Violent Criminal Offenders Research Articles

Linking Adult Psychopathy with Childhood Hyperactivity-Impulsivity-Attention Problems and Conduct Problems Through Retrospective Self-Reports

The purpose of the present study was to test whether adult criminals with psychopathy diagnoses, more than those without, have histories of hyperactivity-impulsivity-attention problems (HIA) and conduct problems (CP). We compared psychopathic and nonpsychopathic violent criminal offenders on retrospective reports of conduct problems before the age of 15 and hyperactivity-impulsivity-attention problems before the age of 10. We used a sample of 186 adult men sentenced to prison in Sweden for 4 years or more for violent, nonsexual crimes. The mean age was 30.7( SD = 9.4). The results showed that a combination of childhood HIA problems and CP was typical for adult psychopathic offenders. They were four times more likely than chance to have had a combination of HIA problems and CP during childhood and only one-fifth as likely than chance to have had neither problem. Nonpsychopathic offenders, on the other hand, were five times more likely than chance to have had neither problem and only one-quarter as likely than chance to have had both problems.

Impulsivity and prefrontal hypometabolism in borderline personality disorder

Prefrontal hypoperfusion and decreased glucose uptake in the prefrontal cortex (PFC) are found in violent criminal offenders, murderers and aggressive psychiatric patients. These abnormalities may be independent of diagnosis and associated with impulsive-aggression as a personality trait. Impulsive-aggression is a clinical characteristic of borderline personality disorder (BPD) where it is associated with assaultive and suicidal behaviors. We conducted FDG-PET studies in 13 non-depressed, impulsive female subjects with BPD and 9 healthy controls to look for abnormalities in glucose metabolism in areas of the PFC associated with regulation of impulsive behavior. Statistical Parametric Mapping-99 ( spm99) was used to analyze the PET data with Hamilton depression scores as covariate. Significant reductions in FDG uptake in BPD subjects relative to healthy controls were found bilaterally in medial orbital frontal cortex, including Brodmann's areas 9, 10 and 11. There were no significant areas of increased uptake in BPD subjects compared to control subjects. Covarying for measures of impulsivity or impulsive-aggression rendered insignificant the differences between groups. Decreased glucose uptake in medial orbital frontal cortex may be associated with diminished regulation of impulsive behavior in BPD.

The quantitative risk of violent crime and criminal offending: a case‐control study among the offspring of recidivistic Finnish homicide offenders

To study if later risk of violent offending and criminality among high-risk children can be estimated quantitatively on the basis of parental crimes. The criminal and prison records of the offspring (N=11) of homicide recidivists (N=36) were compared with data from controls (N=220) who were matched for sex, domicile of birth and date of birth and death. The risk (odds ratio) was increased up to 24-fold for violent crimes (P=0.01), and up to 17-fold for criminality (P=0.0008) among the offspring of homicide recidivists. The quantitative risk of a child for later violent offending and criminality can be estimated on the basis of parental homicide recidivism. This kind of method could be used to choose target groups for early preventive interventions, and to study the effectiveness of prevention.

Against All Odds

Despite extensive humanitarian and societal economic costs due to criminality, few studies have been published on desistance from crime. The purpose of this study was to describe the desistance and identify possible protective factors among high-risk violent and chronic offenders who had not recidivated. From a cohort of 401 violent criminal offenders, only 6 participants were found to meet the authors' criteria for high risk and to exhibit unexpected positive outcomes; 4 of these consented to participate in the study. They were assessed with semistructured interviews. Common themes important to desistance from crime were identified. An experience of shock may in some cases have triggered the desistance process. Circumstances that seemed crucial were social isolation, orientation toward family, and physical disabilities. The participants' present lives were extremely influenced by avoiding risk situations. The results may contribute to the understanding of the desistance process and to developing after-care and risk management strategies.

Neuropathology and Criminal Violence

In connection with the development of their “tinder-box” model for the analysis of criminal aggression, the authors have maintained a “running count” of empirical studies published in the past 40 years that have examined violent criminal offenders for the presence or absence of brain dysfunction. In various publications, we have reported on the ratios between the relative incidence of neuropathology among offenders arrayed by type of violent crime and the overall incidence in the general population. In Spring 1999, the Federal Centers for Disease Control put the incidence in the general population at “slightly more than 2%.” With the CDC figure as a base rate, the relative ratios for neuropathology among violent offenders range from highs of 47:1 for homicide offenders and 48:1 offenders; through midrange levels of 43:1 for juvenile offenders, 39:1 for assault offenders, and 33:1 for incest offenders; to lows of 6:1 for “one-time aggressives.” Implications are drawn for standards of criminal culpability.

Identification of the psychopathic batterer: The clinical, legal, and policy implications

A number of theoretical and empirical sources have proposed that a subgroup of domestically violent men exhibit more antisocial behavior, express more generalized violence, and are generally more resistant to mental health intervention than others. In a parallel literature, researchers have identified a subgroup of violent criminal offenders (i.e., psychopaths) that exhibit a number of similar characteristics to this more antisocial/generally violent group of batterers. Moreover, the offender literature on psychopathy describes the violence tendencies, physiological responses, cognitive impairments, interpersonal/affective characteristics, and treatment responsiveness of these individuals in much greater depth and breadth than the current domestic violence literature. The present article seeks to compare and contrast these two literatures, proposing that there is a subgroup of batterers that can be characterized as exhibiting significant psychopathic characteristics. The clinical, legal, and policy implications of identifying a subgroup of batterers in this manner also are explored.

Urban Homicide

In recent reviews of the literature on violent criminal offending and victimization, a call has been issued for analytic models that integrate individual-level data with data from the social and geographical contexts in which people live—that is, contextual analyses. Combining data from the Homicides in Chicago (1965-1994) data file with information from U.S. Bureau of the Census's (1992) 1990 Census of Population and Housing, and using hierarchical linear modeling techniques, the current research examines theoretical arguments deriving from the economic deprivation and social ecological theoretical frameworks. Among other findings, the results lend support to Sampson and Wilson's (1995) hypothesis that a key determinant of the relationship between race and violent crime is the differential distribution of blacks in communities characterized by structural disorganization.

Biological Markers, with Special Regard to Platelet Monoamine Oxidase (trbc-MAO), for Personality and Personality Disorders

Monoamine oxidase (E.C.1.4.3.4) activity in platelets (trbc-MAO) correlates with personality traits such as sensation seeking and impulsiveness. Low trbc-MAO subjects were socially more active, but that they also had more psychiatric disorders and had relatives who were more psychiatrically disturbed than the relatives of the high trbc-MAO subjects. The trbc-MAO activity is characterized by a considerable variability between individuals, whereas, the intraindividual variation of activity over time is low. The only ways of affecting trbc-MAO are short-term physical activity, administration of adrenaline or lithium, vitamin B-12 deficiency (increased activity), smoking, and MAO inhibiting drugs (reduced activity). There is strong genetic influence on trbc-MAO activity, which establishes this enzyme activity of being a genetic marker. The heritability was estimated to be 0.75, both in males and in females. The correlation between trbc-MAO and extraversion- and impulsiveness-related personality traits has been confirmed in numerous studies. Moreover, a correlation between trbc-MAO and outcome scores in computerized neuropsychological tests, such as reaction time, many failed inhibitions, and maze checking time, has been demonstrated. This chapter discusses alcoholism and drug abuse; Type-2 alcoholics are characterized by a strong genetic load for abuse, early age at the debut of alcohol intake, often mixed abuse, and often social complications. This form occurs only in males. Type-1 alcoholics are characterized by low genetic load and late debut of the abuse, as well as by less frequently mixed abuse or social complications. Type-2 alcoholics have exactly the temperament associated with low trbc-MAO. The chapter notes low trbc-MAO has been found in violent criminal offenders as well as in consecutive clients undergoing forensic psychiatric examination. Low trbc-MAO has a high predictive value for continued criminal activity in boys convicted of crime. There is a summarization on the possible mechanisms underlying the connection between trbc-MAO and vital parts of the temperament.

High Rates of Violence, Crime, Academic Problems, and Behavioral Problems in Males With Both Early Neuromotor Deficits and Unstable Family Environments

It is commonly assumed that individuals with both biological and psychosocial deficits are more likely to become criminal, but there is surprisingly little empirical support for this assumption. We test the hypothesis that a group with biosocial risk factors are more likely to develop behavioral and academic problems in adolescence and violent criminal offending in adult-hood compared with groups with only biological or only social risk factors. Hypotheses were tested on a sample of 397 male subjects, using obstetric and early neuromotor measures collected in the first year of life; family, social, demographic, and behavioral measures at age 17 to 19 years; and criminal data at 20 to 22 years of age. Cluster analysis of the risk factors indicated a group with obstetric risk factors only, a group with poverty risk factors only, and a biosocial group with both early neuromotor deficits and unstable family environments. The biosocial group had more than double the adult violence, theft, and total crime rates of the other 2 groups and had significantly more behavioral and academic problems in adolescence. When early neuromotor deficits and negative family factors cluster together, individuals are particularly likely to become criminal and violent compared with those with only poverty or only obstetric risk factors. Because this biosocial group accounted for 70.2% of all crimes committed in the entire sample, early interventions that tackle these deficits might significantly reduce violence.

Factors associated with homicide recidivism in a 13-year sample of homicide offenders in Finland.

Data on persons known to have committed homicide during a 13-year period were studied to determine factors associated with increased risk of repeating homicide. Between 1981 and 1993, a total of 1,649 homicides were committed in Finland. In 1,089 cases (66 percent), the offenders received an exhaustive forensic psychiatric examination. Data from reports of these examinations were analyzed to determine whether mental disorder and other factors were associated with homicide recidivism. Thirty-six homicide recidivists were identified. Twenty-four were alcoholics, 23 had a personality disorder, in most cases combined with alcoholism, four had schizophrenia, and two had major depression. Homicidal behavior was ten times more likely in men who had committed a previous homicide than in the general male population. Alcoholism increased the odds ratio of additional homicidal behavior in male homicide offenders about 13 times, and schizophrenia increased the odds ratio more than 25 times. During their first year after release from prison, male homicide offenders were about 250 times more likely to commit homicide than members of the general male population. The data suggest that mentally abnormal offenders are overrepresented among homicide recidivists in Finland. The risk of repeat homicide appears to be very high during the first year after release from prison.

A methodological model

Clues derived from the locations connected to violent repeat criminal offenders, such as serial murderers, rapists, and arsonists, can be of significant assistance to law enforcement. Such information allows police departments to focus their activities, geographically prioritize suspects, and to concentrate saturation or directed patrolling efforts in those zones where the criminal predator is most likely to be active. By examining spatial data connected to a series of crime sites, this methodological model generates a choropleth probability map that indicates the areas most likely to be associated to the offender—home, work site, or travel routes. Based on the Brantingham theoretical structure and the routine activities approach, the model goes beyond simple cluster or centroid analysis by employing specific serial murder research, overlapping modified Pareto functions, and Manhattan distances. The methodology is also sensitive to the target/victim opportunity backcloth, landscape issues, and problems of spatial “outliers.”

Evaluation of the multiple offender alcoholism project: Quasiexperimental evaluation strategy with a focus on individual change and quality of life

The development, implementation, and evaluation of a treatment program for violent criminal offenders with alcohol abuse/alcoholism is described. The treatment program was based on a contingency management system that rewarded program attendance and participation. The evaluation of the program, using quasiexperimental techniques (including comparisons with national samples and two independent local control samples), indicated that active program clients engaged in significantly fewer violent crimes and showed significantly improved life functioning (“quality of life”) in areas of employment and social adjustment during participation in the program. These beneficial changes were correlated with program participation and were also predictive of desired social outcomes, as defined by the criminal justice system, such as reduced alcohol consumption and reduced violent crime. This presentation illustrates that the goals of mental health treatment programs and traditional criminal justice system agencies (and their associated definitions of “quality of life”) are not necessarily incompatible.

Psychological Characteristics of Over- and Undercontrolled Violent Offenders

Megargee (1966, 1973) has predicted a number of concomitant social, behavioral, and psychological differences between chronically undercontrolled and chronically overcontrolled violent individuals. Attempts to validate his theory, however, have resulted in seriously inconsistent findings, possibly because of the use of a measure to classify violent subjects that is of seemingly dubious validity--the Overcontrolled Hostility (OH) Scale (Megargee, Cook, & Mendelsohn, 1967). The present study used a different strategy--the classification of subjects by expert raters on the basis of extensive case history information--to compare overcontrolled violent, undercontrolled violent, and nonviolent criminal offenders on a number of psychometric measures (16PF, Hostility and Direction of Hostility Questionnaire, Picture Situation Test, and the OH Scale). The findings were broadly consistent with predictions derived from Megargee's theory. Contrary to expectation, however, the nonviolent group did not obtain scores intermediate to the other two groups, but was statistically indistinguishable from the undercontrolled group, leaving a question as to the appropriateness of conceptualizing the typology in terms of over- and undercontrol of hostility and suggesting the necessity for some revision of the theory.

A Review of Sexual Homicide: Patterns and Motives

Abstract This is an exciting book. Written by two Special Agents of the FBI and a Professor of Psychiatric Mental Health Nursing, it presents in detail extensive data concerning 36 convicted, incarcerated sexual murderers. Primarily for law enforcement personnel, this volume provides an excellent perspective of criminal personality profiling, a technique developed by the FBI to help identify, apprehend, and convict violent criminal offenders. The authors demonstrate many ways in which these techniques have assisted in the apprehension, identification, and conviction of offenders. They show the social, environmental, and behavioral antecedents to sexual homicides; the relationship between the crime and the surroundings; the motivation leading to the criminal behaviors; and the factors assessed in legal and psychiatric investigations. These myriad elements ultimately cohere leading to criminal conviction and incarceration.

Predisposition to violence

This paper asks whether biological factors play a causal role in violent criminal offending. We consider the research on genetic influence and find no evidence of hereditary transmission of violent criminal behavior. There is considerable evidence, however, that violent delinquent and adult offenders exhibit an elevated frequency of brain damage. Potential sources of this brain damage exist in the prenatal and perinatal course of development.

Parental Mental Disorder and Offspring Criminal Behavior.

It is not unreasonable to expect that some biological predisposition toward antisocial behavior may characterize the most serious of recidivistic and violent criminal offenders. This study used the adoption method to examine the contribution of mental disorder in adoptees' biological backgrounds to their recidivistic and violent criminal offending. Multiple recidivistic nonviolent criminal behavior was found at a significantly elevated rate in adopted-away sons when mental disorder and criminal involvement were characteristic of the adoptees' biological families. A similar, but nonsignificant, elevation was found for rates of violence. Parental diagnostic types associated most strongly with sons' later criminal involvement were drug abuse, alcohol abuse, and personality disorders. Parental psychoses were not related to offspring recidivism or violence in this cohort. Possible confounding effects of missing data, institutionalization prior to adoption, information given to adoptive parents by the adoption agencies about the child's biological background, historical period, perinatal factors, and selective placement were considered. Perinatal factors could not be discounted as contributors to the findings.

Violent Criminal Acts and Offenders. By L. H. Athens. (Pp. 104; £6.50.) Routledge & Kegan Paul: Henley-on-Thames. 1980. - Sex Offenders in the Criminal Justice System. Edited by D. J. West. (Pp. 221; illustrated; £3.50.) Institute of Criminology: Cambridge. 1980.

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