Construct validity of the Hare Psychopathy Checklist, Revised, on a UK prison population

Abstract

The Hare Psychopathy Checklist, Revised (PCL-R) is a 20-item scale, which is rated on the basis of interview information and collateral review, yielding total and factor scores. The PCL-R was administered to 104 receptions at Grendon therapeutic prison. Scores from the PCL-R were correlated with Raven's Standard Progressive Matrices (Raven, 1960), Hostility and Direction of Hostility Questionnaire (Caine, et al., 1967), Eysenck Personality Questionnaire, Revised (Eysenck and Eysenck, 1991) and the Personality Diagnostic Questionnaire, Revised (Hyler et al., 1988). Results generally support the construct validity of the PCL-R and are consistent with previous research, with significant correlations of a low to moderate order found in the predicted directions. Psychopathy was found to be associated with high levels of overall hostility, extrapunitive hostility and personality characteristics such as psychoticism and impulsivity. It was significantly associated with personality disorders of the sadistic, anti-social, borderline, histrionic and schizotypal types and high levels of personality disorder comorbidity. It was not significantly associated with non-verbal reasoning capacity. Factor 1 scores failed to correlate significantly with most other subscales, indicating that whilst the present test battery taps the anti-social/behavioural aspects of psychopathy the interpersonal aspects are being missed.

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