ABSTRACT
Data were examined from an archival sample of Competency to Stand Trial (CST) reports of 200 consecutive New York City pre-trial defendants evaluated over a five-month period. Approximately a fourth of defendants in the present study were immigrants; many required the assistance of interpreters. The examiners conducting the CST evaluation diagnosed approximately half of the defendants with a primary diagnosis of a psychotic disorder and deemed over half not competent. Examiners reached the same conclusion about competency in 96% of cases, about the presence of a psychotic disorder in 91% of cases, and affective disorder in 85% of cases. No significant differences between psychologists and psychiatrists were found for rates of competency/incompetency opinions. Compared to those deemed competent, defendants deemed not competent had significantly higher rates of prior psychiatric hospitalization and diagnosis of psychotic illness at the time of the CST evaluation but lower rates of reported substance abuse.
Subject(s)
Cultural Diversity , Emigrants and Immigrants/legislation & jurisprudence , Emigrants and Immigrants/psychology , Mental Competency/legislation & jurisprudence , Mental Competency/psychology , Mental Disorders/diagnosis , Mental Disorders/ethnology , Urban Population , Adolescent , Adult , Aged , Demography , Diagnostic and Statistical Manual of Mental Disorders , Female , Humans , Intellectual Disability/diagnosis , Intellectual Disability/ethnology , Interdisciplinary Communication , Intersectoral Collaboration , Interview, Psychological , Male , Middle Aged , Observer Variation , Patient Care Team/legislation & jurisprudence , Psychotic Disorders/diagnosis , Psychotic Disorders/ethnology , Translating , United States , Young AdultABSTRACT
Previous research has found a relationship between sleep paralysis (SP) and anxiety states and higher rates have been reported among certain ethnic groups. To advance the cross-cultural study of SP, we developed a brief assessment instrument (which can be self-administered), the Unusual Sleep Experiences Questionnaire (USEQ). In this article, we report on a pilot study with the USEQ in a sample of 208 college students. The instrument was easily understood by the participants, with one quarter reporting at least one lifetime episode of SP. As in previous studies, SP was associated with anxiety (in particular, panic attacks).