NCJ Number
52384
Date Published
1978
Length
25 pages
Annotation
AN OVERVIEW OF THE ANTISOCIAL (SOCIOPATHIC, PSYCHOPATHIC) PERSONALITY--ITS CHARACTERISTICS AND BEHAVIORAL MANIFESTATIONS, DIAGNOSIS, POSSIBLE CAUSES, AND TREATMENT--IS PRESENTED.
Abstract
CENTRAL FEATURES OF THE ANTISOCIAL PERSONALITY INCLUDE INADEQUATE CONSCIENCE OR SUPEREGO AND STUNTED CAPACITY FOR LOVE AND EMOTIONAL INVOLVEMENT. A REVIEW OF THE CHARACTERISTICS OFTEN ASSOCIATED WITH THE ANTISOCIAL PERSONALITY--IMPULSIVITY AND AGGRESSION, SELFISHNESS IN GRATIFYING ONE'S OWN IMMEDIATE NEEDS, DISREGARD FOR SOCIETY'S RULES--MAKES IT CLEAR WHY MANY PERSONS POSSESSING SUCH A PERSONALITY EVENTUALLY FIND THEMSELVES IN CONFLICT WITH THE LAW. IT MUST BE REMEMBERED, HOWEVER, THAT CRIMINALITY AND ANTISOCIAL PERSONALITY ARE NOT SYNONYMOUS TERMS. IT IS ALSO IMPORTANT TO RECOGNIZE THE DISTINCTIONS BETWEEN THE ANTISOCIAL PERSONALITY AND SEVERAL FAIRLY COMMON ABNORMAL CONDITIONS (E.G., MENTAL RETARDATION, SCHIZOPHRENIA, MANIC STATES) THAT MAY ON OCCASION OR IN SOME RESPECT BEAR A SIMILARITY TO THE ANTISOCIAL PERSONALITY. A NUMBER OF THEORIES HAVE BEEN PROPOSED TO EXPLAIN THE ETIOLOGY OF THE ANTISOCIAL PERSONALITY: HEREDITY, BRAIN ABNORMALITY, OTHER PHYSIOLOGICAL VARIABLES, PSYCHOLOGICAL HYPOTHESES, A 'NEUROSOCIAL' THEORY THAT COMBINES SEVERAL PERSPECTIVES. SOME OF THE THEORIES ARE SUPPORTED BY RESEARCH DATA, BUT NO SINGLE CAUSE HAS BEEN FOUND. THE HISTORY OF ATTEMPTS TO TREAT THE ANTISOCIAL PERSONALITY IS CHARACTERIZED BY FAILURE, ALTHOUGH SOME SUCCESSES HAVE BEEN REPORTED. IT MAY BE THAT THE SEARCH SHOULD FOCUS ON PREVENTION, WHILE MAINTAINING HOPE FOR A CURE. THERE IS A NEED FOR A CAREFUL STATEMENT OF THERAPEUTIC INTERVENTIONS--THE OPERATIONS INVOLVED, UNDERLYING THEORY, METHODOLOGY--SO THAT ALLEGEDLY SUCCESSFUL INTERVENTIONS CAN BE EXAMINED CRITICALLY AND REPLICATED. A LIST OF REFERENCES IS INCLUDED. (LKM)