ABSTRACT
Although the quality of parenting predicts externalizing behavior problems generally, ineffective parenting may be less relevant to explaining the behavior problems of children high in callous-unemotional traits. This study tested the potential moderating role of psychopathic features among juvenile offenders (n = 76). Youths were administered the Psychopathy Checklist: Youth Version (PCL:YV), a measure of parental discipline, and an index of antisocial conduct. Results indicated an interaction similar to earlier studies: Harsh and inconsistent discipline predicted antisocial behavior, but only among those low on the affective deficit dimension of the PCL:YV. Interpersonal features also moderated the association between parenting and antisocial behavior, but the form of these two interactions was very dissimilar, supporting the distinction between affective and interpersonal features as separable dimensions with unique correlates.
Subject(s)
Antisocial Personality Disorder/psychology , Parenting/psychology , Adolescent , Affective Symptoms/diagnosis , Affective Symptoms/psychology , Antisocial Personality Disorder/diagnosis , Humans , Internal-External Control , Juvenile Delinquency/psychology , Male , Parent-Child Relations , Personality Assessment/statistics & numerical data , Psychometrics , Punishment , Risk Factors , Surveys and QuestionnairesABSTRACT
Very few studies to date have examined the long-term predictive validity of psychopathy among juveniles. The current study reports general and violent recidivism data for an ethnically heterogeneous sample of male offenders (n = 75) who had been administered the Psychopathy Checklist: Youth Version (PCL: YV) in 1996 when they were on average 16 years of age. Neither total scores nor factor scores of the PCL: YV predicted general or violent reconvictions throughout this time frame. These modest effects underscore recent concerns raised about the utility of psychopathy as a risk factor for future criminality, particularly among multiethnic offender samples.
Subject(s)
Antisocial Personality Disorder/diagnosis , Criminal Psychology , Ethnicity/psychology , Juvenile Delinquency/psychology , Personality Assessment/statistics & numerical data , Adolescent , Adult , Antisocial Personality Disorder/ethnology , Antisocial Personality Disorder/psychology , Criminal Psychology/legislation & jurisprudence , Humans , Juvenile Delinquency/ethnology , Juvenile Delinquency/legislation & jurisprudence , Longitudinal Studies , Male , Psychometrics/statistics & numerical data , Recurrence , Reproducibility of Results , Risk Factors , Social Identification , Southwestern United StatesABSTRACT
BACKGROUND: Motivation for treatment is generally considered a powerful predictor of treatment seeking and success in patients with alcohol and drug dependence disorders. Objective measures have seldom been used, however, to assess how motivation is altered during treatment, or the impact of depression/anxiety on motivation. METHODS: We assessed motivation using the Treatment Motivation Questionnaire (TMQ) in 78 male alcohol- and drug-dependent veterans immediately preceding and following an intensive, 2-week residential substance abuse program. The TMQ assesses four domains of motivation: internal motivation, external motivation, interpersonal help-seeking, and nonconfidence in treatment. RESULTS: Following treatment, only external motivation changed (decreased), whereas the other dimensions of motivation retained the high levels observed pretreatment. Depression (as measured by the Beck Depression Inventory, BDI) was highly correlated with three of the four domains of motivation, while anxiety (as measured by the Spielberger State-Trait Anxiety Inventory, STAI) was highly correlated solely with internal motivation. CONCLUSIONS: Our findings suggest that depression and anxiety may differentially effect motivation and that external motivation may be quite transient; treatment implications of these findings are discussed. The usefulness of the TMQ in a residential population was also explored.
