Psychopathy and violent recidivism among young criminal offenders

Objective: To investigate the predictive validity of psychopathic personality traits (assessed with the revised psychopathy checklist, PCL‐R; Hare, 1991) for violent criminal recidivism among young offenders.Method:  The relationship between PCL‐R psychopathy and violent re‐offending was studied in 98 young (M=18.40, range 15–20 years) violent and sex offenders subjected to forensic psychiatric evaluation in Sweden during 1988–95. Subjects were followed during detainment and for 24 months in the community to first reconviction for a violent offence.Results:  We found a modest but significant association between PCL‐R scores and violent recidivism, almost exclusively accounted for by behavioural criteria. Among 13 possible confounders tested, conduct disorder before age 15 and a young age at first conviction eliminated the relationship between psychopathy and violent recidivism in pair‐wise logistic regression models.Conclusion:  PCL‐R psychopathy may be a less valid predictor for violent criminal recidivism among severe youthful offenders than among adult offenders.