NCJ Number
53119
Date Published
1978
Length
238 pages
Annotation
NINETY-THREE RECIDIVIST AGGRESSORS CONFINED TO MARYLAND'S PATUXENT INSTITUTION WERE STUDIED TO TEST THE VALIDITY OF A TWO-DIMENSIONAL METHOD FOR CLASSIFYING CRIMINAL BEHAVIOR.
Abstract
THE SYUDY WAS DIVIDED INTO FOUR ASPECTS: THE PRELIMINARY DATA COLLECTION, PERIODS OF EITHER DRUG OR PLACEBO THERAPY, AND A FOLLOWUP EVALUATION. DRUG-ACTIVATED ALPHA CHLORALOSE ELECTROENCEPHALOGRAMS WERE USED AS AN OBJECTIVE MEASURE OF EPILEPTOID AND/OR MATURATIONAL INSTABILITY OF THE CENTRAL NERVOUS SYSTEM OF THE 93 SUBJECTS. ADDITIONALLY, SELF-REPORTING SCALES WERE DEVISED TO ESTABLISH MEANS OF DISCONTROL BY SYSTEMATICALLY SCORING BEHAVIOR. UTILIZING THESE TWO DIMENSIONS, THE SUBJECTS WERE ASSIGNED TO FOUR GROUPS: GROUP 1--HIGH THETA-HIGH DISCONTROL, GROUP 2--LOW THETA-HIGH DISCONTROL, GROUP 3--HIGH THETA-LOW DISCONTROL, AND GROUP 4--LOW THETA-LOW DISCONTROL. IT WAS FOUND THAT THE CRITERION VARIABLES WERE SUFFICIENTLY POWERFUL TO SEPARATE UNIQUE CLINICAL ENTITIES, ALTHOUGH ROUTINE PSYCHOMETRIC AND PSYCHIATRIC DATA ALONE WERE INSUFFICIENT TO DEFINE THESE GROUPS ADEQUATELY. THE DATE YIELDED BY THE TWO-DIMENSIONAL APPROACH STRONGLY SUGGEST THAT IF A PERSON FOR WHATEVER REASON IS DESTINED TO BECOME 'PSYCHOPATHIC,' THE PATHOLOGY IS MORE SEVERE IF AN UNDERLYING CENTRAL NERVOUS SYSTEM INVOLVEMENT (GROUP 1 AND GROUP 3 VERSUS GROUP 4) IS SUPERIMPOSED AND EVEN SOMEWHAT MORE SEVERE IF THERE IS A SUPERIMPOSED NEUROTIC PROCESS (GROUP 2 VERSUS GROUP 4). IT ALSO SEEMS CLEAR THAT GROUP 2, AS PREDICTED, DOES REPRESENT A MORE NEUROTIC PROCESS; I.E., AN OVERCONTROLLED INDIVIDUAL DENYING BOTH GUILT AND MEMORY FOR HIS AGGRESSIVE ANTISOCIAL BEHAVIOR. ALTHOUGH THERE WAS SOME EVIDENCE THAT THE ANTICONVULSANT DRUG PRIMIDONE HAS POSITIVE CLINICAL EFFECTS, THE FINAL TEST OF THE VALIDITY OF THIS TWO-DIMENSIONAL CLASSIFICATION WILL DEPEND ON STUDIES OF AGGRESSORS ONCE THEY ARE RETURNED TO THE STREETS. THE DEFINITION, DESCRIPTION, AND MEASUREMENT OF EPISODIC DISCONTROL ARE DISCUSSED, ALONG WITH PROBLEMS AND ISSUES IN PRISON RESEARCH, NEUROLOGIC ABNORMALITIES IN PRISON SUBJECTS, AND THE DEVELOPMENT AND USE OF ELECTROENCEPHALOGRAM ACTIVATION AND THE SELF-RATING SCALE OF DISCONTROL. A LITERATURE REVIEW, REFERENCES, AND TABULAR AND GRAPHIC DATA ARE ALSO PROVIDED. SEE ALSO NCJ 53129 AND 53120-53124 FOR AMPLIFICATIONS OF SELECTED SECTIONS OF THE STUDY. (KBL)