NCJ Number
57494
Date Published
1975
Length
24 pages
Annotation
THE PERSONALITY CHARACTERISTICS OF BOTH PRIMARY AND SECONDARY PSYCHOPATHS ARE DISCUSSED, ALONG WITH RESEARCH FINDINGS ON THE AUTONOMIC AND CORTICAL CORRELATES OF PSYCHOPATHY.
Abstract
THE TERM 'PSYCHOPATH' HAS INCREASINGLY COME TO BE RESERVED FOR PERSONS WHO ARE BASICALLY UNSOCIALIZED AND WHOSE BEHAVIOR PATTERNS BRING THEM REPEATEDLY INTO CONFLICT WITH SOCIETY. CLECKLEY'S (1964) CHECKLIST OF THE PSYCHOPATHIC PERSONALITY HAS BEEN WIDELY ACCEPTED: (1) SUPERFICIAL CHARM AND GOOD INTELLIGENCE; (2) ABSENCE OF DELUSIONS OR OTHER SIGNS OF IRRATIONAL THINKING; (3) ABSENCE OF NERVOUSNESS OR OTHER NEUROTIC MANIFESTATIONS; (4) UNRELIABILITY; (5) UNTRUTHFULNESS AND INSINCERITY; (6) LACK OF REMORSE OR SHAME; (7) ANTISOCIAL BEHAVIOR WITHOUT COMPUNCTION; (8) POOR JUDGMENT AND FAILURE TO LEARN FROM EXPERIENCE; (9) PATHOLOGIC EGOCENTRICITY AND INCAPACITY FOR LOVE; (10) GENERAL POVERTY IN MAJOR AFFECTIVE REACTIONS; (11) SPECIFIC LOSS OF INSIGHT; (12) UNREPONSIVENESS IN GENERAL INTERPERSONAL RELATIONS; (13) FANTASTIC AND UNINVITING BEHAVIOR WITH ALCOHOL; (14) IMPERSONAL, TRIVIAL, AND POORLY INTEGRATED SEX LIFE; AND (15) FAILURE TO FOLLOW ANY LIFE PLAN. THESE ARE THE ESSENTIAL CHARACTERISTICS OF THE PRIMARY OR CLASSICAL PSYCHOPATH AS DISTINGUISHED FROM SECONDARY PSYCHOPATHS OR NEUROTIC DELINQUENTS WHOSE ANTISOCIAL BEHAVIOR IS SYMPTOMATIC OF SOME UNDERLYING EMOTIONAL DISTURBANCE OR IS THE RESULT OF MEMBERSHIP IN A SUBCULTURE WHOSE RULES OF CONDUCT ARE IN CONFLICT WITH SOCIETY AT LARGE. CLINICAL ACCOUNTS OF THE AUTONOMIC CORRELATES OF PSYCHOPATHY GENERALLY MAKE REFERENCE TO A RELATIVE LACK OF ANXIETY, EMOTIONAL TENSION, OR AROUSAL, PARTICULARLY IN SITUATIONS THAT WOULD ORDINARILY BE CONSIDERED STRESSFUL BY NORMAL INDIVIDUALS. MOST OF THE EVIDENCE COMES FROM STUDIES IN WHICH ELECTRODERMAL OR CARDIOVASCULAR ACTIVITY ARE MONITORED WHILE THE SUBJECTS ARE ENGAGED IN A VARIETY OF TASKS. THE RESULTS HAVE BEEN FAIRLY CONSISTENT IN THAT SEVERAL HAVE FOUND PSYCHOPATHS TO BE LESS ANTICIPATORY OF AVERSION STIMULI THAN NORMAL SUBJECTS. ALTHOUGH ELECTROENCEPHALOGRAPHIC RESULTS HAVE REASONABLY CONSISTENTLY FOUND TEMPORAL ABNORMALITIES (I.E., SLOW-WAVE OR POSITIVE-SPIKE) TO BE ASSOCIATED WITH HIGHLY AGGRESSIVE PSYCHOPATHY, VERY FEW DATA ARE AVAILABLE ON THE RELATIONSHIP BETWEEN CORTICALLY EVOKED POTENTIALS AND PSYCHOPATHY. MORE RECENT RESEARCH FOCUSES ON THE ROLE OF BRAIN MECHANISMS IN SOCIAL CONDITIONING: THE REWARD MECHANISMS OF THE SEPTAL AREA, THE MEDIAL FOREBRAIN BUNDLE, AND THE LATERAL HYPOTHALAMUS, AND THE PUNISHMENT MECHANISMS FOUND IN THE MEDIAL FRONTAL CORTEX, THE MEDIAL SEPTAL NUCLEI, AND THE HIPPOCAMPUS. REFERENCES AND GRAPHIC DATA ARE INCLUDED. (KBL)