Juvenile Psychopathy and Juvenile Delinquency

Abstract

Many research findings have supported the study of psychopathic personality in children and adolescents by evidencing reliability and coherence in factor structure: construct validity, principally based on the association with other variables in a theoretically coherent manner; predictive value, particularly in identifying a specific subgroup of children and adolescents with a severe and persistent pattern of behavioral and psychosocial maladjustment; the presence of distinctive correlates, suggesting the presence of particular etiological mechanisms; temporal stability and, even more important, the presence of patterns of change, delineating some factors that may be influencing both of them; and the potential distinctive response to treatment and intervention efforts. Given that youths with high levels of conduct problems and psychopathic traits are likely to engage in serious and persistent forms of antisocial and criminal behavior and account for a large proportion of serious offenses, they should be primarily derived to intensive preventive and intervention programs.