Am I a Psycho?

Psychological testing for psychopathy

Having watched too many seasons of crime TV dramas, I would like to think that I am well-versed in picking out the token psychopaths amongst the characters. They are always the individuals who leave an uncomfortable sensation in the pit of your stomach — anti-social and vindictive, egocentric and impersonal. Psychopathy was first described systematically in 1941 as a specific set of contrasting personality traits and behaviours that characterizes “a person [who] typically has no regard for right and wrong” (Mayo Clinic, 2013). Psychopathy as a personality disorder is one of the most difficult disorders to spot. So beyond the plot lines of Criminal Minds and CSI, is there a way to recognize the psychopaths in real life?

The answer to diagnosing for psychopathy lies in psychological testing.

Psychopathy Testing in Research

One of the most well-documented psychopathy tests in personality research is the Levenson Self-Report Psychopathy Scale (LSRP), a test of sociopathy that was developed in 1995 by Dr. Michael R. Levenson. The test measures on two scales: (1) primary psychopathy characterized as a psychopathic emotional effect caused by genetics and (2) secondary psychopathy characterized as a psychopathic lifestyle produced by the environment. The LSRP is a short, five-minute test consisting of 26 items. Participants rate to what degree they agree with statements like “Love is overrated” or “I have been in a lot of shouting matches with other people” (Levenson, 1995).

Although determined to be a reasonable, albeit imperfect, measure of psychopathy, the scale is used for solely for educational and research purposes, and not as a diagnostic tool or for psychological advice.

Sample items that appear on the LSRP

Psychopathy Testing in the Criminal Justice System

Moving towards an applicative psychopathy test, the Psychopathy Checklist (PCL-R) developed by Dr. Robert D. Hare in the 1970s is a psychological assessment tool used to assess individuals for clinical, legal, or research purposes. The tool consists of two parts: (1) a semi-structured interview with an examiner where the subject is scored on 20-item symptom rating scale of perceived personality traits and behaviours and (2) a review of the subject’s file records and history.

Unlike the LSPR, the usefulness of the PCL-R lies in its diagnostic applications. The PCL-R is used in the American criminal justice system to assess individuals in high security psychiatric units and prisons, and to make decisions like what kind of sentence a criminal gets, and whether an inmate should be released on parole. Although the PCL-R is widely used and considered the “gold standard” in psychopathy assessment, its limitations include the lengthy and costly process of having a trained examiner with an advanced degree (M.D., Ph.D, or D.Ed.), a semi-structured clinical interview, and extensive review of all available institutional file data which on average takes 3–4 hours to conduct.

The PCL-R was originally developed to diagnose adult males in prisons, criminal psychiatric hospitals, and awaiting psychiatric evaluations or trial.

The Future of Psychopathy Testing

Over the past decades, there has been ample personality research and test development focused on diagnosing psychopathy. However, the majority of tests that have been developed focus on educational research or criminal psychology like the LSRP and the PCL-R. I believe the future of psychopathy testing is moving towards preventative diagnostics. Because psychopathy is dimensional and along a spectrum, developing a test to identify emerging psychopathic behaviour, especially within secondary psychopathy will allow for better prevention and treatment of “dangerous” psychopathic behaviour.

Bibliography

Antisocial personality disorder. (2013, April 12). Retrieved March 15, 2016, from http://www.mayoclinic.org/diseases-conditions/antisocial-personality-disorder/basics/definition/con-20027920

Levenson, M. R., Kiehl, K. A., & Fitzpatrick, C. M. (1995). Assessing psychopathic attributes in a noninstitutionalized population. Journal of Personality and Social Psychology, 68(1), 151–158. Retrieved March 15, 2016.

Hare Psychopathy Checklist. (n.d.). Retrieved March 15, 2016, from http://www.minddisorders.com/Flu-Inv/Hare-Psychopathy-Checklist.html

Neumann, C. S., Hare, R. D., & Newman, J. P. (2011, July 15). The Superordinate Nature of the Psychopathy Checklist. Retrieved March 15, 2016, from http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC3136810/

Betty Chang

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