A Rorschach comparison of psychopathic and nonpsychopathic conduct disordered adolescents

✍ Scribed by Andrew M. Smith; Carl B. Gacono; Lynn Kaufman

• Publisher: John Wiley and Sons
• Year: 1997
• Tongue: English
• Weight: 97 KB
• Volume: 53
• Category: Article
• ISSN: 0021-9762
• DOI: 10.1002/(sici)1097-4679(199706)53:4<289::aid-jclp1>3.0.co;2-l

✦ Synopsis

Forty-eight male subjects who met the DSM-IV (APA, 1994) criteria for conduct disorder (CD) were assessed for psychopathy level using a modified version of the Psychopathy Checklist-Revised (PCL-R, Forth, Hart, & Hare, 1990). Rorschach variables associated with self-perception, affects, and object relations, early behavioral problems and history of violence were compared between psychopathic and nonpsychopathic CD adolescents. Psychopathic CD subjects were significantly more self-centered and violent than nonpsychopathic CD subjects. Decreased attachment and anxiety were found in both CD groups. Our study adds empirical support to the heterogeneity noted among CD adolescents (PCL-R), supports the utility of the Rorschach for detecting individual differences among CD subjects, and extends the empirical work of Gacono and Meloy (1994) to adolescent psychopathy.