PS6011: Psychopathy and Anti-social Personality Disorder Analysis

This essay delves into the concepts of psychopathy and anti-social personality disorder (ASPD), exploring their characteristics, causes, and neurological underpinnings. It begins by defining psychopathy and its key features, emphasizing its alignment with criminal justice and the absence of a formal definition from psychological institutions. The paper then analyzes Adrian Raine's thesis on ASPD, focusing on six key points: the origins in childhood conduct disorder, genetic influences (particularly the MAO-A gene), the role of hormones and neurotransmitters, neurological impairments, the stability of the disorder across the lifespan, and the impact on adult life. The essay highlights the role of the prefrontal cortex, the impact of hormones and neurotransmitters, and the role of genetics in the development of ASPD. It concludes that individuals with ASPD often lead challenging lives due to their aggressive and impulsive behavior, and that both internal and external factors must be considered for treatment and support. References from APA 7th edition are included.

Running head: PSYCHOPATHY AND ANTI-SOCIAL PERSONALITY DISORDER
Psychopathy and anti-social personality disorder
Name of the Student
Name of the University
Author Note

1PSYCHOPATHY AND ANTI-SOCIAL PERSONALITY DISORDER
Table of Contents
Introduction......................................................................................................................................2
Anti-social personality disorder.......................................................................................................2
Conclusion.......................................................................................................................................6
References:.......................................................................................................................................7

2PSYCHOPATHY AND ANTI-SOCIAL PERSONALITY DISORDER
Introduction
Psychopathy refers to the evidenced mental illness or disorder within a particular
individual of the society (Venables, Hall & Patrick, 2014). It is mainly a personality disorder and
the characteristic feature of psychopathy is that of a persistent form of antisocial behavior. It is
found to be complemented by the attitudes of remorse, empathy, egoistical and disinhibited traits
of the individual. Although no psychological institutions have sanctioned a formal definition of
psychopathy, the characteristics of this mental disorder are found to be aligned with the issue of
criminal justice. The purpose of this paper is to understand the concept of psychopathy. To this
extent, it has attempted to analyze the question if psychopathy constitutes a form of neuro-
development or mental disorder. There are evidences which suggests that psychopathy is linked
to certain specific abnormalities in the brain structure. According to Wygant et al. (2016), most
of the violent crimes are committed by the male members of the society who are suffering from
anti-social personality disorder. The thesis mentioned by Raine has been comprehensively
analyzed within this assignment so that the various features as advocated in this theory can be
analyzed.
Anti-social personality disorder
Adrian Raine was one of the most well-known spokesperson on the issue of psychopathy
and that of anti-social personality disorder. Such anti-social personality disorder is considered to
be existing when the individual has a persistent and pervasive disregard for anything related to
the social norms, the issue of morality and ethics and that of the feelings of the other individuals
of the society (Anderson et al., 2014). Individuals found to be suffering from such anti-social
personality disorder have no problem with exploitation of the others in a harmful manner for

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their own pleasure and selfish motives. They are found to display the lack of remorse, have
considerable arrogance and think of others in a negative light (Wall, Wygant & Sellbom, 2015).
To this extent, Adrian Raine has pointed out six main points in relation with that of the anti-
social personality disorder and the consequent nature of psychopathy.
The first point that he talks about is that of conduct disorder. While the issue of anti-
social disorder is considered to be a mental disorder within the adult population of the world, this
disorder has its precedent among such individuals from the time of their childhood (Werner, Few
& Bucholz, 2015). The criteria for the anti-social personality disorder by the DSM-6 states that
the person who suffers from any kind of conduct problems, can be evidenced from the age of
fifteen years. About twenty five to forty percent of the young individuals who suffer from
conduct disorder, have the tendency to be diagnosed with anti-social personality disorder in their
adult life. Children who are diagnosed with this disorder are found to exhibit aggressive and
impulsive behavior. They are also found to engage in a repetition of petty crimes such as fighting
with the other members of the society, engaging in vandalism and that of stealing and burglary
(Storebø & Simonsen, 2016). The concerned children also have the inclination to participate in
the abuse of substances.
Another point which has been mentioned by Raine related to that of anti-social
personality disorder is that this disorder may have its basis in genetics of the individuals. The
prevalence of the disorder is found to be significantly higher among those individuals of the
society who are related to someone who were earlier afflicted with this disorder (Howard,
Khalifa & Duggan, 2014). Among the specific genes that may be involved in the generation of
the anti-social personality disorder, one of the specific genes with a higher extent of correlation
is that of the Monoamine oxidase A or MAO-A. It is an enzyme which is involved in the break

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down of the monoamine neurotransmitters such as that of the norephinephrine and serotonin
(Waldman et al., 2018). The research studies which have analyzed the relationship of the genes
to the behavior have suggested that the different variants of the particular gene which have less
amount of MAO-A have considerable associations with an heightened sense of aggressive
behavior, especially among the male population of the society.
The third important point raised by Raine in relation to that of the anti-social personalty
disorder is that of hormones and neurotransmitters. The prevalence of traumatic events can cause
a significant disruption of the development of the central nervous system of the individuals
(Gregory et al., 2015). The nervous system is associated with the release of the hormones that
have the potential to change the normal patterns of the development of the individuals, As a
result of this, the symptoms of impulsivity and that of aggressiveness develop, leading to the rise
of the anti-social personality disorder. Testosterone, one of the main defining hormone found
within the male population of the society, plays a significant role in the rise of aggressiveness
within the brain structure. This impact of testosterone is found to be counteracted by the cortisol
that have the ability to facilitate the cognitive control of the impulsive inclination of the
individuals. Furthermore, the lower levels of serotonin is also found to be associated with that of
the rise in the anti-social personality disorder. There are evidences which have suggested that the
decrease in the functioning of the serotonin is found to be highly correlated with that of the
generation of aggression and impulsivity of the individuals.
The fourth point as advocated by Raine is that the anti-social personality disorder is
found to be accompanied by certain neurological impairments such as that of trauma to the head.
The anti-social behavior can be associated with the decrease in the grey matter of the brain found
in the right lentiform nucleus, frontopolar cortex and that of the left insula (Edens et al., 2015).

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The individuals who have exhibit such anti-social personality disorder have demonstrated the
decrease in the activity in the prefrontal cortex of the brain structure. This association is more
apparent in the functional neuroimaging as opposed to the structural neuroimaging. This is
important to understand because the prefrontal cortex is considered to be important for taking
pertinent decisions and that of planning ahead in the future.
The fifth point as raised by Raine in the concept of the anti-social personality disorder is
that development of the disorder is found to be relatively stable within the life progress of the
individuals. In other words, the individuals exhibit the signs of aggression and impulsivity
throughout their life without any changes in the execution of their behavior with the other
members of the society. They do not relapse or undergo remission when certain treatments are
given to them in order to counteract the prevalence of the anti-social personality disorder
(Newbury-Helps, Feigenbaum & Fonagy, 2017). This is important to be taken in to consideration
since the concerned individuals of the society do not have the option of changing their
personality in the long run. They have to be taken care of by the other members of the society
and by their own family members so that they do not engage in any socially undesirable
activities or cause persistent harm to the community.
Another point as raised by Adrian Raine within the field of anti-social personality
disorder is that the conduct of the individuals diagnosed by this disorder continues in to the adult
life of the individual. This severely affects the occupational life of the individual as well as their
relation with the other members of the society. The aggressive attitude of the individuals who
suffer from the anti-social personality disorder often restraints them from forming lasting
relations with the community members, even that of their family members (Frick & Marsee,
2018). The extent and nature of their communication is obstructed when compared with that of

6PSYCHOPATHY AND ANTI-SOCIAL PERSONALITY DISORDER
the other normal behaving attitude of the individuals. Furthermore, they are often impulsive in
their behavior to the extent that they attempt to undertake any activity that they want to during
that point of time. As a consequence of their, their professional life gets affected negatively as
they do not know how to approach the other members in their work place in a professional and
practical manner.
Conclusion
In conclusion, it can be observed that the people of the society who are diagnosed with
the anti-social personality disorder lead an extremely difficult life. The conduct disorder thata
rises as a result of the personality disorder leads to the rise in the extent of their aggressive and
impulsive behavior. They fail to communicate with the other members of the society and often
exhibit attitudes which frightens or scare the community members. Furthermore, the issue of
genetics have also been brought to the limelight of the individuals suffering from the anti-social
personality disorder. The internal factors of the impairments in the genes suggests that the
disorder is clinical in nature and therefore, is not easily curable even when the external factors
are well taken care of. The various external factors such as the prevalence of an abusive
environment within the household is complemented by the impairments in such neurological
transmitters. Thus, there is a need to take in to consideration all this factors while accounting for
the anti-social personality disorder as observed within the individuals of the society.

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References:
Anderson, J. L., Sellbom, M., Wygant, D. B., Salekin, R. T., & Krueger, R. F. (2014).
Examining the associations between DSM-5 section III antisocial personality disorder traits
and psychopathy in community and university samples. Journal of Personality
Disorders, 28(5), 675-697.
Edens, J. F., Kelley, S. E., Lilienfeld, S. O., Skeem, J. L., & Douglas, K. S. (2015). DSM-5
antisocial personality disorder: Predictive validity in a prison sample. Law and Human
Behavior, 39(2), 123.
Frick, P. J., & Marsee, M. A. (2018). Psychopathy and developmental pathways to antisocial
behavior in youth.
Gregory, S., Blair, R. J., Simmons, A., Kumari, V., Hodgins, S., & Blackwood, N. (2015).
Punishment and psychopathy: A case-control functional MRI investigation of reinforcement
learning in violent antisocial personality disordered men. The Lancet Psychiatry, 2(2), 153-
160.
Howard, R. C., Khalifa, N., & Duggan, C. (2014). Antisocial personality disorder comorbid with
borderline pathology and psychopathy is associated with severe violence in a forensic
sample. The Journal of Forensic Psychiatry & Psychology, 25(6), 658-672.
Newbury-Helps, J., Feigenbaum, J., & Fonagy, P. (2017). Offenders with antisocial personality
disorder display more impairments in mentalizing. Journal of personality disorders, 31(2),
232-255.

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Storebø, O. J., & Simonsen, E. (2016). The association between ADHD and antisocial
personality disorder (ASPD) a review. Journal of attention disorders, 20(10), 815-824.
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