Psychopathy

“Nothing really matters”: Emotional numbing as a link between trauma exposure and callousness in delinquent youth

by Stephen Becker

Patricia K. Kerig, Diana C. Bennett, Mamie Thompson, Stephen P. Becker.
Journal of Traumatic Stress.
doi: 10.1002/jts.21700

This study investigated the interrelations among trauma exposure, emotional numbing, and callous–unemotional traits in... more This study investigated the interrelations among trauma exposure, emotional numbing, and callous–unemotional traits in a sample of 276 youth (68 girls and 208 boys) recruited from 2 juvenile detention centers. Youth completed interview measures of trauma exposure and betrayal trauma, as well as self-report measures of emotional numbing and callous–unemotional traits. Results of path analyses using nonparametric bootstrapping procedures indicated findings consistent with the hypothesis that the association between trauma exposure and callous–unemotional traits was mediated by the general numbing of emotions, R2 = .40, and also specifically by numbing of sadness, R2 = .27. In addition, further analyses indicated that numbing of fear, R2 = .18, and sadness, R2 = .26, statistically mediated the relations to callous–unemotional traits only for those traumatic experiences involving betrayal. Gender was not found to moderate these effects.

Love, eye contact and the deveopmental origins of empathy v psychopathy

by Jennifer L. Allen

Background
A propensity to attend to other people’s emotions is a necessary condition for human empathy.
... more Background
A propensity to attend to other people’s emotions is a necessary condition for human empathy.

Aims
To test our hypothesis that psychopathic disorder begins as a failure to attend to the eyes of attachment figures, using a ‘love’ scenario in young children.

Method
Children with oppositional defiant disorder, assessed for callous–unemotional traits, and a control group were observed in a love interaction with mothers. Eye contact and affection were measured for each dyad.

Results
There was no group difference in affection and eye contact expressed by the mothers. Compared with controls, children with oppositional defiant disorder expressed lower levels of affection back towards their mothers; those with high levels of callous–unemotional traits showed significantly lower levels of affection than the children lacking these traits. As predicted, the former group showed low levels of eye contact toward their mothers. Low eye contact was not correlated with maternal coercive parenting or feelings toward the child, but was correlated with psychopathic fearlessness in their fathers.

Conclusions
Impairments in eye contact are characteristic of children with callous–unemotional traits, and these impairments are independent of maternal behaviour.

Andrew M. Lobaczewski

by Laura Knight-Jadczyk

The Self-Loving Self-Leader: An Examination of the Relationship Between Self-Leadership and the Dark Triad

by John Rauthmann

The Dark Triad and Interpersonal Perception: Similarities and Differences in the Social Consequences of Narcissism, Machiavellianism, and Psychopathy

by John Rauthmann

Acquisitive or protective self-presentation of dark personalities? Associations among the Dark Triad and self-monitoring

by John Rauthmann

Size Matters: Increased Grey Matter In Boys With Conduct Problems and Callous-Unemotional Traits

by Alice Jones

De Brito SA, Mechelli A, Wilke M, Laurens KR, Jones AP, Barker GJ, Hodgins S, Viding E. (2009) Brain

Brain imaging studies of adults with psychopathy have identified structural and functional abnormalities in limbic and... more Brain imaging studies of adults with psychopathy have identified structural and functional abnormalities in limbic and prefrontal regions that are involved in emotion recognition, decision-making, morality and empathy. Among children with conduct problems, a small subgroup presents callous-unemotional traits thought to be antecedents of psychopathy. No structural brain imaging study has examined this subgroup of children. The present study used voxel-based morphometry to compare whole brain grey matter volumes and concentrations of boys with elevated levels of callous-unemotional conduct problems and typically developing boys and explored four a priori regions of interest. sMRI scans were collected from 23 boys with elevated levels of callous-unemotional conduct problems (mean age = 11 years 8 months) and 25 typically developing boys (mean age = 11 years 6 months) selected from a community sample of children. Data were analysed using optimized voxel-based morphometry. Study-specific probability maps were created and four a priori regions of interest identified (orbitofrontal, anterior cingulate and anterior insular cortices and amygdala). Both grey matter volume and concentration were examined controlling for cognitive ability and hyperactivity-inattention symptoms. Boys with callous-unemotional conduct problems, as compared with typically developing boys, presented increased grey matter concentration in the medial orbitofrontal and anterior cingulate cortices, as well as increased grey matter volume and concentration in the temporal lobes bilaterally. These findings may indicate a delay in cortical maturation in several brain areas implicated in decision making, morality and empathy in boys with callous-unemotional conduct problems.

Amygdala Hypoactivity to Fearful Faces In Boys With Conduct Problems and Callous-Unemotional Traits

by Alice Jones

Jones, AP., Laurens, KR., Herba, CM., Barker, GJ. & Viding, E. (2009) AJP

OBJECTIVE: Although early-onset conduct problems predict both psychiatric and health problems in adult life, little... more OBJECTIVE: Although early-onset conduct problems predict both psychiatric and health problems in adult life, little research has been done to index neural correlates of conduct problems. Emerging research suggests that a subgroup of children with conduct problems and elevated levels of callous-unemotional traits may be genetically vulnerable to manifesting disturbances in neural reactivity to emotional stimuli indexing distress. Using functional MRI, the authors evaluated differences in neural response to emotional stimuli between boys with conduct problems and elevated levels of callous-unemotional traits and comparison boys.

METHOD: Seventeen boys with conduct problems and elevated levels of callous-unemotional traits and 13 comparison boys of equivalent age (mean=11 years) and IQ (mean=100) viewed blocked presentations of fearful and neutral faces. For each face, participants distinguished the sex of the face via manual response.

RESULTS: Relative to the comparison group, boys with conduct problems and elevated levels of callous-unemotional traits manifested lesser right amygdala activity to fearful faces.

CONCLUSIONS: This finding is in line with data from studies of adults with antisocial behavior and callous-unemotional traits (i.e., psychopaths), as well as from a recent study of adolescents with callous-unemotional traits, and suggests that the neural substrates of emotional impairment associated with callous-unemotional antisocial behavior are already present in childhood.

Feeling, caring, knowing: Different types of empathy deficit in boys with psychopathic tendencies and autism spectrum disorder

by Alice Jones

Jones, AP., Happe, F., Gilbert, F., Burnett, S., & Viding, E. (2010), JCPP

Background: Empathy dysfunction is one of the hallmarks of psychopathy, but it is also sometimes thought to... more Background: Empathy dysfunction is one of the hallmarks of psychopathy, but it is also sometimes thought to characterise autism spectrum disorders (ASD). Individuals with either condition can appear uncaring towards others. This study set out to compare and contrast directly boys with psychopathic tendencies and boys with ASD on tasks assessing aspects of affective empathy and cognitive perspective taking. The main aim of the study was to assess whether a distinct profile of empathy deficits would emerge for boys with psychopathic tendencies and ASD, and whether empathy deficits would be associated with conduct problems in general, rather than psychopathic tendencies or ASD specifically.

Methods: Four groups of boys aged between 9 and 16 years (N = 96) were compared: 1) psychopathic tendencies, 2) ASD, 3) conduct problems and 4) comparison. Tasks were included to probe attribution of emotions to self, empathy for victims of aggression and cognitive perspective-taking ability.

Results: Boys with psychopathic tendencies had a profile consistent with dysfunctional affective empathy. They reported experiencing less fear and less empathy for victims of aggression than comparison boys. Their cognitive perspective-taking abilities were not statistically significantly different from those of comparison boys. In contrast, boys with ASD had difficulties with tasks requiring cognitive perspective taking, but reported emotional experiences and victim empathy that were in line with comparison boys. Boys with conduct problems did not differ from comparison boys, suggesting that the affective empathy deficit seen in boys with psychopathic tendencies was specific to that group, rather than common to all boys with conduct problems.

Conclusions: Although both groups can appear uncaring, our findings suggest that the affective/information processing correlates of psychopathic tendencies and ASD are quite different. Psychopathic tendencies are associated with difficulties in resonating with other people's distress, whereas ASD is characterised by difficulties in knowing what other people think.

Psychophysiologische Untersuchungen bei forensisch relevanten Störungen am Beispiel der Psychopathie

by Peter Fromberger

Are we there yet? The clinical potential of intranasal oxytocin in psychiatry

by Jean Liu (Jean Loo)

The hormone oxytocin plays a major role in relationship formation and social functioning in animals and humans. We... more The hormone oxytocin plays a major role in relationship formation and social functioning in animals and humans. We review theory and research examining the potential for intra-nasal oxytocin as an adjunctive medication for several mental health problems and risks: autism, schizophrenia, developmental precursors of psychopathy, social phobia, anorexia nervosa, obsessive compulsive disorder, depression (especially postnatal) and impaired maternal-infant bonding. Initial findings suggest that oxytocin administration may alleviate symptoms of autism and social phobia, but current evidence is insufficient to recommend oxytocin as a standard treatment. Despite reasonable theoretical indications, there has also been no systematic examination of oxytocin effects with psychopathy, anorexia, depression, or in mothers with problems bonding with their infants. Findings in patients with obsessive compulsive disorder suggest that oxytocin administration may not be beneficial in this group. Overall, there are good reasons to suggest that intra-nasal oxytocin may be a promising adjunctive treatment for specific mental health problems that involve impairments in engaging comfortably with other people; however, research is in its infancy; the specificity and durability of effects remain unknown, and issues of safety and modes of delivery have yet to be addressed.

"Soigner par la souffrance: la prise en charge des auteurs de violences sexuelles"

by Claude-Olivier Doron

Published in Doron, Claude-Olivier, Lefève, Céline & Masquelet, Alain, Soin et subjectivité, Les Cahiers du Centre Canguilhem, n°4, pp. 87-114

In this article, we study the question raised by the care of the sex psychopaths between justice and psychiatry. We... more In this article, we study the question raised by the care of the sex psychopaths between justice and psychiatry. We show the ambiguity of the so-called pathology to which this care is supposed to be directed: a pathology that is not a mental disease and that doesn’t produce any distress to the patient who doesn’t ask for any treatment. This ambiguity, coupled to the fact that this kind of treatment implies the cooperation of the medical staff with justice, explains why so many psychiatrists and psychologists don’t feel at ease with this kind of care. We eventually analyze two ways medical staff have to solve this tension: either they accept to develop a psycho-criminology which aims to reeducation and correction of deviant behaviors, or they try to convert all the resistances and obstacles they meet in their practice in the more familiar vocabulary of disease and care.

Different provocations trigger aggression in narcissists and psychopaths

by Daniel Nelson Jones

Machiavellianism.

by Daniel Nelson Jones

Differentiating the Dark Triad within the interpersonal circumplex

by Daniel Nelson Jones

The role of impulsivity in the Dark Triad of personality

by Daniel Nelson Jones

Unique roles of antisocial personality disorder and psychopathic traits in distress tolerance.

by Marsha Sargeant

Published in Journal of Abnormal Psychology. Authors: Sargeant MN, Daughters SB, Curtin JJ, Schuster R, Lejuez CW

Previous research indicates that individuals with antisocial personality disorder (ASPD) evidence low distress... more Previous research indicates that individuals with antisocial personality disorder (ASPD) evidence low distress tolerance, which signifies impaired ability to persist in goal-directed behavior during an aversive situation, and is associated with a variety of poor interpersonal and drug use outcomes. Based on theory and research indicating that psychopathic traits are associated with hypo-reactivity in emotional responding, a unique hypothesis emerges where psychopathic traits should have the opposite effect of ASPD and be related to high levels of distress tolerance. In a sample of 107 substance-dependent patients in an inner-city substance use residential treatment facility, this hypothesis was supported. ASPD was related to lower distress tolerance, while psychopathic traits were related to higher distress tolerance, with each contributing unique variance. Findings are discussed in relation to different presentations of distress tolerance as a function of psychopathic traits among those with an ASPD diagnosis.

The mismeasure of morals: Antisocial personality traits predict utilitarian responses to moral dilemmas

by Daniel Bartels

full cite: Bartels, Daniel M. and David A. Pizarro (2011), "The Mismeasure of Morals: Antisocial Personality Traits Predict Utilitarian Responses to Moral Dilemmas," Cognition, 121, 154-161.

Researchers have recently argued that utilitarianism is the appropriate framework by which to evaluate moral judgment,... more Researchers have recently argued that utilitarianism is the appropriate framework by which to evaluate moral judgment, and that individuals who endorse non-utilitarian solutions to moral dilemmas (involving active vs. passive harm) are committing an error. We report a study in which participants responded to a battery of personality assessments and a set of dilemmas that pit utilitarian and non-utilitarian options against each other. Participants who indicated greater endorsement of utilitarian solutions had higher scores on measures of psychopathy, Machiavellianism, and life meaninglessness. These results question the widely-used methods by which lay moral judgments are evaluated, as these approaches lead to the counterintuitive conclusion that those individuals who are least prone to moral errors also possess a set of psychological characteristics that many would consider prototypically immoral.

Psychiatric morbidity associated with same-sex sexual behaviour: influence of minority stress and familial factors.

by Qazi Rahman

Psychol Med. 2010 Feb;40(2):315-24.

Deconstructing the Psychopath: A Critical Discursive Analysis

by Cary Federman

She loved accidents: any mention of an animal run over, a man cut to pieces by a train, was bound to make her rush to... more She loved accidents: any mention of an animal run over, a man cut to pieces by a train, was bound to make her rush to the spot.
—Émile Zola, La Bête Humaine (1890)

The spectacle of the wounded body has always had its lurid attractions. Coverage of serial killings and graphic accounts of brutal murders by various media are part of our “spectacular” culture fascinated by violence and brutality. The television is often the site where private desire and public fantasy meet, and where the fascination regarding dangerous offenders is initiated and nurtured (Knox, 17–18; Lesser). The convening of the public around scenes of violence represents what Mark Seltzer terms the “wound culture,” a lethal space in which the public interest in scars and mutilated and opened bodies constitutes a collective fascination with the unbearable aspects of human life.