ODD), and conduct disorder (CD). The current study investigated whether additional personality traits (i.e., adolescent psychopathic traits, assessed via the Hare Psychopathy Checklist: Youth Version [PCL:YV]) were also associated with premature mortality risk among maximum-security incarcerated adolescents (N = 332). During a follow-up period ranging from 10 to 14 years, premature mortality was observed in n = 33 participants (9.94%), a mortality rate nearly ten times higher than population norms. We observed that adolescents scoring the highest on PCL:YV total scores exhibited significantly higher rates of premature mortality compared to adolescents scoring lower on PCL:YV total scores via Fisher's exact tests. Additionally, through univariate Cox proportional hazard regression analyses, PCL:YV total, Factor 2 (measuring lifestyle/behavioral and antisocial/developmental psychopathic traits), Facet 1 (measuring interpersonal psychopathic traits), and Facet 3 (measuring lifestyle/behavioral psychopathic traits) scores were associated with faster time to premature mortality. In supplemental analyses performed, we observed that adolescents meeting criteria for externalizing psychopathology (i.e., ADHD, SUDs, ODD, and CD) did not exhibit higher rates of premature mortality compared to control participants. The current study therefore identifies additional maladaptive personality traits to consider in relation to premature mortality risk (i.e., psychopathic traits) among a high-risk sample of incarcerated adolescents., (© 2024. The Author(s), under exclusive licence to Springer Science+Business Media, LLC, part of Springer Nature.)

Both the Psychopathy Checklist-Revised (PCL-R) and the Psychopathy Checklist: Youth Version (PCL:YV), respectively, are established instruments for assessment of psychopathy and development of psychopathic propensity. To reliably compare scores from both instruments, measurement invariance must be established. The current study involved a combined sample of 1091 male participants (adults = 813; adolescents = 278) from correctional facilities in New Mexico. An exploratory structural equation modeling (ESEM) framework was used to test for measurement invariance. The four-factor ESEM model demonstrated good fit for the combined and individual samples. Results from the multiple group ESEM provide evidence for generally strong invariance, with equivalent factor loadings and thresholds. Adolescents exhibited decreased latent interpersonal traits but increased latent features on other PCL factors (affective, lifestyle, and antisocial) compared to adults. Findings suggest that the four-factor model and the measurement of psychopathic traits remain consistent across age groups. Implications of the findings within research and clinical contexts are discussed.

Psychopathic traits have been associated with rearrest in adolescents involved in the criminal legal system. Much of the prior work has focused on White samples, short follow-up windows, and relatively low-risk youth. The current study aimed to evaluate the utility of the Hare Psychopathy Checklist: Youth Version (PCL:YV) for predicting general and violent felony recidivism in a large sample of high-risk, predominantly Hispanic/Latino, male adolescents (n = 254) with a five-year follow-up period. Results indicated higher PCL:YV scores and lower full-scale estimated IQ scores were significantly associated with a shorter time to felony and violent felony rearrest. These effects generalized to Hispanic/Latino adolescents (n = 193)-a group that faces disproportionate risk of being detained or committed to juvenile correctional facilities in the U.S. These results suggest that expert-rated measures of psychopathic traits and IQ are reliable predictors of subsequent felony and violent felony rearrest among high-risk male adolescents., (© 2024. The Author(s).)

Substance use disorders among juveniles are a major public health concern and are often intertwined with other psychosocial risk factors including antisocial behavior. Identifying etiological risks and mechanisms promoting substance use disorders remains a high priority for informing more focused interventions in high-risk populations. The present study examined brain gray matter structure in relation to substance use severity among n = 152 high-risk, incarcerated boys (aged 14-20). Substance use severity was positively associated with gray matter volume across several frontal/striatal brain regions including amygdala, pallidum, putamen, insula, and orbitofrontal cortex. Effects were apparent when using voxel-based-morphometric analysis, as well as in whole-brain, data-driven, network-based approaches (source-based morphometry). These findings support the hypothesis that elevated gray matter volume in striatal reward circuits may be an endogenous marker for vulnerability to severe substance use behaviors among youth.

Two studies examined the consistency of associations between specific components of psychopathy and two indices of drug use: (a) abstinence and (b) severity (i.e., counts) of lifetime substance use disorder (SUD) symptoms. Participants were 418 male county jail inmates in Illinois (Study One) and 354 male state prison inmates in New Mexico (Study Two). Across samples, lifestyle and antisocial trait ratings were associated with a reduced likelihood of abstinence from most substances. Lifestyle traits were also uniquely associated with severity of substance dependence ratings. Consistent with prior research, interpersonal traits were uniquely related to cocaine indices in both samples. Furthermore, analyses revealed negative associations between the affective features of psychopathy and alcohol dependence in one sample (Study Two), and illicit substance use across samples. These findings demonstrate the robustness of the associations between the interpersonal and affective features of psychopathy and specific aspects of substance (mis)use.

Objective: There is currently inconclusive evidence regarding the relationship between recidivism and mental illness. This retrospective study aimed to use rigorous machine learning methods to understand the unique predictive utility of mental illness for recidivism in a general population (i.e.; not only those with mental illness) prison sample in the United States., Method: Participants were adult men (n = 322) and women (n = 72) who were recruited from three prisons in the Midwest region of the United States. Three model comparisons using Bayesian correlated t-tests were conducted to understand the incremental predictive utility of mental illness, substance use, and crime and demographic variables for recidivism prediction. Three classification statistical algorithms were considered while evaluating model configurations for the t-tests: elastic net logistic regression (GLMnet), k-nearest neighbors (KNN), and random forests (RF)., Results: Rates of substance use disorders were particularly high in our sample (86.29%). Mental illness variables and substance use variables did not add predictive utility for recidivism prediction over and above crime and demographic variables. Exploratory analyses comparing the crime and demographic, substance use, and mental illness feature sets to null models found that only the crime and demographics model had an increased likelihood of improving recidivism prediction accuracy., Conclusions: Despite not finding a direct relationship between mental illness and recidivism, treatment of mental illness in incarcerated populations is still essential due to the high rates of mental illnesses, the legal imperative, the possibility of decreasing institutional disciplinary burden, the opportunity to increase the effectiveness of rehabilitation programs in prison, and the potential to improve meaningful outcomes beyond recidivism following release., Competing Interests: The authors have declared that no competing interests exist., (Copyright: © 2024 Cohen et al. This is an open access article distributed under the terms of the Creative Commons Attribution License, which permits unrestricted use, distribution, and reproduction in any medium, provided the original author and source are credited.)

Studies have reported positive associations between youth psychopathy scores and measures of 'fearlessness'. However, prior studies modified fearlessness items to be age appropriate, shifting from assessing hypothetical, extreme forms of physical risk-taking (e.g., flying an airplane) to normative risk-taking (e.g., riding bicycles downhill). We hypothesize that associations between youth psychopathy scores and alternative forms of sensation seeking (i.e., Disinhibition) have been conflated under a false fearlessness label. We tested this hypothesis among incarcerated male adolescents, investigating whether youth psychopathy scores were significantly associated with two different forms of sensation seeking: Disinhibition and Thrill and Adventure Seeking (TAS). Youth psychopathic traits were assessed using the Psychopathy Checklist: Youth Version (PCL:YV), Antisocial Process Screening Device (APSD), Child Psychopathy Scale (CPS), Inventory of Callous and Unemotional Traits (ICU), and Youth Psychopathic Traits Inventory (YPI). Disinhibition and fearlessness (i.e., TAS) were assessed using an unmodified version of the Zuckerman Sensation Seeking Scales (SSS). Consistent with hypotheses, youth psychopathy scores were associated with higher Disinhibition and lower TAS scores. Our results contribute to a growing body of literature suggesting that psychopathic traits, including among adolescents, are not concomitant with physical risk-taking and descriptions of psychopathy including fearlessness distort a precise understanding of psychopathy's core features.

Background: Incarcerated youth are characterized by particularly high rates of childhood trauma, a significant risk factor for outcomes including risky behaviors and recidivism. Trauma-based interventions can ameliorate the negative effects of childhood trauma; however, a critical part of success is careful trauma screening. Due to the limitations associated with commonly used self-report trauma assessments, our team developed the Trauma Checklist (TCL), a trained-rater assessment of childhood trauma specifically created for use with forensic populations. The TCL is designed to provide a more comprehensive assessment of trauma, incorporating categories that are of specific relevance for incarcerated individuals (e.g., traumatic loss). Here, we discuss the continued development made to our original trauma assessment and explore the psychometric properties of this expanded assessment (herein termed the TCL 2.0)., Method: We examined relationships between TCL 2.0 scores, measures of psychopathology, and psychopathic traits in a sample of incarcerated male juvenile offenders (n = 237). In addition, we examined whether TCL 2.0 scores were associated with time to felony re-offense via Cox proportional-hazard regression analyses., Results: We examined dimensionality of the TCL 2.0 using a principal component analysis (PCA), the results of which were confirmed via exploratory structural equation modeling; the PCA yielded a two-component solution (i.e., PC1 and PC2). We observed that PC1 (Experienced Trauma) scores were positively correlated with mood disorder diagnoses. TCL 2.0 total scores were positively correlated with post-traumatic stress disorder symptomatology and psychopathic traits. Finally, higher PC2 (Community Trauma) scores were associated with faster time to felony re-offending., Conclusions: These results suggest that the TCL 2.0 may be a beneficial screening tool to provide high-risk youth with appropriate trauma-informed treatment., (© 2023. BioMed Central Ltd., part of Springer Nature.)

Growing evidence suggests that psychopathy is related to altered connectivity within and between three large-scale brain networks that support core cognitive functions, including allocation of attention. In healthy individuals, default mode network (DMN) is involved in internally-focused attention and cognition such as self-reference. Frontoparietal network (FPN) is anticorrelated with DMN and is involved in externally-focused attention to cognitively demanding tasks. A third network, salience network (SN), is involved in detecting salient cues and, crucially, appears to play a role in switching between the two anticorrelated networks, DMN and FPN, to efficiently allocate attentional resources. Psychopathy has been related to reduced anticorrelation between DMN and FPN, suggesting SN's role in switching between these two networks may be diminished in the disorder. To test this hypothesis, we used independent component analysis to derive DMN, FPN, and SN activity in resting-state fMRI data in a sample of incarcerated men (N = 148). We entered the activity of the three networks into dynamic causal modeling to test SN's switching role. The previously established switching effect of SN among young, healthy adults was replicated in a group of low psychopathy participants (posterior model probability = 0.38). As predicted, SN's switching role was significantly diminished in high psychopathy participants (t(145) = 26.39, p < .001). These findings corroborate a novel theory of brain function in psychopathy. Future studies may use this model to test whether disrupted SN switching is related to high psychopathy individuals' abnormal allocation of attention., Competing Interests: Declaration of Competing Ineterest The authors declare no competing financial interests., (Copyright © 2023 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.)

Previous work in incarcerated boys and adult men and women suggest that individuals scoring high on psychopathic traits show altered resting-state limbic/paralimbic, and default mode functional network properties. However, it is unclear whether similar results extend to high-risk adolescent girls with elevated psychopathic traits. This study examined whether psychopathic traits [assessed via the Hare Psychopathy Checklist: Youth Version (PCL:YV)] were associated with altered inter-network connectivity, intra-network connectivity (i.e., functional coherence within a network), and amplitude of low-frequency fluctuations (ALFFs) across resting-state networks among high-risk incarcerated adolescent girls ( n = 40). Resting-state networks were identified by applying group independent component analysis (ICA) to resting-state fMRI scans, and a priori regions of interest included limbic, paralimbic, and default mode network components. We tested the association of psychopathic traits (PCL:YV Factor 1 measuring affective/interpersonal traits and PCL:YV Factor 2 assessing antisocial/lifestyle traits) to these three resting-state measures. PCL:YV Factor 1 scores were associated with increased low-frequency and decreased high-frequency fluctuations in components corresponding to the default mode network, as well as increased intra-network FNC in components corresponding to cognitive control networks. PCL:YV Factor 2 scores were associated with increased low-frequency fluctuations in sensorimotor networks and decreased high-frequency fluctuations in default mode, sensorimotor, and visual networks. Consistent with previous analyses in incarcerated adult women, our results suggest that psychopathic traits among incarcerated adolescent girls are associated with altered intra-network ALFFs-primarily that of increased low-frequency and decreased high-frequency fluctuations-and connectivity across multiple networks including paralimbic regions. These results suggest stable neurobiological correlates of psychopathic traits among women across development., Competing Interests: CA, JM, AG, BE, CH, NA, KH, and KK were employed by The Mind Research Network. The remaining authors declare that the research was conducted in the absence of any commercial or financial relationships that could be construed as a potential conflict of interest., (Copyright © 2023 Allen, Maurer, Gullapalli, Edwards, Aharoni, Harenski, Anderson, Harenski, Calhoun and Kiehl.)

Recidivism places a significant burden on society and efforts aimed at reducing cyclical criminal justice involvement are needed. This prospective study tested the utility of psychopathic traits in predicting general, felony, and substance-related rearrest in women following release from a correctional facility. The extent to which psychopathic traits offered incremental utility in predicting outcomes, above and beyond other established risk factors, including substance use disorder, was examined. Participants included 327 incarcerated adult women who completed comprehensive clinical and psychiatric assessments prior to release from correctional facilities. Psychopathic traits and lifetime substance use disorder were measured using the Hare Psychopathy Checklist-Revised (PCL-R) and Structured Clinical Interview for DSM-IV-TR Axis I Disorders, respectively. Results showed that general, felony, and substance-related rearrest following institutional release were associated with higher PCL-R Factor 2 scores, assessing lifestyle/behavioral and antisocial/developmental psychopathic traits. Additionally, when controlling for other risk factors associated with recidivism, including age at release, number of prior adult prison terms, and substance use disorder, higher PCL-R Factor 2 scores remained significantly associated with rearrest outcomes in women. Findings inform risk prediction and treatment efforts aimed at reducing recidivism in justice-involved women. (PsycInfo Database Record (c) 2023 APA, all rights reserved).

Studies have documented associations between traumatic brain injury (TBI) and mental disorders. The relationship between psychopathic personality and TBI remains poorly understood, though both are associated with similar characteristics (e.g., low empathy, aggression, disturbances in social/moral behavior). Yet, it is not clear whether assessment of psychopathic features is influenced by presence versus absence of TBI, and which aspects of TBI may be associated with psychopathic traits. This study examined the psychopathy-TBI association in justice-involved women ( N = 341) with structural equation modeling. We tested if measurement invariance of psychopathic traits was evident among those with versus without TBI and which TBI variables (number, severity, age at first TBI) predicted psychopathic features in conjunction with symptoms of psychopathology, IQ, and age. Results provided evidence of measurement invariance, and more women with TBI, compared to those without, met criteria for psychopathy. Younger age of TBI and TBI severity predicted interpersonal-affective psychopathic features.

Individuals with acute and chronic traumatic brain injury (TBI) are associated with unique white matter (WM) structural abnormalities, including fractional anisotropy (FA) differences. Our research group previously used FA as a feature in a linear support vector machine (SVM) pattern classifier, observing high classification between individuals with and without acute TBI (i.e., an area under the curve [AUC] value of 75.50%). However, it is not known whether FA could similarly classify between individuals with and without history of chronic TBI. Here, we attempted to replicate our previous work with a new sample, investigating whether FA could similarly classify between incarcerated men with ( n = 80) and without ( n = 80) self-reported history of chronic TBI. Additionally, given limitations associated with FA, including underestimation of FA values in WM tracts containing crossing fibers, we extended upon our previous study by incorporating neurite orientation dispersion and density imaging (NODDI) metrics, including orientation dispersion (ODI) and isotropic volume (Viso). A linear SVM based classification approach, similar to our previous study, was incorporated here to classify between individuals with and without self-reported chronic TBI using FA and NODDI metrics as separate features. Overall classification rates were similar when incorporating FA and NODDI ODI metrics as features (AUC: 82.50%). Additionally, NODDI-based metrics provided the highest sensitivity (ODI: 85.00%) and specificity (Viso: 82.50%) rates. The current study serves as a replication and extension of our previous study, observing that multiple diffusion MRI metrics can reliably classify between individuals with and without self-reported history of chronic TBI., Competing Interests: Declaration of competing interest The authors declare that they have no known competing financial interests or personal relationships that could have appeared to influence the work reported in this paper.

Men with elevated psychopathic traits have been characterized by unique patterns of nonverbal communication, including more fixed and focused head positions during clinical interviews, compared to men scoring low on measures of psychopathy. However, it is unclear whether similar patterns of head dynamics help characterize women scoring high on psychopathic traits. Here, we utilized an automated detection algorithm to assess head position and dynamics during a videotaped clinical interview (i.e., the Psychopathy Checklist - Revised [PCL-R]) in a sample of n = 213 incarcerated women. PCL-R Total, Factor 1 (i.e., interpersonal and affective psychopathic traits), and Factor 2 (i.e., lifestyle/behavioral and antisocial/developmental psychopathic traits) scores were associated with a pattern of head dynamics indicative of a rigid head position. The current study extends analyses of nonverbal behavior studies in men to women and highlights how individuals with elevated psychopathic traits demonstrate unique nonverbal behaviors relative to individuals who score low on psychopathic traits. The implications and clinical value of these findings are discussed., Competing Interests: Declaration of competing interest None.

Individuals with history of childhood trauma are characterized by aberrant resting-state limbic and paralimbic functional network connectivity. However, it is unclear whether specific subtypes of trauma (i.e., experienced vs observed or community) showcase differential effects. This study examined whether subtypes of childhood trauma (assessed via the Trauma Checklist [TCL] 2.0) were associated with aberrant intra-network amplitude of fluctuations and connectivity (i.e., functional coherence within a network), and inter-network connectivity across resting-state networks among incarcerated juvenile males (n = 179). Subtypes of trauma were established via principal component analysis of the TCL 2.0 and resting-state networks were identified by applying group independent component analysis to resting-state fMRI scans. We tested the association of subtypes of childhood trauma (i.e., TCL Factor 1 measuring experienced trauma and TCL Factor 2 assessing community trauma), and TCL Total scores to the aforementioned functional connectivity measures. TCL Factor 2 scores were associated with increased high-frequency fluctuations and increased intra-network connectivity in cognitive control, auditory, and sensorimotor networks, occurring primarily in paralimbic regions. TCL Total scores exhibited similar neurobiological patterns to TCL Factor 2 scores (with the addition of aberrant intra-network connectivity in visual networks), and no significant associations were found for TCL Factor 1. Consistent with previous analyses of community samples, our results suggest that childhood trauma among incarcerated juvenile males is associated with aberrant intra-network amplitude of fluctuations and connectivity across multiple networks including predominately paralimbic regions. Our results highlight the importance of accounting for traumatic loss, observed trauma, and community trauma in assessing neurobiological aberrances associated with adverse experiences in childhood, as well as the value of trained-rater trauma assessments compared to self-report., Competing Interests: Declaration of Competing Interest The authors declare that they have no known competing financial interests or personal relationships that could have appeared to influence the work reported in this paper., (Copyright © 2023 The Author(s). Published by Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.)

Background: Individuals scoring high on psychopathy engage in problematic patterns of alcohol and illicit substance use. However, our understanding regarding the association between psychopathy and nicotine use remains limited, which is surprising, given the detrimental consequences associated with such use. Previous studies have observed significant correlations between psychopathic traits (particularly Factor 2 scores assessing lifestyle/behavioral and antisocial traits from the Psychopathy Checklist - Revised [PCL-R]) and increased frequency of nicotine use. However, no study has investigated whether individuals scoring high on psychopathy are characterized by problematic patterns of nicotine use, including lifetime history of nicotine dependence. Objectives: The current study aimed to address this gap, specifically investigating whether PCL-R scores were associated with higher total scores from the Fagerström Test for Nicotine Dependence (FTND). Results: Across both incarcerated men and women, PCL-R total, Factor 2, and Facet 3 (measuring lifestyle/behavioral psychopathic traits) scores were positively correlated with FTND total scores. Additionally, across both samples, hierarchical linear regression analyses revealed these same psychopathy scores remained associated with higher FTND total scores when controlling for additional covariate measures (e.g., age, severity of alcohol and illicit substance use, race, ethnicity, and IQ). Conclusions/Importance: Though associated with small effect sizes, our results support the notion that lifestyle/behavioral psychopathic traits represent a general risk factor for engaging in risky behavior associated with deleterious health consequences, including nicotine use. Our results hold implications for the development of treatment approaches, designed to reduce problematic levels of substance use among individuals scoring high on psychopathy.

Emotional intelligence (EI) is defined by the ability to perceive, manage, and reason about emotions in oneself and others. Studies have reported deficits in EI abilities among certain antisocial populations such as individuals with psychopathy, and enhanced performance among sexual offenders. Despite EI's relevance to offending behaviour, the association between EI and paraphilic offending has been under-studied. We examined the association between EI, sexual offending, and sexual sadism in 80 incarcerated men with sexual offenses and 207 incarcerated men with non-sexual offences. EI was assessed using the Mayer-Salovey-Caruso Emotional Intelligence Test (MSCEIT). Sadism was measured using the Severe Sexual Sadism Scale (SeSaS). Results showed that SeSaS scores were positively associated with Strategic EI (the ability to understand and manage emotions), but were not significantly related to Experiential EI. This may reflect core characteristics of sexual sadism including domination and manipulation, challenging the prevalent notion that higher EI is invariably positive., Competing Interests: Disclosure of interest The authors report no conflict of interest.

Clinicians have long noted that individuals with elevated psychopathic traits can be characterized by unique interpersonal styles, including prolonged eye contact, invasion of interpersonal space, and frequent use of hand gestures. Such forms of nonverbal communication can be measured via hand, body, and head position and dynamics. Previous studies have developed an automated algorithm designed to capture head position and dynamics from digital recordings of clinical interviews in a sample of incarcerated adult men. We observed that higher psychopathy scores were associated with stationary head dwell time. Here, we applied a similar automated algorithm to assess head position and dynamics on videotaped clinical interviews assessing psychopathic traits from n = 242 youth housed at a maximum-security juvenile correctional facility. We observed that higher psychopathy scores (assessed via the Hare Psychopathy Checklist: Youth Version [PCL:YV]) were associated with unique patterns of head dynamics. Specifically, PCL:YV Total, Factor 1 (measuring grandiose-manipulative and callous-unemotional traits), and Facet 1 (measuring grandiose-manipulative traits) scores were associated with a higher proportion of time spent in a head dynamics pattern consisting of moderate movement away from the average head position. This study lays the groundwork for future investigations to apply quantitative methods to better understand patterns of nonverbal communication styles in clinical populations characterized by severe antisocial behavior.

Previous work in incarcerated men suggests that individuals scoring high on psychopathy exhibit aberrant resting-state paralimbic functional network connectivity (FNC). However, it is unclear whether similar results extend to women scoring high on psychopathy. This study examined whether psychopathic traits [assessed via the Hare Psychopathy Checklist - Revised (PCL-R)] were associated with aberrant inter-network connectivity, intra-network connectivity (i.e., functional coherence within a network), and amplitude of fluctuations across limbic and surrounding paralimbic regions among incarcerated women ( n = 297). Resting-state networks were identified by applying group Independent Component Analysis to resting-state fMRI scans. We tested the association of psychopathic traits (PCL-R Factor 1 measuring interpersonal/affective psychopathic traits and PCL-R Factor 2 assessing lifestyle/antisocial psychopathic traits) to the three FNC measures. PCL-R Factor 1 scores were associated with increased low-frequency fluctuations in executive control and attentional networks, decreased high-frequency fluctuations in executive control and visual networks, and decreased intra-network FNC in default mode network. PCL-R Factor 2 scores were associated with decreased high-frequency fluctuations and default mode networks, and both increased and decreased intra-network functional connectivity in visual networks. Similar to previous analyses in incarcerated men, our results suggest that psychopathic traits among incarcerated women are associated with aberrant intra-network amplitude fluctuations and connectivity across multiple networks including limbic and surrounding paralimbic regions., Competing Interests: Authors CA, JM, BE, AG, CH, KH, and KK were employed by The Mind Research Network. The remaining author declares that the research was conducted in the absence of any commercial or financial relationships that could be construed as a potential conflict of interest., (Copyright © 2022 Allen, Maurer, Edwards, Gullapalli, Harenski, Harenski, Calhoun and Kiehl.)

Both men and women scoring high on psychopathy exhibit similar structural and functional neural abnormalities, including reduced volume of the orbitofrontal cortex (OFC) and reduced hemodynamic activity in the amygdala during affective processing experimental paradigms. The uncinate fasciculus (UF) is a white matter (WM) tract that connects the amygdala to the OFC. Reduced structural integrity of the UF, measured via fractional anisotropy (FA), is commonly associated with men scoring high on psychopathy. However, only one study to date has investigated the relationship between psychopathic traits and UF structural integrity in women, recruiting participants from a community sample. Here, we investigated whether Hare Psychopathy Checklist-Revised (PCL-R) facet scores (measuring interpersonal, affective, lifestyle/behavioral, and antisocial psychopathic traits, respectively) were associated with reduced FA in the left and right UF in a sample of 254 incarcerated women characterized by a wide range of psychopathy scores. We observed that PCL-R Facet 3 scores, assessing lifestyle/behavioral psychopathic traits, were associated with reduced FA in the left and right UF, even when controlling for participant's age and history of previous substance use. The results obtained in the current study help improve our understanding of structural abnormalities associated with women scoring high on psychopathy. Specifically, reduced UF structural integrity may contribute to some of the deficits commonly associated with women scoring high on psychopathy, including emotion dysregulation., (© 2022. The Author(s), under exclusive licence to Springer Science+Business Media, LLC, part of Springer Nature.)

Externalizing traits are extremely costly for society and disproportionately prevalent among incarcerated individuals. The Hierarchical Taxonomy of Psychopathology (HiTOP) is an empirically derived classification system that approaches psychopathology dimensionally and was developed in response to critiques of current diagnostic classification systems. The Externalizing Spectrum Inventory-100 item version (ESI-100) is an assessment of externalizing problems that fits within the HiTOP framework and characterizes dimensional externalizing traits. The present study aimed to replicate prior research examining the convergent validity of the ESI Total Score by examining associations with psychopathy, conduct disorder, and substance use among incarcerated males. A total of 1,808 participants had ESI-100 data, although sample sizes across criterion measures varied. The majority of results replicated relationships between the ESI 159-item version and externalizing disorders and negative emotionality. Less is known about the dimensional relationships between externalizing traits as measured by the ESI-100 and internalizing disorders and symptoms, and other correlates of externalizing. The study extended previous results by examining associations between the ESI-100 and internalizing disorders, impulsivity, childhood trauma, and emotion regulation (ER) as a test of discriminant validity. Analyses revealed associations between the ESI-100 and childhood trauma, impulsivity, emotion regulation difficulties, and symptoms (but not diagnoses) of internalizing disorders. These results enhance our understanding of dimensional traits of externalizing and suggest nuanced relationships between externalizing and internalizing traits. Results have important implications (e.g., transdiagnostic treatment targets) for treatment of mental health disorders by highlighting the importance of cross-diagnostic treatment approaches. (PsycInfo Database Record (c) 2022 APA, all rights reserved).

Psychopathy is a condition characterized by atypical emotions and socially maladaptive behavioral patterns. Among incarcerated people, psychopathy has been associated with higher rates of crimes, recidivism, and resistance to treatment. Many studies have indicated significant heritability of psychopathic traits, but little is known about the specific contribution of genes and their interaction with adverse experiences in life. Considering the primary role that serotonin plays in cognition and emotion, we investigated TPH2-rs4570625, 5-HTTLPR, MAOA-uVNTR, HTR1B-rs13212041 and HTR2A-rs6314 as risk factors for psychopathy in the largest sample of institutionalized individuals studied so far, consisting of 793 US White male incarcerated adults, and in a replication sample of 168 US White male incarcerated adolescents. In a subgroup of the adult sample, the interaction between genetics and parenting style, assessed by the Measure of Parental Style (MOPS) questionnaire, was also evaluated. The HTR1B-rs13212041-T/T genotype, as compared to HTR1B-rs13212041-C allele, predicted higher psychopathy scores in both the adult and the adolescent samples. The interaction between HTR1B-rs13212041-T/T genotype and paternal MOPS scores, investigated in a subgroup of the adult sample, was an even stronger predictor of higher levels of psychopathy than either the genetics or the environment taken individually. Overall, these data, obtained in two independent samples, shed new light on neurobiological correlates of psychopathy with promising implications both at a clinical and forensic level., Competing Interests: Declaration of interests None., (Copyright © 2022 The Authors. Published by Elsevier Ltd.. All rights reserved.)

To date, very few studies have explored the association between psychopathic traits and risky sexual behavior (RSB) among women. Here, we investigated this relationship in a sample of 137 incarcerated women. Psychopathic traits were assessed via the Hare Psychopathy Checklist-Revised (PCL-R) and lifetime RSB measures, including number of lifetime sexual partners, frequency of engaging in sexual intercourse while intoxicated, and frequency of forgoing protection (e.g., condom usage) during sexual intercourse, were assessed through self-report. PCL-R Facet 3 scores (assessing lifestyle psychopathic traits) were associated with an increased frequency of engaging in sexual intercourse while intoxicated. In addition, women scoring high on the PCL-R were more likely to engage in sexual intercourse while intoxicated compared with a previously collected sample of men scoring high on the PCL-R. The results obtained in the current study help improve our understanding of the association between psychopathic traits and RSB among women.

Recent scientific findings suggest that dopamine exerts a central role on impulsivity, as well as that aversive life experiences may promote the high levels of impulsivity that often underlie violent behavior. To deepen our understanding of the complex gene by environment interplay on impulsive behavior, we genotyped six dopaminergic allelic variants ( ANKK1 -rs1800497, TH -rs6356, DRD4 -rs1800955, DRD4 -exonIII-VNTR, SLC6A3 -VNTR and COMT -rs4680) in 655 US White male inmates convicted for violent crimes, whose impulsivity was assessed by BIS-11 (Barratt Impulsiveness Scale). Furthermore, in a subsample of 216 inmates from the whole group, we also explored the potential interplay between the genotyped dopaminergic variants and parental maltreatment measured by MOPS (Measure of Parental Style) in promoting impulsivity. We found a significant interaction among paternal MOPS scores, ANKK1 -rs1800497-T allele and TH -rs6356-A allele, which increased the variance of BIS-11 cognitive/attentive scores explained by paternal maltreatment from 1.8 up to 20.5%. No direct association between any of the individual genetic variants and impulsivity was observed. Our data suggest that paternal maltreatment increases the risk of attentive/cognitive impulsivity and that this risk is higher in carriers of specific dopaminergic alleles that potentiate the dopaminergic neurotransmission. These findings add further evidence to the mutual role that genetics and early environmental factors exert in modulating human behavior and highlight the importance of childhood care interventions., Competing Interests: The authors declare that the research was conducted in the absence of any commercial or financial relationships that could be construed as a potential conflict of interest., (Copyright © 2022 Palumbo, Mariotti, Vellucci, Antonelli, Anderson, Harenski, Pietrini, Kiehl and Pellegrini.)

Meta-analyses have found that people high in psychopathy categorize (or "recognize") others' prototypical facial emotion expressions with reduced accuracy. However, these have been contested with remaining questions regarding the strength, specificity, and mechanisms of this ability in psychopathy. In addition, few studies have tested holistically whether psychopathy is related to reduced facial mimicry or autonomic arousal in response to others' dynamic facial expressions. Therefore, the current study presented 6 s videos of a target person making prototypical emotion expressions (anger, fear, disgust, sadness, joy, and neutral) to N = 88 incarcerated adult males while recording facial electromyography, skin conductance response (SCR), and heart rate. Participants identified the emotion category and rated the valence and intensity of the target person's emotion. Psychopathy was assessed via the Psychopathy Checklist-Revised (PCL-R). We predicted that overall PCL-R scores and scores for the interpersonal/affective traits, in particular, would be related to reduced emotion categorization accuracy, valence ratings, intensity ratings, facial mimicry, SCR amplitude, and cardiac deceleration in response to the prototypical facial emotion expressions. In contrast to our hypotheses, PCL-R scores were unrelated to emotion categorization accuracy, valence ratings, and intensity ratings. Stimuli failed to elicit facial mimicry from the full sample, which does not allow drawing conclusions about the relationship between psychopathy and facial mimicry. However, participants displayed general autonomic arousal responses, but not to prototypical emotion expressions per se. PCL-R scores were also unrelated to SCR and cardiac deceleration. These findings failed to identify aberrant behavioral and physiological responses to prototypical facial emotion expressions in relation to psychopathy., Competing Interests: The authors have declared that no competing interests exist.

Previous studies with men suggest that certain psychopathic traits vary with age. Specifically, younger men score higher on psychopathic traits measuring impulsive-antisocial behavior, including impulsivity, irresponsibility, and criminal versatility, compared to older men. On the other hand, younger and older men score comparably on psychopathic traits reflecting core personality traits of interpersonal and affective dysfunction, including conning and manipulative behavior and a lack of empathy, guilt, and remorse. However, it is currently not known whether psychopathic traits similarly vary with age among women. This study examined whether psychopathy scores (assessed via the Hare Psychopathy Checklist - Revised [PCL-R]) varied with age among a sample of 501 incarcerated women ranging from 19 to 57 years of age. Consistent with previous studies performed with men, younger women scored higher on psychopathic traits measuring impulsive-antisocial behavior (i.e., PCL-R Factor 2, Facet 3, and Facet 4 scores) compared to older women. However, scores on PCL-R Factor 1, Facet 1, and Facet 2, assessing core personality traits, including interpersonal and affective dysfunction, were comparable across women in different age categories investigated. Results obtained in this preliminary study suggest the variation of PCL-R Factor 2 traits and the stability of PCL-R Factor 1 traits across the lifespan is invariant across gender.

Sexual sadists derive pleasure from humiliation, domination and infliction of pain on victims. They display increased penile arousal and activation of brain regions involved in sexual arousal and emotional states when viewing stimuli depicting individuals in physical distress. Neuroactive hormones modulate these regions, but it is unknown if sexual sadists also have endocrine responses to depictions of individuals in distress. The present study examined endocrine responses, elicited by viewing a video depicting an individual in extreme emotional distress, in incarcerated adult male sexual offenders (n = 23) with varying levels of sadistic traits. Sadism, was measured by the Severe Sexual Sadism Scale (SeSaS). Testosterone (T), adrenocorticotropic hormone (ACTH), and oxytocin (OT) were assayed before and after participants watched a video depicting an individual in emotional distress. T responses to the video were significantly and positively associated with SeSaS scores. There were no significant associations between sexual sadism and OT or ACTH. Our findings provide physiological evidence of atypical processing of distress cues in sadism consistent with the role of testosterone in sexual arousal and aggressive behaviors. These findings have implications for the evaluation and treatment of sexual sadists., Competing Interests: Conflict of interest statement: On behalf of all authors, the corresponding author states that there is no conflict of interest.

Previous research (Aharoni et al., 2013, 2014) found that hemodynamic activity in the dorsal anterior cingulate cortex (dACC) during error monitoring predicted non-violent felony rearrest in men released from prison. This article reports an extension of the Aharoni et al. (2013, 2014) model in a sample of women released from state prison (n = 248). Replicating aspects of prior work, error monitoring activity in the dACC, as well as psychopathy scores and age at release, predicted non-violent felony rearrest in women. Sex differences in the directionality of dACC activity were observed-high error monitoring activity predicted rearrest in women, whereas prior work found low error monitoring activity predicted rearrest in men. As in prior analyses, the ability of the dACC to predict rearrest outcomes declines with more generalized outcomes (i.e., general felony). Implications for future research and clinical and forensic risk assessment are discussed., Competing Interests: Declaration of Competing Interest The authors declare that they have no known competing financial interests or personal relationships that could have appeared to influence the work reported in this paper., (Copyright © 2022. Published by Elsevier Inc.)

The ability to share and understand the distress of others is critical for successful social interactions and is a fundamental building block of morality. Psychopathy is a personality disorder that includes lack of empathy and concern for others. In the present study, functional MRI was used to examine neural responses and functional connectivity associated with empathy and affective perspective-taking in female inmates (N = 109) with various levels of psychopathic traits, as measured with Psychopathy Checklist-Revised (PCL-R). Participants viewed hands and feet in painful or non-painful situations while adopting a first person or third person perspective. All participants demonstrated robust neural responses in anterior insula (aINS), anterior cingulate (ACC), temporoparietal junction (TPJ) and supplementary motor area (SMA) when viewing pain, both during imagine-self and imagine-other blocks. Psychopathy shifted the functional connectivity seeded in core nodes of the salience and social cognition networks. Perceiving stimuli depicting somatic pain led to decreased functional coupling from right temporoparietal junction to superior temporal sulcus, which correlated with scores on PCL-R Factor 1 (Affective/Interpersonal). In contrast, connectivity from right insula to precuneus increased with Factor 2 (Lifestyle/Antisocial) scores. When adopting a third-person perspective, psychopathic traits modulated connectivity from the social cognition network, but not the salience network, with Factor 1 scores associated with increased connectivity to sensorimotor cortex and temporal pole, while Factor 2 scores were associated with decreased connectivity with ACC/SMA and inferior frontal gyrus. Overall, these results demonstrate that psychopathic traits in incarcerated females are associated with atypical functional connectivity within the salience network during pain-empathy processing and within the social cognition network during affective perspective-taking., (Copyright © 2022. Published by Elsevier Inc.)

Primary Objective: Identify the prevalence, characteristics, and psychological correlates of traumatic brain injury (TBI) among incarcerated individuals., Research Design: Three aims: (1) Determine the prevalence and characteristics of TBI in 1469 adults incarcerated in Wisconsin state prisons (1064 men, 405 women); (2) Characterize the relationship between mild TBI and mental illness in a sub-sample of men and women; (3) Reproduce the findings from Aim 1 and Aim 2 in an independent sample of 1015 adults incarcerated in New Mexico state prisons (600 men, 415 women)., Methods and Procedures: Standardized TBI assessment with structured clinical interviews and self-report questionnaires., Main Outcomes and Results: Rates of TBI were approximately five times greater than the general population, with a substantially higher rate of TBI caused by assault. In the Wisconsin sample, mild TBI was associated with greater levels of post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD) among women (but not among men). In the New Mexico sample, TBI of any severity was associated with greater levels of major depressive disorder (MDD) among women (but not among men)., Conclusions: This study thus provides novel data on TBI and its correlates among individuals incarcerated in state prisons, and highlights a specific treatment need within the prison population.

Psychopathy and borderline personality disorder (BPD) are commonly associated with an increased propensity toward substance use. However, few studies have accounted for shared variance between psychopathy and BPD when examining relationships with unique forms of substance use, particularly in justice-involved females. This study investigated psychopathic and BPD traits in relation to alcohol and drug use in a sample of 274 incarcerated adult females. Results revealed that psychopathic and BPD traits were differentially related to alcohol and drug use. Specifically, unique variance in BPD traits was related to alcohol use, whereas unique variance in lifestyle-antisocial psychopathic traits was related to drug use. Findings support unique relationships between psychopathic and BPD traits and problematic and prolonged alcohol and drug use in incarcerated adult females. Results may inform methods of tailoring specific substance use treatments for use in females with distinct personality profiles.

Aim: To further investigate the neuroanatomical correlates of child sexual offending and disentangle them from the neural correlates of pedophilia, using a multivariate analytical approach in order to minimize loss of statistical power., Methods: This study presents structural MRI data on gray matter in an incarcerated, male population of 22 pedophilic and 21 non-pedophilic child sexual offenders, and 20 violent non-sexual offender controls, based on a multivariate whole-brain approach using source-based morphometry., Results: We identify a network of several neuroanatomical regions exhibiting interrelated reduced gray matter in both child sexual offender groups relative to controls, comprising extensive clusters in the bilateral cerebellum and frontal lobe, as well as smaller clusters in the bilateral parietal, temporal, and occipital lobes, the bilateral basal ganglia, the medial cingulate and the hippocampus., Conclusion: Our results speak to the interpretation that there are inter- and possibly connectivity-related brain structural abnormalities in child sexual offenders that are not (only) pertaining to pedophilia per se. Interpretations and limitations of the present data are discussed and recommendations for future works are given., (© 2021 The Authors Psychiatry and Clinical Neurosciences published by John Wiley & Sons Australia, Ltd on behalf of Japanese Society of Psychiatry and Neurology.)

Previous studies have associated adult men with elevated psychopathic traits with reduced endorsement of certain moral foundations measured with the Moral Foundations Questionnaire (MFQ), including Harm/Care (measuring one's concern for protecting individuals from harm) and Fairness/Reciprocity (measuring one's concern for the rights of individuals). However, it is not known whether such results extrapolate to women with elevated levels of psychopathic traits. Here, we examined the relationship between endorsement of moral foundations (assessed via the MFQ) and psychopathy scores (assessed via the Psychopathy Checklist - Revised [PCL-R]) in a sample of 299 incarcerated adult women. Consistent with hypotheses, higher PCL-R total scores were associated with reduced endorsement of MFQ Harm/Care and Fairness/Reciprocity foundations. Additionally, we extended upon previous studies, observing higher PCL-R total, Factor 1 (measuring interpersonal/affective psychopathic traits), and Facet 1 (measuring interpersonal psychopathic traits) scores were associated with reduced endorsement of the MFQ Authority/Respect foundation (measuring one's respect for authority figures) in incarcerated adult women. Our results highlight reduced endorsement for similar moral foundations between men and women scoring high on psychopathic traits (i.e., Harm/Care and Fairness/Reciprocity), while also outlining a moral foundation that may be uniquely associated with women scoring high on psychopathic traits (i.e., Authority/Respect).

Recent research has demonstrated that psychopathic offenders exhibit dynamic cognitive and behavioral deficits on a variety of lab tasks that differentially activate left hemisphere resources. The Left Hemisphere Activation (LHA) hypothesis is a cognitive perspective that aims to address these deficits by conceptualizing psychopathy as a disorder in which behavior and cognitive processing change dynamically as a function of the differential taxation of left hemisphere resources. This study aimed to investigate whether psychopathic traits are associated with electrophysiological anomalies under conditions that place differential demands on left hemisphere language processing systems. We examined in a sample of 43 incarcerated indivdiuals the evocation of the N320, an event-related potential (ERP) elicited by nontarget stimuli during a phonological/phonetic decision task that has been shown to elicit greater activation and cognitive processing within the left hemisphere than the right hemisphere. Findings for a subsample of 18 offenders low in psychopathic traits were generally consistent with previous findings in healthy individuals, suggesting similar electrophysiological activity during phonological processing. However, psychopathic traits impacted the amplitude of the N320. Higher levels of psychopathic traits were associated with reduced left-lateralization in phonological processing as well as enhanced ERP differentiation between pronounceable and nonpronounceable stimuli. These findings provide physiological evidence of a relationship between psychopathic traits and anomalous language processing at the phonological level of word processing., (Copyright © 2021 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.)

Much research exists examining sex work in relation to substance use and other physical health risks. However, there is a paucity of research exploring person-level characteristics, such as pathological personality traits, in relation to sex work. This study used a large sample of incarcerated women ( n = 310) to address 2 aims involving prostitution and pimping. The first aim was an attempt to replicate and generalize previous findings from Edwards and Verona (2016) on associations among psychopathic traits, substance use, and prostitution. The second aim explored relationships among substance use, psychopathic traits, and pimping. Psychopathy and substance use were measured using the Psychopathy Checklist-Revised and a modified version of the Addiction Severity Index, respectively. Prostitution and pimping were coded through institutional file review and self-report. Results replicated those of the study by Edwards and Verona (2016), such that psychopathy, and impulsive-antisocial traits specifically, positively related to prostitution above substance use. Results for the second aim showed that PCL-R total and impulsive-antisocial traits were also related to pimping, above the influence of substance use. Substance use was also higher in women who engaged in pimping versus those who did not. Results indicate that substance use and impulsive-antisocial traits of psychopathy are independently related to engagement in distinct roles across sex work contexts among incarcerated women. (PsycInfo Database Record (c) 2021 APA, all rights reserved).

Despite impulsivity being included as scoring criteria within several measures of youth psychopathic traits, the relationship between psychopathic traits and dimensions of impulsivity among high-risk youth is not well-understood. Here we assessed psychopathic traits via total, factor, and facet scores from the Psychopathy Checklist: Youth Version (PCL:YV) and impulsivity through total, three-factor, and six-factor model scores from the Barratt Impulsiveness Scale (BIS-11) in incarcerated male youth offenders. Correlational analyses indicated PCL:YV total, Factor 2, Facet 3, and Facet 4 scores were significantly positively correlated with BIS-11 total scores. Additionally, psychopathy scores were significantly positively correlated with specific scores from the three-factor model of the BIS-11 (e.g. Motor and Non-Planning Impulsivity scores) and the six-factor model of the BIS-11 (e.g., Attention, Self-Control, and Cognitive Complexity Impulsivity scores). Secondary analyses suggest that participants who had previously committed homicide scored higher on lifestyle/antisocial psychopathic traits and specific dimensions of impulsivity (e.g., BIS-11 Non-Planning and Self-Control Impulsivity factor scores) compared to youth who had not previously committed homicide. Our results improve our understanding of the specific forms of impulsivity significantly correlated with youth psychopathic traits and how specific factors underlying both constructs potentially characterize youth associated with severe forms of antisocial behavior., (Copyright © 2021. Published by Elsevier B.V.)

Sexual sadism is a paraphilia that focuses on domination, humiliation, and infliction of pain on a victim to stimulate sexual arousal. Although extensively described in psychology and forensic sciences, less is known about whether the harmful acts committed by sexual sadists are accompanied by deficits in moral judgment. A limited amount of behavioral research suggests moral insensitivity in sexual sadists; however, the neural networks underlying moral judgment in sadists have not been studied. In this pilot study, 21 incarcerated male sexual offenders with (n = 11) and without (n = 10) sexual sadism were scanned with functional magnetic resonance imaging (fMRI) while they viewed pictures that did or did not depict situations considered by most individuals to represent moral transgressions, and rated their degree of moral transgression severity. Results indicated primarily overlapping neural systems underlying moral judgment in sadists and non-sadists. However, non-sadists but not sadists showed a positive correlation between moral transgression severity ratings and activity in the anterior temporal cortex (ATC). This lack of ATC engagement in sadists might be a biomarker of altered moral judgment., (© 2020. Springer Science+Business Media, LLC, part of Springer Nature.)

Fearlessness has been described among the traits associated with psychopathy; however, disparities in conceptualizations of fear and how related elements are operationalized among different measures of psychopathic traits have led to some enduring controversy. Here we address a subset of elements characterizing fearlessness represented in thrill-seeking and physical risk-taking among a large sample of incarcerated individuals (n = 688). We examine these relationships utilizing Hare's Psychopathy Checklist Revised (PCL-R), the Psychopathy Personality Inventory-Short Form (PPI-SF), and the Zuckerman Sensation Seeking Scale (SSS). Among males, the Thrill and Adventure Seeking (TAS) scale of the SSS was not related to features of the PCL-R, but was highly correlated with Fearless Dominance (FD) of the PPI-SF. Among females, TAS was only modestly correlated with PCL-R total score, but neither of the two PCL-R factors. PPI-SF FD remained a strong predictor of TAS among females. We argue for a careful consideration of the boundaries of the term "fearlessness" as it relates to diverse manifestations of behavior and varied conceptualizations of psychopathy. We also reiterate apparent differences between males and females in the presentation of psychopathic traits., Competing Interests: Conflict of Interest Author Nathaniel E. Anderson declares that he has no conflict of interest. Author Matthew Widdows declares that he has no conflict of interest. Author J. Michael Maurer declares that he has no conflict of interest. Author Kent A. Kiehl declares that he has no conflict of interest.

Much of social cognition requires making inferences about the mental and emotional states of others. Moreover, understanding the emotions of others is an important foundation for moral decision-making. Psychopathy is associated with both aberrant emotional understanding and atypical hemodynamic responses when viewing and evaluating morally laden social interactions. In the present functional MRI study, female inmates (N = 107) were asked to evaluate the likely emotional state of either the recipient or the initiator of harmful or helpful interactions. Psychopathy was assessed with the Psychopathy Checklist-Revised (PCL-R). PCL-R scores were not associated with differences in confidence or accuracy ratings. However, psychopathy scores were significantly related to increased hemodynamic response in right dorsolateral prefrontal cortex when viewing harmful interactions and decreased functional connectivity from right amygdala to inferior parietal cortex and insula, and from temporal parietal junction to dorsomedial prefrontal cortex. Overall, this work indicates that in females, psychopathy is associated with normal behavioral accuracy and confidence but alterations in neural network activity during moral decision-making., (Copyright © 2021. Published by Elsevier Inc.)