Not all psychopaths fit the stereotype, says new study

http://www.eurekalert.org/pub_releases/2015-04/uov-cca040315.php

Public Release: 6-Apr-2015
University of Vermont

Movie villains from Norman Bates to Hannibal Lecter have popularized the notion of the psychopath as cold, cruel, lacking in empathy and beyond the reach of treatment.

A new study in the Journal of Abnormal Child Psychology suggests that this monolithic view, shared by some treatment professionals, is not only wrong but prevents many diagnosed with psychopathy, or precursors of it, from receiving therapies that could help them live happier, more productive lives.

The study focused on 150 male and female youth housed in juvenile detention centers, aged 11 to 17, who were classified as callous and unemotional, or CU, exhibiting severe anti-social behaviors that put them at risk of developing psychopathic traits as adults.

While some in the research sample did fit the classic definition of psychopathy, a significant subgroup did not, said Tim Stickle, professor of Psychology at the University of Vermont, who co-authored the paper with Andrew Gill, a graduate student at the university.

"They appear callous and unemotional to others but are actually very distressed, have high levels of anxiety, higher levels of depression, higher levels of emotion," he said. "We think of these harmful, antisocial, aggressive kids as being immune to fear, immune to negative feelings, but in fact we're showing a whole group of them are not only not immune, but are very susceptible."

The hopeful implication, said Stickle, is that this set of psychological issues is treatable with approaches such as cognitive behavioral therapy and dialectical behavior therapy that teach strategies for managing emotions.

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Effectively treating youth at risk of developing psychopathy as adults has value on a societal as well as an individual level.

"Untreated callous unemotional traits put these youth at risk for becoming lifelong criminals," Stickle said.

Preventing one high risk youth from developing lifelong antisocial behavior will save approximately $3 million across the youth's lifetime, according to a study conducted in 2007.

Other recent studies have confirmed that this emotionally distressed subgroup also exists among adults with psychopathic traits.

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The study is first to find that CU girls are especially likely to fall within the group that suffers from significant emotional distress and unregulated negative feeling.

"These traits are particularly prevalent in adolescent females in the juvenile justice system," Stickle said.