Deck 11: Psychopaths

Question 1

______ of offenders can be classified as psychopaths.

A) 1%-10%
B) 10%-25%
C) 30%-35%
D) 40%-50%
E) This cannot be measured

Answer 1

10%-25%

Question 2

The PCL-R has been supported by researchers for use with:

A) males
B) females
C) forensic psychiatric patients
D) sexual offenders
E) all of the above

Answer 2

all of the above

Question 3

If an individual scored between 20 and 30 on the PCL-R,what would we classify them?

A) psychopath
B) mixed group
C) nonpsychopath
D) average
E) none of the above

Answer 3

mixed group

Question 4

Factor 2 is most strongly related to reoffending,substance abuse,lack of education,and:

A) Emotional processing deficits
B) Predatory violence
C) Poor treatment response
D) Poor family background
E) All of the above

Question 5

A diagnosis of psychopathy does fulfill the disease of the mind requirement but it has never fulfilled the second requirement of:

A) knowing the victim
B) not appreciating the nature or quality of the act
C) previously having been committed in a psychiatric institute
D) having spent a night in a psychiatric facility
E) having a diagnosed mood disorder

Question 6

The terms "psychopathy" and "sociopathy" are:

A) the same
B) completely unrelated
C) always used interchangeably
D) related but distinct concepts
E) used to describe the same concept

Question 7

Antisocial Personality Disorder (APD)is given when there is evidence of conduct disorder before the age of 15 and:

A) a chronic pattern of disregarding the rights of others since age 2
B) a chronic pattern of disregarding the rights of others since age 15
C) a chronic pattern of rule violation since age 2
D) a chronic pattern of rule violation since age 15
E) none of the above

Question 8

Which of the following is not an example of how the construct of psychopathy has influenced court decisions?

A) support a transfer from youth to adult court
B) contribute to dangerous offender designation
C) determine parole eligibility
D) assess mental state at time of offense
E) prove incompetence or unfitness to stand trial

Question 9

Psychopathic offending is:

A) narrow and specific
B) versatile
C) high density
D) both a and b
E) both c and d

Question 10

In an experiment measuring cheating behaviours and psychopathy,the best predictor of cheating was:

A) low scores on the Self-Report Psychopathy Scale
B) low scores on the Psychopathy Checklist Revised
C) high scores on the Self-Report Psychopathy Scale
D) high scores on the Psychopathy Checklist-Revised
E) high scores on both the Self-Report Psychopathy Scale and the Psychopathy Checklist-Revised

Question 11

The "faint hope clause" allows offenders convicted of murder to:

A) be released from prison after serving 5 years of their sentence
B) apply for parole before their eligibility date
C) apply for appeals
D) make special dietary request in prison
E) leave prison to visit family once a year

Question 12

Several studies have found that offenders who engage in ___________ violence score significantly higher on measures of psychopathy than do offenders who engage in ___________ violence.

A) reactive; premeditated
B) impulsive; reactive
C) instrumental; premeditated
D) reactive; instrumental
E) instrumental; reactive

Question 13

Hervey Cleckley's book ____________________ provided one of the most extensive clinical descriptions of psychopaths.

A) The Psychopath
B) Evil People
C) The Mask of Sanity
D) Master Manipulator
E) Callous

Question 14

Which Canadian researcher developed the Psychopathy Checklist-Revised?

A) Olson
B) Cleckley
C) Patrick
D) Hare
E) Hart

Question 15

Psychopaths differ from other offenders in what way?

A) They begin their criminal careers younger.
B) They persist longer.
C) Their use of violence lacks an emotional aspect.
D) They commit a greater variety of violent offenses.
E) all of the above

Question 16

Psychopathy and Antisocial Personality Disorder (APD)share many of the same features.However,APD places more emphasis on:

A) antisocial behaviours
B) emotional deficits
C) gender
D) cognitive skills
E) criminal history

Question 17

Robert's parents feel he exhibits reckless behaviour,irresponsibility,and lack of remorse.Robert has been this way since birth,and his parents feel he has a difficult temperament.Robert might have:

A) psychopathy
B) avoidant personality disorder
C) affective disorder
D) borderline personality disorder
E) psychosis

Question 18

The most widely used self-report questionnaire to assess psychopathy are:

A) Psychopathic Personality Inventory-Revised
B) Self-Report Psychopathy Scale
C) Psychopathic Personality Inventory-Revised and the Psychopathy Checklist-Revised
D) Psychopathic Personality Inventory-Revised and the Self-Report Psychopathy Scale
E) Psychopathy Checklist-Revised

Question 19

Psychopaths have been called:

A) exceptional predators
B) interpersonal predators
C) intraspecies predators
D) predatory species
E) special predatory

Question 20

The relatively small number of psychopaths account for:

A) relatively small amount of crime
B) relatively small amount of violent crime
C) proportionate amount of crime
D) disproportionately large amount of crime
E) no crime

Question 21

Psychopathic rapists are more likely to be:

A) emotionally driven
B) anxious
C) opportunistic and vindictive
D) disorganized
E) feeling negative emotions prior to the rape

Question 22

The two theories of psychopathy are:

A) Response modulation deficit; affective theory
B) Startle-blink response; affective theory
C) Response modulation deficit; startle-blink response
D) Antisocial process screening; startle-blink response
E) Affective theory; Antisocial process screening

Question 23

Psychopathic traits in youth are related to __________ but not _____________.

A) depression and anxiety; IQ scores and education
B) IQ scores and education; depression and anxiety
C) depression and anxiety; violence and aggression
D) delinquency and aggression; depression and anxiety
E) depression and anxiety; delinquency and aggression

Question 24

In a study examining the use of instrumental motives,psychopaths engaged in instrumental murder in ______ of cases:

A) 93%
B) 77%
C) 50%
D) 34%
E) 10%

Question 25

Dogs who display psychopathic traits were:

A) friendlier than most dog breeds
B) immune to punishment
C) fearless
D) both a and b
E) both b and c

Question 26

According to the Chimpanzee Psychopathy study by Lilienfield et al.(1999):

A) male and female chimpanzees scored the same
B) female chimpanzees scored higher than male chimpanzees
C) male chimpanzees scored higher than female chimpanzees
D) psychopathic traits were not observed in this species
E) psychopathy could not be measured with this species

Question 27

In the Cambridge Study in Delinquent Development,_________ of offenders scoring 10 or more on the PCL:SV had been convicted of an offense.

A) 5%
B) 27%
C) 57%
D) 77%
E) 97%

Question 28

In a sample of 60 rapists,Brown and Forth (1997)found:

A) PCL-R scores are related with number of prior offenses but not number of prior sexual offenses
B) PCL-R scores are related with number of prior offenses and the number of prior sexual offenses
C) PCL-R scores are not related to prior offenses but were predictive of the number of prior sexual offenses
D) PCL-R scores are not related to prior offenses or the number or prior sexual offenses
E) all rapists had high PCL-R scores and more sexual offenses than nonpsychopathic offenders

Question 29

In Rice,Harris,and Cormier's (1992)study to evaluate treatment outcomes in psychopaths,which group had the highest reoffending rate?

A) untreated nonpsychopaths
B) treated nonpsychopaths
C) untreated psychopaths
D) treated psychopaths
E) offenders who dropped out of the study

Question 30

Which of the following is not a function of the amygdala?

A) memory
B) decision making
C) language
D) defence reactions
E) emotional expression

Question 31

Olver and Wong (2009)found that psychopathic offenders who remained in treatment were:

A) more likely to violently reoffend
B) more likely to manipulate prison staff
C) less likely to violently reoffend
D) likely not to show any treatment gains
E) more likely to be long-term offender

Question 32

In a study measuring psychopathy in a sample of community members ____ of these individuals scored zero on the PCL-SV.

A) 10%
B) 19%
C) 44%
D) 71%
E) 100%

Question 33

Mock jurors are least likely to support the death penalty for which of the following adult offenders?

A) psychopathic offenders
B) psychotic offenders
C) offenders with no mental illness
D) both a and b
E) both b and c

Question 34

According to Hare (1993)we are more likely to _____________ than be murdered by a psychopath.

A) lose our life savings to a psychopath
B) fall in love with a psychopath
C) work with a psychopath
D) be tricked by a psychopath
E) become friends with a psychopath

Question 35

Mock jurors presented with information on a juvenile psychopath are:

A) likely to support the death penalty
B) not likely to support the death penalty
C) likely to support rehabilitation
D) both b and c
E) none of the above

Question 36

In the lexical-decision task by Williamson,Harpur,and Hare (1991),nonpsychopaths:

A) identified non words faster than psychopaths
B) identified neutral words faster than psychopaths
C) identified emotional words faster than psychopaths
D) identified emotional words faster than neutral words
E) both c and d

Question 37

Researchers agree that:

A) experiencing traumatic events during childhood always leads to the development of psychopathic traits later in life
B) experiencing traumatic events during childhood never leads to the development of psychopathic traits
C) most psychopaths experience trauma during their childhood
D) psychopaths do not have the ability to experience traumatic events
E) many psychopaths do not experience trauma during their childhood

Question 38

Evidence for overkill and enjoyment for hurting the victim was related to:

A) offense history
B) PCL-R scores
C) family background
D) level of education
E) none of the above

Question 39

In a study examining treatment outcomes in youth with high scores on the Psychopathy Checklist: Youth Version,the youth who received treatment in a correctional centre had:

A) lower reoffending rates than youth treated in a treatment centre
B) lower violent reoffending rates than youth treated in a treatment centre
C) twice the reoffending rates of youth treated in a treatment centre
D) twice the violent reoffending rates of youth treated in a treatment centre
E) the rates of reoffending were the same for both groups of youth

Question 40

The best research design to determine the extend to which family experiences influence the development of psychopathic traits is:

A) prospective longitudinal studies
B) retrospective studies
C) cross-sectional studies
D) experimental
E) We do not yet know how to study these phenomena.

Question 41

Name and describe different study designs used involving twins and siblings when trying to isolate the effect of genes or environment on psychopathic traits.

Question 42

Explain who Clifford Olson is and why he is famous.What changes have been made to Canadian legislation as a result of his request?
See p.295.

Question 43

Explain why most researchers believe psychopaths cannot be treated.Describe one well-known study that lends support for this notion.
This question would be worth 3 marks (1 mark for explaining why psychopaths are not believed to benefit from treatment,and 2 marks for describing Rice,Harris,and Cormier's (1992)study involving treatment outcomes of psychopaths).
-Psychopaths see nothing wrong with their behaviour,often don't feel anxiety or distress,and usually only participate in treatment when it is to their benefit.
-Rice,Harris,and Cormier (1992)conducted a study on violent psychopathic and nonpsychopathic forensic psychiatric patients to evaluate the effects of an intensive therapeutic treatment program.
-Patients were followed for 10 years after release.
-Untreated nonpsychopaths had a violent reoffending rate of 39%
-Treated nonpscyhopaths had a violent reoffending rate of 22%
-Untreated psychopaths had a violent reoffending rate of 55%
-Treated psychopaths had a violent reoffending rate of 77%
-These findings contributed to many clinicians concluding that psychopaths should not be treated as their recidivism rates are higher when this is attempted.

Question 44

Explain how psychopaths differ from nonpsychopaths and more specifically how psychopaths' use of violence differs from nonpychopathic offenders.
See p.294-296.

Question 45

Name and describe the most widely used assessment tool for measuring psychopathic traits in adults.

Question 46

Define psychopathy,Antisocial Personality Disorder,and sociopathy and give three examples of differences between these disorders.