Psychopathy Measure

Most psychological problems, including psychopathy, originate as a result of developmental obstacles. As a result, depending on the testing age, a psychopathy measure should reflect the patient's prior features. For example, if the subject is over the age of thirty, it is vital to consider their development from ages one to five, twelve to eighteen, and twenty-nine. The test would look for any history of incomplete stages of development, such as mismanaged social anxiety throughout adolescence and body shaming as a young adult (Vien & Beech, 2006). For instance, a young adult may not succeed to find a personal identity, love and career path during the 20s, which can lead to frustrations that cause a violent behavior of feeling that the world owes them. In addition, it is important to consider significant behavioral patterns during critical periods of growth in childhood. For example, there is a high score of psychopathy for an impulsive five-year-old and an irresponsible teenager who stays out late and doesn’t see any wrongdoing regardless of the punishment.

A psychopathy test must include a history of juvenile and adult offenses. A study of past juvenile offenses helps to trace any patterns formed by the subject and thus aid in formulating a treatment plan by dealing with each particular problem from the behavioral pattern. A history of adult offenses is also crucial in understanding the motivation behind a crime, and thus providing knowledge about any missing elements in the psychopath’s emotional makeup. The test should also consider both juvenile and adult offenses that are not convicted because psychopaths have bloated feelings of being above the law and therefore may not feel the intended impact of a jail term or any form of retribution. An accurate measure also includes any previous involvement in crime whether it resulted in an arrest or not because a person’s intentions tell about their state of mind even without the actual crime being committed (Vien & Beech, 2006). The rationale behind considering crimes that are not convicted or that led to arrest is that the key to solving most issues lies in what is unseen or ignored such as dismissed offenses.

The cognitive behavior is most critical to the determination of psychopathy. First, a trained psychiatrist should test the sincerity of charm of the subject during childhood and as an adult. For example, a person who is appealing to everyone and too friendly without any traces of dislikable traits could be a psychopath hiding features they fear others can dislike. Secondly, psychopaths exhibit flashes of contempt, which is a feeling that someone or something is beneath consideration. A keen eye of a trained psychiatrist should notice contempt through hidden and quick flashes of facial expression, but a lack of concentration in the conversation or business at hand is the primary detector of a contemptuous individual. Contempt measures psychopathy because psychopaths have a bloated sense of self-importance and disregard for the feelings or needs of other (Vien & Beech, 2006). Thirdly, a measure of psychopathy should consider the various variables of emotional state such as anxiety, empathy, conscience, and depth of emotions. The different measures of emotional intelligence are shallow and short-lived for a psychopath but profound and sincere for a mature, responsible individual.

To conclude, psychopathy is one of the most difficult impairments to identify. Psychopaths first appear to be charming, but actually, they lack conscience and feeling of reality. Therefore, measuring impulsivity and aggression of such people are to occur to detect a possible criminal.



Reference

Vien, A, & Beech, A. (2006). Psychopathy : Theory, measurement, and treatment. (Trauma, Violence, & Abuse), 7(3), 155-174. Retrieved on July 1, 2006 from http://journals.sagepub.com/doi/10.1177/1524838006288929





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