Search

This study aimed to confirm the factor structure of the Italian version of the Hare Psychopathy Checklist: Youth Version (PCL:YV) in a sample of adolescents with criminal convictions. The sample was comprised of 116 adolescent boys aged 12-18 years. In addition to PCL:YV, the Structured Assessment of Violence Risk in Youth (SAVRY) and the MMPI-A were used. Confirmatory Factor Analyses (CFA) were performed; the final solution was a four-factors model with correlated latent factors. The internal consistency of each factor was acceptably high. Moreover, as expected, positive and high correlations with SAVRY scores, and a negative association with the SAVRY protective indicator, were found. The factor structure of the Italian PCL:YV specifically tested in this study with adolescents with criminal convictions, has confirmed that the Italian PCL:YV can be a suitable tool for the assessment of psychopathy dimensions among adolescents with criminal convictions in Italy., Author(s): Ugo Sabatello [sup.1] , Laura D'Antuono [sup.2] , Paolo Iliceto [sup.3] , Simona Stefanile [sup.4] [sup.5] , Fiorenzo Laghi [sup.6] Author Affiliations: (1) grid.7841.a, Department of Pediatrics and Child [...]

Numerous studies conducted with offender or forensic psychiatric samples have revealed that individuals with psychopathic traits are at risk for violence and other externalizing psychopathology. These traits appear to be continuously distributed in these samples, leading investigators to speculate on the presence of such traits in the general population. Nonetheless, few studies of psychopathy have been conducted with large random samples of individuals from the community. The community sample from the MacArthur Violence Risk Assessment Study provides an opportunity to examine the prevalence and structural nature of psychopathic traits, as well as their association with external correlates in an urban community. The community data (N = 514) represent a stratified random sample of persons between the ages of 18 and 40 who were assessed on the Psychopathy Checklist: Screening Version (PCL: SV) and also for violent behavior, alcohol use, and intellectual functioning. Structural equation model analyses revealed that a 4-factor model found in offender and forensic psychiatric samples fit the community data well and was invariant across sex and ethnicity. Also, a superordinate factor comprehensively accounted for the 4 psychopathy first-order factors and significantly predicted the external correlates. The findings offer insight into the dimensional nature of the psychopathy construct. Keywords: psychopathy, community, violence, alcohol, intelligence

Psychopaths represent a significant management challenge in a prison population. A sample of ninety-five male inmates from three medium security prisons was tested using the Hare Psychopathy Checklist: Screening Version (PCL:SV). Using traditional criteria, 22% of the inmates were classified as psychopaths. Scores on the two factor dimensions of the PCL:SV were used to develop a four-way classification system. Inmates in each quadrant present unique characteristics, both in terms of personality traits and behavior. Management and treatment options are outlined for each of the four quadrants, doi: 10.1300/J076v44n04_03 KEYWORDS Psychopathy, PCL:SV factor scores, antisocial personality disorder, prison inmates

Two offender data sets that consisted of scores on the Psychopathic Personality Inventory (PPI) along with other theoretically crucial criterion variables are reanalyzed. The results show the importance of examining facets as well as total scores of psychopathy.