Investigating psychopathic personality disorder in women

1. Investigating psychopathic personality disorder in women Mette Kreis, M.Sc. Postgraduate Research Student Glasgow Caledonian University Scottish Personality Disorder Network Workshop, Aberdeen, 29 May 2008

2. Psychopathy and gender • Introduction to the CAPP • Interactive CAPP activity • Presentation of research findings • Questions and discussion Workshop outline

3. Psychopathy and gender Background for PhD research

4. Psychopathy

5. Psychopathy Checklist-Revised (PCL-R; Hare, 1991, 2003) • 2 Factor model • 3 Factor model (Cooke & Michie) • 4 Factor model(s) Psychopathy Checklist: Screening Version (PCL:SV; Hart et al., 1995) Measuring psychopathy

6. Psychopathy in men

7. Psychopathy in women

8. Mainly validated with male offenders Not content validated on women Different factor structure across gender Differential expression of some items PCL-R reliable with women? PCL-R valid with women? Problems with PCL-R…

9. No conceptual framework for women No measurement framework BACK TO BASICS! Forouzan & Cooke (2005)

10. Introduction to the CAPP The Comprehensive Assessment of Psychopathic Personality (CAPP; Cooke, Hart, Logan, & Michie)

14. Interactive CAPP activity

15. Match symptoms with domains • Which symptoms do you feel are most relevant to psychopathy? • Which (if any) do you feel are most relevant to psychopathy in men and in women?

17. Presentation of research findings Prototypical analysis of psychopathy across gender

18. Map domain of symptoms of psychopathy in women Content validate the CAPP across gender Study aims

19. Wings Feathers Flies BIRD ?

20. Participants

21. Measure 6) LACKS EMOTIONAL DEPTH How prototypical is this symptom of psychopathy? Low prototypicality High prototypicality 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 Is this symptom more prototypical of psychopathy… IN MEN Equally prototypical IN WOMEN 1 2 3 4 5 6 7

22. Results: General ratings Lacks remorse Self-justifying Self-centred Uncaring Manipulative Prototypical Psychopathy Unreliable Unempathic Insincere Deceitful Self-aggrandizing Sense of entitlement Lacks emotional depth

23. Results: Gender differences Self-aggrandizing (1.02) Sense of invulnerability (.99) Domineering (.77) Reckless (.73) Aggressive (.71) Lacks emotional stability (.66) Unstable self-concept (.60) Manipulative (.23)

24. More emotionally unstable? Lacks emotional depth Sense of entitlement Prototypical psychopathic woman? Self-justifying Self-centred Uncaring Unempathic Deceitful Lacks remorse Manipulative Insincere Unreliable More unstable self-concept? More manipulative?

25. More men are psychopathic? Or are we just less able to recognise the disorder in women? Assessor gender bias? Men are aggressive, women are emotionally unstable Real gender differences in psychopathy? What do the results mean?

26. CAPP promising tool for assessing psychopathy across gender More marked gender differences in manifestation of symptoms? Gender awareness in assessment of psychopathy is essential! Conclusions

27. Do not expect to see the same presentation of psychopathy in women as in men Be aware of your own potential male “psychopathy prototype” bias For now, use assessment tools to aid formulation not diagnose! Practical implications for assessing psychopathy in women

28. Questions and discussion

29. What mechanisms might operate to create gender differences in psychopathy? (or in PD generally) • Why would psychopathy be different from other PDs in terms of gender differences? (Hare says it is!) Questions

30. Mette Kreis Glasgow Caledonian University Psychology Department Cowcaddens Road Glasgow, G4 0BA Tel: 0141 331 8853 Fax: 0141 331 3636 mette.felbertkreis@gcal.ac.uk