NCJ Number
58823
Journal
Criminal Justice and Behavior Volume: 6 Issue: 2 Dated: (JUNE 1979) Pages: 187-199
Date Published
1979
Length
13 pages
Annotation
PRESENTENCE REPORTS PREPARED BY FOUR CLINICIANS SHOW WIDE VARIATION IN THE USE OF DIAGNOSES OF NORMALITY, PERSONALITY TRAIT DISORDER, SOCIOPATHY, AND PSYCHIATRIC DISTURBANCE THOUGH THEIR SUBJECTS WERE SIMILAR.
Abstract
A RANDOM SAMPLE TECHNIQUE WAS USED TO DRAW 140 PRESENTENCE EVALUATIONS FOR FELONY OFFENDERS FROM THE FILES OF EACH OF THE FOUR CLINICIANS (3 PSYCHOLOGISTS AND 1 PSYCHIATRIST)--A TOTAL OF 560 CASES. A SERIES OF ONE-WAY, UNIVARIATE ANALYSES SHOWED THE FOUR SAMPLES WERE SIMILAR REGARDING AGE, SERIOUSNESS OF MOST RECENT OFFENSE, NUMBER OF PRIOR CONVICTIONS, INTELLIGENCE QUOTIENT (IQ), AND PERSONALITY TEST SCORES. DESPITE THIS CLIENT SIMILARITY, THE CLINICIANS VARIED WIDELY IN THEIR USE OF VARIOUS DIAGNOSTIC CATEGORIES AND EMPLOYED DIFFERENT INFORMATION IN MAKING THEIR DIAGNOSTIC DISCRIMINATIONS. FURTHERMORE, LABELS AND SENTENCING RECOMMENDATIONS WERE RELATED. A LABEL OF NORMALITY WAS USUALLY ACCOMPANIED BY A RECOMMENDATION FOR PROBATION WHILE CLASSIFICATION AS A SOCIOPATH WAS ASSOCIATED WITH RECOMMENDATIONS FOR LONG-TERM, INVOLUNTARY CONFINEMENT IN AN INSTITUTIONAL SETTING. THE CLINICIANS WITH THE MOST HIGHLY DEVIANT RECOMMENDATION RATES ALSO SHOWED THE MOST DIFFERENCE IN THEIR USE OF THE NORMAL AND SOCIOPATHIC CATEGORIES AND MADE JUDGMENTS THAT WERE MINIMALLY RELATED TO OBJECTIVELY ASSESSED CHARACTERISTICS OF OFFENDERS. A COMBINED CLINICAL AND STATISTICAL APPROACH TO GATHERING AND UTILIZING DIAGNOSTIC INFORMATION MIGHT REDUCE SUCH BIASES. TABLES PRESENT STUDY DATA AND REFERENCES ARE APPENDED. (AUTHOR ABSTRACT MODIFIED--GLR)