NCJ Number
64207
Journal
Journal of Clinical Psychology Volume: 35 Issue: 4 Dated: (OCTOBER 1979) Pages: 807-814
Date Published
1979
Length
8 pages
Annotation
A STUDY OF 126 INMATES CORRELATES GROUPS OF INTELLIGENCE QUOTIENT (IQ) TESTS SCORES WITH PRISON INFRACTIONS AND CERTAIN OTHER CRIMINAL BEHAVIORS.
Abstract
ALTHOUGH ATTEMPTS TO UTILIZE IQ TESTS TO DISTINGUISH CRIMINALS FROM NORMAL PERSONS HAVE PROVED FRUITLESS, EVIDENCE INDICATES PATTERNS CAN BE DISCERNED WITHIN CRIMINAL POPULATIONS. WECHSLER ADULT INTELLIGENCE SCALES (WAIS) AND OTHER ACHIEVEMENT TEST SCORES OF 63 BLACK AND 63 WHITE INMATES FROM A FLORIDA PENITENTIARY WERE STUDIED. INMATES WERE 17 TO 26 YEARS; MEAN IQ'S WERE 103 FOR WHITES AND 93 FOR BLACKS. SUBJECTS' INCIDENCES OF PRISON MISCONDUCT WERE ALSO RECORDED. APPLICATION OF VELDMAN'S HIERARCHICAL PROFILE ANALYSIS PRODUCED FIVE WAIS PROFILE TYPES FOR EACH RACE. ANALYSIS SHOWS SIGNIFICANT RELATIONSHIPS BETWEEN CERTAIN WAIS GROUPS AND ROBBERY OR DRUG OFFENSES. FURTHER, PARTIAL CORRELATIONS INDEPENDENT OF FULL-SCALE IQ SCORES REVEALS SIGNIFICANT RELATIONSHIPS BETWEEN SOME WAIS GROUPS AND PRISON INFRACTIONS. ANALYSIS OF COVARIANCE THAT CONTROLLED FOR FULL-SCALE IQ DIFFERENCES REVEALS SIGNIFICANT DIFFERENCES AMONG THE PROFILE GROUPS WITHIN EACH RACE. BEHAVIORAL TENDENCIES AND WAIS GROUPS WERE DEEMED RELATED BY THE ABSENCE OF CERTAIN TYPES OF MISCONDUCT IN THREE GROUPS WHEN IQ SCORES WERE CONTROLLED. CONTROLLING FOR OTHER PRISONER BEHAVIOR, SUCH AS WORK ASSIGNMENT OR INTERPERSONAL ADJUSTMENT MAY REVEAL YET MORE RELATIONSHIPS BETWEEN PRISONER BEHAVIOR AND WAIS PROFILES. ALTHOUGH THIS STUDY SUPPORTS PROFILE ANALYSIS, FURTHER RESEARCH IS SUGGESTED TO CROSS-VALIDATE THE STUDY'S FINDINGS. FOOTNOTES, REFERENCES, AND TABULAR INFORMATION ARE INCLUDED. (PAP)