Female Violence and Personality: Evidence for a Pattern of Overcontrolled Hostility Among One-Time Violent Female Offenders

• NCJ Number: 181972
• Journal: Criminal Justice and Behavior Volume: 27 Issue: 2 Dated: 04/2000 Pages: 176-195
• Author(s): Edelyn Verona; Joyce L. Carbonell
• Date Published: 2000
• Length: 20 pages
• Publication Format: Article
• Publication Type: Report (Study/Research)
• Language: English
• Country: United States of America
• Note: Data used were part of a larger investigation into the patterns of criminal behavior and violence among female inmates; preliminary findings from this research were presented at the annual meeting of the American Psychological Society, May 1998, in Washington, D.C.

Annotation

This study investigated the validity of the overcontrolled hostility construct in explaining violent crime among 186 female State-prison inmates who were classified as nonviolent (NV), one-time violent (OV), or repeat violent (RV) offenders.

Abstract

The women's prison records were reviewed, and a complete Minnesota Multiphasic Personality Inventory (second edition) (MMPI-2) protocol and Spielberger et al.'s Anger Expression Scale were administered. Overcontrolled Hostility (O-H) scale scores on the MMPI-2 effectively differentiated the OV group from the NV and RV offender groups. The OV women were overrepresented among female violent offenders, had significantly shorter nonviolent criminal histories than the other two groups, and were more likely to have committed an extremely violent act than the RV group. The RV offenders reported greater acting out when angered and exhibited more prison aggression compared to the other two groups. These data highlight the importance of the overcontrolled hostility construct and the undercontrolled/overcontrolled distinction in the analysis of violent offending among female inmates. Women who exhibit the overcontrolled hostile pattern may be identified upon admission to prison. Given the lack of appropriate strategies in dealing with anger for the high O-H women, prison counseling can involve modeling and reinforcing more effective coping strategies and anger management techniques for these women. This training may prevent further explosions of anger and may prevent the aforementioned prison socialization process that encourages violent behavior. Clinical interventions with the RV, or undercontrolled aggressors, may involve anger-control management techniques that teach the inmate new strategies for dealing with instigation in a nonaggressive manner. Moreover, cognitive restructuring can be used so that these offenders can learn to reinterpret anger-eliciting situations and their perceptions of instigation within interpersonal interactions can be decreased. 1 figure, 2 tables, 3 notes, and 31 references