CRIMINOGENIC PERSONALITY:Personality Disorders, Common Crimes

<< TREATMENTS FOR THE SOUL:Tawba, Sabr o Shukr, Niyyat o Ikhlaas, Taffakkur

CRIMINOGENIC PERSONALITY AND VIOLENCE:Mnemonic, Similarities >>

Forensic Psychology (PSY - 513)

Lesson 22

CRIMINOGENIC PERSONALITY

Objectives:

To understand the developmental factors of criminogenic personality

To know about the different crime prone personality disorders

To understand the main characteristics of Anti Social Personality Disorder

To understand the common types of crimes, usually committed by individuals

with Anti Social Personality Disorder

To get an insight about the DSPD debate

Criminogenic Development

How does a criminogenic personality develop? What factors contribute to such personalities?

Psychologist have found several factors that contribute to the development of Crimnogenic

personalities.

1. Personality traits can predispose to criminality.

2. Biological basis are another reason for the development of such personalities

3. Personality traits and biological basis combined with early attachment like maternal

deprivation and lack of an appropriate "attachment" are another factor.

4. Socialization patterns like friends, environment of school, teachers also play an important role.

5. Early trauma

6. Early separation from any of parents or both parents, growing up without parental figures of

both sexes.

a. Removal from the home

b. Child hood physical beatings and sexual abuse

7. Inconsistent parenting is another factor like one overindulgent the other too strict. Mother is

polite and father is wild and abusive or vise versa. Or one day severe punishment for one thing

and other day same act is appreciated by parents. Such children usually learn to manipulate the

situations and take advantages of their own parent's weaknesses.

a. Overindulgence parenting,

b. Absence of parental discipline

c. No limit setting and no punishment and reward system is defined and used by

parents.

d. Erratic, inconsistent discipline

e. Both parents are inconsistent

Sometimes strict for no reason, at others indulgent for no reason

Personality Disorders

People who cannot contain their urges to harm (or kill) people repeatedly for no apparent reason are

assumed to suffer from some mental illness. However, they may be more cruel than crazy, they may

be choosing not to control their urges, they know right from wrong, they know exactly what they're

doing, and they are definitely NOT insane, at least according to the consensus of most scholars

(Samenow 2004). In such cases, they usually fall into one of three types that are typically

considered aggravating circumstances in addition to their legal guilt:

Forensic Psychology (PSY - 513)

Antisocial Personality Disorder

Borderline Personality Disorder ( are victim not abusers)

Narcissistic Personality Disorder

Paranoid Personality Disorder

Antisocial Personality Disorder (APD)

APD is practically synonymous with criminal behavior, but as with all distributions of a disease or

whatever in a population, it is probable that the majority of people with this particular affliction are

law-abiding. Aging, over involvements, and/or relationships might hold sway over the control or

lack of control in these kinds of people.

Individuals with an Antisocial Personality Disorder show a lack of concern toward the expectations

and rules of society and usually frequently become involved in at least minor violations of the rules

of society and the rights of others. A popular term for this type of individual is "psychopath".

Although the diagnosis is limited to those persons over eighteen years of age, it usually involves a

history of antisocial behavior before the age of fifteen. The individual often displays a pattern of

lying, truancy, delinquency, substance abuse, running away from home and may have difficulty

with the law. As an adult, the person often commits acts that are against the law and/or fails to live

up to the requirements of a job, financial responsibility, or parenting responsibilities. They tend to

have difficulty sustaining a long term marital relationship and frequently are involved in alcohol and

drug abuse. Basic characteristics of Anti social personality includes:

Main characteristics of Anti social personality disorder

1. Typically Male

This problem is much more prevalent in males than females. Old name of this disorder was

Psychopathy or Criminal Psychopath

Absolute disregard for the rights of others

Manipulative and deceitful and conning

Blameful of others

Pathological Liars

Impulse control problem

Irresponsible

Sexually promiscuous

Poly drug use

10.

Thrill seeking

11.

Hostage taking

12.

No victim empathy (Apathetic to others)

13.

absolutely no remorse, regret and guilt feelings for any crime and sin

Anti social personality disorder usually commit multiple types of crimes like:

Theft

Robbery

Assault

Rape

Escape from prison

Illegal substance use/ selling

Sexual crimes/ deviances

Exploitation of vulnerable people

Forensic Psychology (PSY - 513)

Common Crimes

Anti social personality usually commit following crimes:

Mobile snatching for buying drugs

Attacking unsuspecting victims

Opportunistic crimes, they do not plan for small things like purse or mobile snatching etc

Planning big things like bank robbery

Unrealistic goals and this unrealistic approach helps in their arrest.

They have been mostly found in blackmailing girlfriends into prostitution etc.

Detailed Analysis of Antisocial Personality Disorder

The incidence of APD is twice as high for inner-city residents than in small towns or rural areas. It

affects people in all social classes, but if someone with APD is born into a family of wealth and

privilege, they will usually manage to seek out a successful business or political career.

Poorer people with APD tend to wind up in state prison systems. The fact is that most of the current

prison population, shares the APD diagnosis. All it takes is a juvenile record, an adult offense career,

aggressivity, impulsivity, a checkered work history, and/or lack of demonstrable repentance. These can

be easily found in almost any prison inmate's folder.

As discussed earlier one of the things closely related to APD is the comorbidity of alcoholism and

narcotic addiction. Some of the criteria for a substance abuse disorder are very similar: theft,

hazardous behavior, failure to fulfill role functions in home, school, and work. A strong correlation

exists between substance abuse and factor 2 (antisocial behaviors) of the psychopathy construct. APDs

with a drug addiction have some serious substance abuse problems -- the kind that lead to death by

overdose or accident within five years. Are APD and narcotic addiction part of the same disorder, does

one lead to the other, or are they are spuriously linked together? From what little research there is, it

appears that most of the time, APD precedes narcotic addiction, although some of the time, addiction

leads to APD behaviors.

The DSPD Debate

Dangerous and Severe Personality Disorder, This is a highly controversial issue, whether the individual

with anti social personality disorder should be treated by force or not? Because they are dangerous for

society, are very likely to abandon the legal system.

They tend to be very manipulative during treatment and tend to lie and cover up personal faults in

themselves and have little insight into their behavior patterns. Many psychiatrists are of the opinion that

this disorder is not treatable to a reasonable level of success, especially where the sufferer is not

motivated and no effective change will occur. They further accept that the diagnosis of anti-social

personality disorder is in fact a limiting one. Although it is possible to offer help and support in such

cases, it is not possible to effectively impose treatment on an involuntary basis.

Further to this, any form of preventative detention requires a prediction of dangerousness, generally by a

psychiatrist following a risk assessment. Psychiatry is generally unable to predict dangerousness with

any great precision.

This is not a concrete, solid and clear issue with an absolute solution, what do you think about it? If a

person is diagnosed with Anti Social Personality Disorder although he has only committed theft and has

passed his six month sentence. Should that person be treated by force? Or should that person be treated

only by choice? Does he have the right to live free life if he does not commit any other crime?

Table of Contents: