Psychopathy, temperament and antisocial behaviour in girls

Objective: This study addresses the question whether temperament and character differ between antisocial incarcerated girls with and without psychopathy. Furthermore, it inquires whether this model discriminates between groups with varied psychopathy symptoms. Method: 170 incarcerated girls aged 14 to 17 years were examined using the German version of the Junior Temperament and Character Inventory (JTCI 12-18) and the Psychopathy Checklist Youth Version (PCL: YV). On the basis of the PCL: YV scores the girls were divided into three high-scoring psychopathy groups and compared to a group without psychopathy. Results: Three-quarters of the juvenile criminals did not show psychopathy; the percentage of those scoring high on the psychopathy core dimensions was only 7%. With the aid of Cloninger's model of personality, differences in the psychopathy groups as compared to the nonpsychopathy group were identified regarding the dimensions novelty seeking, reward dependence, cooperativeness and self-transcendence. However, specific relationships between individual psychopathy dimensions and the JTCI-factors could not be identified. Conclusions: The results confirm the existence of the psychopathy construct in female delinquents, though the percentage of girls with core psychopathy dimensions is very small. The differentiating temperament factors found among girls scoring high on psychopathy dimensions as opposed to girls without psychopathy indicate that psychopathy is a valid construct that can identify a specific subgroup of antisocial girls with core psychopathy symptoms.