Correlates of Perceived Coercion during Psychiatric Hospital Admission

The objectives of this study were to replicate the study of C. W. Lidz et al (see record 1996-15479-001); examine the differences in perceptions about hospital admission for voluntary and involuntary patients (16 yr olds and older), all of whom had been involuntarily detained initially for psychiatric evaluation; and examine the impact of community members vs hospital staff, locus of control, and psychiatric symptom severity on patients\u27 perceptions of coercion. Results substantiate earlier findings of Lidz et al in that legal status (involuntary), procedural justice, and negative pressures are significantly related to perceived coercion. Although all patients in this study were detained involuntarily initially, those permitted to sign as voluntary perceived their hospital admission as less coercive and more respectful, fair, and dignified than did those against whom petitions for involuntary treatment had been filed. Locus of control and symptom severity were unrelated to perceived coercion. Finally, the results suggest that procedural justice and negative pressures from community members bore a stronger association with perceived coercion than did experiences with hospital staff involved in the patient\u27s admission

Evaluation of the Hare-PSCAN in a Non-Clinical Population

Using 100 university undergraduates as participants, this study examined the structural reliability and construct validity of Hare and Hervé\u27s P-SCAN (Hare & Hervé, 1999) a 90-item measure that purports to serve as an “… early warning system” or “rough screening device” (p. 1) for identifying individuals with substantial psychopathic features. Internal consistency indices (e.g. Cronbach\u27s α, mean inter-item correlations) for the three P-SCAN subscales (Interpersonal, Affective, Lifestyle) suggested excellent reliability. Statistically significant, though modest correlations (range 0.21–0.33) were obtained in 5 of 6 comparisons with the self-report Primary psychopathy and Secondary psychopathy scales developed by Levenson, Kiehl, and Fitzpatrick (1995) for use with non-institutional populations. Evidence for the external validity of the P-SCAN was obtained via significant positive correlations (range 0.22–0.24) with participants\u27 scores on a self-report measure of antisocial activity. Limitations of this study and interpretations of P-SCAN as a measure of psychopathic features are discussed

Further Validation of the Psychopathic Personality Inventory among Offenders: Personality and Behavioral Correlates

The Psychopathic Personality Inventory (PPI; Lilienfeld & Andrews, 1996) is a relatively new self-report measure that has shown considerable promise as an index of psychopathic traits in both nonoffender and offender samples. The present study examined the construct validity and predictive utility of the PPI by examining its association with theoretically relevant scales of the Personality Assessment Inventory (PAI; Morey, 1991) among 60 male prison inmates, and its ability to predict institutional misbehavior in an expanded sample (n = 89). As expected, correlations with the PAI scales were highest for the Antisocial Features (ANT) and Aggression (AGG) scales (rs = .68 and .57, respectively). The PPI also predicted various forms of nonviolent and physically aggressive disciplinary infractions significantly better than chance (point biserial correlations ranging from .26 to .37)

Criminal Recidivism among Juvenile Offenders: Testing the Incremental and Predictive Validity of Three Measures of Psychopathic Features

We studied the predictive, comparative, and incremental validity of three measures of psychopathic features (Psychopathy Checklist: Youth Version [PCL:YV]; Antisocial Process Screening Device [APSD]; Childhood Psychopathy Scale [CPS]) vis-à-vis criminal recidivism among 83 delinquent youth within a truly prospective design. Bivariate and multivariate analyses (Cox proportional hazard analyses) showed that of the three measures, the CPS was most consistently related to most types of recidivism in comparison to the other measures. However, incremental validity analyses demonstrated that all of the predictive effects for the measures of psychopathic features disappeared after conceptually relevant covariates (i.e., substance use, conduct disorder, young age, past property crime) were included in multivariate predictive models. Implications for the limits of these measures in applied juvenile justice assessment are discussed

The competence-related abilities of adolescent defendants in criminal court

Increasing numbers of youths are being tried in criminal court because of statutory measures that have decreased the use of judicial review as the primary mechanism for transfer. The relative immaturity of adolescents suggests that transferred youths might have impaired competence-related abilities compared to adults. To test this hypothesis, we compared the competence-related abilities and developmental characteristics of a sample of direct-filed 16-17-year-olds charged in criminal court in the state of Florida (Direct File sample) to a sample of 18-24-year-old adults charged in criminal courts (Adult Offender sample) and to a separate sample of 16-17-year-olds charged in juvenile court (Juvenile Court sample). Results indicated that there were few differences between the Direct File youths and Adult Offenders. The differences that were observed suggested that the Direct Filed youths performed slightly better than the Adult Offender group and the Juvenile Court youths charged in juvenile court. These findings suggest that as a group, 16-17-year-old Direct File adolescents do not have significant deficits in competence-related abilities due to age or immaturity

The Broward Mental Health Court: Process, Outcomes, and Service Utilization

Mental health courts are one of a variety of special jurisdiction courts that have been created in a number of countries, including the United States (Petrila, 2003). While there is no prototypical mental health court (Steadman, Davidson, & Brown, 2001; Watson, Luchins, & Hanrahan, 2001), most of those in existence today share several common characteristics

The Factor Structure and Convergent Validity of the Aggression Questionnaire in an Offender Population

The study examined whether the 4-factor structure of the Aggression Questionnaire (AQ; A. H. Buss and M. Perry, see record 1993-00039-001), consisting of Physical Aggression, Verbal Aggression, Hostility, and Anger, would replicate in an offender population. The AQ and Novaco\u27s Anger Scale (NAS; R. Novaco, 1994) were administered to 200 adult offenders. The results of a confirmatory analysis suggested that the 4-factor model is a poor fit in an offender population. A 2-factor model was suggested: 1 factor combines Physical Aggression and Anger; the other combines Verbal Aggression and Hostility. Evidence of convergent validity of the 2-factor model was provided by high correlations between the AQ and the NAS