Personality disorders The case of psychopathy

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Personality disorders? The case of psychopathy

• Lecture 11
• Minna Lyons
• (lyonsm2_at_hope.ac.uk)

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Psychopathy as a personality variable?

• Discrete/continuous
• Primary/secondary
• Nature/nurture
• An evolutionary adaptation?
• Who are these people?

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Personality disorders

• Anti-social personality disorder, narcissist
  personality disorder, histrionic personality
  disorder, psychopathy???
• Diminished empathy, manipulative, exploitative,
  deceitful, grandiose self-worth, external locus
• DSM IV criteria in doubt- are these disorders or
  a dimension of personality?

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Psychopathy

• 1 of population, 20-30 of prison population,
  50violent crimes?
• More males than females
• Mealey (1995) primary (genetic) and secondary
  (developmental) PPs.
• Primary PPs a discrete category
• Secondary a continuous trait?

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Synopsis of the PCL-R

• 1. Superficial charm
• 2. Grandiose sense of self-worth
• 3. Easily bored
• 4. Pathological lying
• 5. Manipulative
• 6. Lack of remorse or guilt
• 7. No emotional depth
• 8. Callous
• 9. Parasitic lifestyle
• 10. Poor behavioural control

• 11. Early behaviour problems
• 12. No long-term planning
• 13. Impulsive
• 14. Irresponsible
• 15. External locus
• 16. Frequent marital failures
• 17. Delinquent as a juvenile
• 18. re-offending criminal
• 19. Promiscuous sexual behaviour
• 20. Versatile as a criminal

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A 3-factor model of psychopathy(Cooke Michie
,2001)
Factor 1 Arrogant/Deceitful interpersonal style
Factor 2 Deficient affect experience
Factor 3 Impulsive/irresponsible behavioural
style
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Developmental model

• Early development bullying, truancy, cruelty to
  animals, pyromania
• Candidates for developmental factors brain
  damage, abusive childhood, problems at birth
• Psychopaths are seen as having deficits which
  might be cured
• However, therapy programs dont seem to work
  psychopaths good in pretending theyve changed

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Darwinian view on psychopathy

• Not a deficit but a design
• Most people cooperative, PP adaptive when
  manifested in small numbers (a frequency-dependent
  strategy)
• Emotions as commitment devises (Frank, Nesse,
  Trivers)
• Viable alternative reproductive strategy for
  males?
• Harpending Sobus (1987) cheaters successful
  when undetected. Mobile, skilled at persuading
  females

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Snakes in suits(Babiak Hare,2006 )

• Charismatic, high profile people
• social predators, exploit others
• Sex, money, power
• E.g. Daily Mirror tycoon Robert Maxwell

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Religious leaders/ TV evangelists..?

• Deception about purpose, beliefs etc
• Manipulation and control
• Sexual exploitation

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conmen

• Highly mobile
• Try to get money, sex
• Fantasy world

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Disorder or not?

• Some evidence that primary psychopaths are born
  that way. Makes them good in what they do-
  evolved trait?
• Secondary psychopaths might develop the traits
  through brain damage, upbringing etcmore
  gene-environment interaction?
• Everything is criticised, we dont know enough
  about how genes affect behaviour etc