Do callous-unemotional traits moderate the effects of the juvenile justice system on later offending behavior?

Callous-unemotional traits moderate the association between inhibitory control and disruptive behavior problems

The presence of callous-unemotional (CU) traits may not be unique to conduct disorder (CD) but also extend to oppositional defiant disorder (ODD). While a distinct neurocognitive profile characterizes CU traits, it remains unclear whether this CU-related neurocognitive profile differs between youth with CD and ODD. This study investigated whether CU traits moderate the relationship between inhibitory control and CD or ODD symptoms. We leveraged computational modeling to decompose task-based inhibitory control in a sample of 200 children (59.5% boys, 86.5% Caucasian), aged 8 to 15 years (M = 10.10, SD = 1.88), referred to an outpatient child diagnostic clinic focused on externalizing problems. Analyses examined whether CU traits moderated the relationship between inhibitory control and CD or ODD symptoms while controlling for ADHD symptoms and child demographics. The results indicated that the strength of the relationship between inhibitory control and CD and ODD symptoms varies as a function of CU traits. Specifically, CD was linked to a more cautious decision-making style when elevated CU traits were present, whereas ODD was associated with more efficient decision making. These findings suggest distinct neurocognitive profiles based on CU traits, which vary between CD and ODD. Clinically, this underscores the importance of tailoring interventions for CD-CU and ODD-CU, focusing on decision making processes rather than merely addressing impulsivity. This research contributes to a more nuanced understanding of the interaction between neurocognitive processes and disruptive behavior, with significant implications for both theoretical models and treatment approaches.

Callous-unemotional traits, cognitive functioning, and externalizing problems in a propensity-matched sample from the ABCD study

BACKGROUND

Many studies show that both callous-unemotional (CU) traits (e.g., low empathy, lack of guilt) and cognitive difficulties increase risk for externalizing psychopathology across development. However, other work suggests that some aggression (e.g., relational, proactive) may rely on intact cognitive function, which could vary based on the presence of CU traits. Moreover, no prior research has adequately accounted for common risk factors shared by CU traits, cognitive difficulties, and externalizing problems, which confounds conclusions that can be drawn about their purported relationships. The current study addressed these knowledge gaps by leveraging rigorous propensity matching methods to isolate associations between CU traits and different dimensions of cognitive function and externalizing problems.

METHODS

Associations between CU traits, cognitive functioning, and externalizing outcomes were tested within dimensional (n = 11,868) and propensity-matched group-based (n = 1,224) models using data from the Adolescent Brain Cognitive Development Study®, with rigorous statistical control for shared sociodemographic risk factors. Cross-sectional outcomes were parent-reported symptoms of conduct disorder (CD), oppositional defiant disorder (ODD), and attention deficit hyperactivity disorder (ADHD). Longitudinal outcomes were child-reported overt and relational aggression.

RESULTS

CU traits were uniquely related to more parent-reported CD, ODD, ADHD symptoms, as well as more child-reported aggressive behaviors. Effects of cognitive difficulties were domain specific and were not consistent across dimensional and propensity matched models. There was minimal evidence for divergent associations between CU traits and externalizing outcomes as a function of cognition (i.e., no moderation).

CONCLUSIONS

Rigorous control for sociodemographic factors within propensity-matched models establish CU traits as a robust and unique risk factor for externalizing psychopathology, over and above difficulties with cognitive functioning.

Weapon use during the index offense: a study among forensic psychiatry patients in Ontario, Canada

BACKGROUND

Understanding the nature and circumstances around the use of weapons to perpetrate an offense among individuals with mental illness is crucial for evidence-informed policies and actions. However, little is known about the prevalence and factors associated with weapon use during index offenses among patients in the forensic system. Therefore, the present study was designed to address this gap and determine the prevalence and the patient and victim characteristics associated with weapon use during the index offense in a Canadian province.

METHODS

This retrospective exploratory study utilized data extracted from the Ontario Review Board reports of 2014/15. Data was analyzed using Stata, and logistic regression was employed to determine the factors associated with weapon use.

RESULTS

Approximately half (48.11%) of the individuals included in this analysis (n = 819) used weapons during their index offense as an instrument of violence. Both patient-related and victim-related factors had a statistically significant association with weapon use during index offenses. Specifically, two patient-related factors (including a history of hospitalization prior to the index offense and diagnosis of personality disorder) were associated with lower odds of weapon use during the index offense. However, only prior hospitalization remained statistically significant after adjusting for victims' factors. Victim-related factors were associated with both lower and higher odds of weapon use during the index offense. The highest odds of weapon use were found if the victim was an extended family member of the patient, followed by sibling, lover/partner/spouse, parent, and then adult acquaintance. The odds of weapon use during the index offense were lower if victims were healthcare workers, law enforcement professionals, and females when compared to adult strangers.

CONCLUSION

The study highlights the significant role of both patients' and victims' characteristics as important factors associated with weapon use during index offenses among forensic patients. Notably, prior hospitalization emerged as a crucial factor with a reduced likelihood of weapon use. Implicitly, this underscores the importance of risk mitigation strategies.

Trajectories of offending over 9 years after youths' first arrest: What predicts who desists and who continues to offend?

Antisocial and illegal behavior generally declines as youth approach adulthood, but there is significant individual variation in the timing of the peak and decline of offending from adolescence to young adulthood. There are two primary research questions in the present study. First, are there subgroups of youth who follow similar patterns of offending over the nine years after their first arrest? Second, what baseline factors predict which youth will follow each pattern of offending? Data were drawn from the Crossroads study, which includes a sample of racially and ethnically diverse boys who were interviewed regularly for 9 years following their first arrest. Boys were between 13 and 17 years old at the start of the study and were approximately 24-25 years old at the final interview. Trajectories were measured with youths' self-reported offending using latent class growth analysis (LCGA). Results indicated that there were four subgroups of youth: a stable low group (55%), an escalating group (23%), a short-term recidivist group (15%), and a persistently high group (7%). Several baseline factors distinguished the groups. In particular, the results indicated that youth who were informally processed after their first arrest were more likely to be in the low offending group than any of the other LCGA groups. Age at first arrest, peer delinquency, exposure to violence, substance use, callous-unemotional traits, physical aggression, and perceptions of police legitimacy were also significantly related to group membership. Results suggest that certain risk factors identified after youths' first arrest may predict which youth continue to offend and which desist.

Crime and punishment in Saudi Arabia: Lashing, imprisonment, and other unusual punishments

OBJECTIVE

In this paper, we examine the antecedents of the sanctions of lashing and imprisonment for juveniles in Saudi Arabia.

PARTICIPANTS AND SETTING

The current study examined 437 court cases and files across several court systems in Saudi Arabia to determine the extent to which justice-involved youth are punished. The data were drawn from hundreds of court files and records received from several court systems in Saudi Arabia spanning 2010 to 2015.

METHODS

We tested several predictor variables on sentence type, number of lashes, and prison length. We employed binary logistic regression to examine sentence type, while we employed negative binomial analysis to examine the second and third dependent variables, number of lashes and length of prison sentence, respectively.

RESULTS

We found that juveniles processed in juvenile court were more likely to receive more lenient sentences than juveniles tried in the general court system. In addition, older juveniles received harsher sentences (flogging and imprisonment) than younger juveniles (flogging or imprisonment), those who committed multiple offenses received more lashes than those who committed a single offense, and those who had both juvenile and adult criminal associates received more lashes than those who had only juvenile criminal associates. Moreover, the number of presiding judges influenced the severity of punishment: justice-involved youth who were tried by a single judge received fewer lashes than justice-involved youth who were tried by three or more judges. Lastly, justice-involved youth tried by a lone judge were less likely to be sentenced to a longer prison term than those tried by three or more judges. However, justice-involved youth tried by two judges received an even longer prison term than those tried by three or more judges.

CONCLUSION

About one-half of all rulings examined in the current study were presided over by a lone judge. While punishments imposed by lone judges were not as severe as those imposed by two judges or three or more judges, Saudi judges wield tremendous power over their fellow citizens, more so because there are no jury trials in the Kingdom. We therefore recommend that judicial training emphasize a "do no harm" principle in sentencing. Because a two-judge panel generally imposes a harsher sentence than a panel with three or more judges, we recommend an extensive examination of the country's prior judicial rulings presided over by two judges to understand why they are more likely to issue harsher sentences than lone judges or three- or four-judge panels. The findings would lead to the development of sentencing guidelines to curb arbitrary sentencing and reverse the generally unpredictable sentence lengths imposed on justice-involved youth.

The reciprocal relations between well‐being and maternal and peer warmth in adolescents involved in the juvenile justice system

INTRODUCTION

Although justice system involvement increases the risk of negative outcomes for adolescents, many justice-involved youth desist from crime as adults (Sampson & Laub, 2005). There are few studies examining predictors of positive development in justice-involved adolescents. In the current study, we assess the influence of maternal and peer warmth on the development of well-being in adolescents involved in the US justice system over the course of 5 years.

METHODS

Participants included 1216 adolescent males who experienced their first arrest. Interviews were given every year for 5 years. Well-being was measured using the EPOCH questionnaire (Kern et al., 2016) and relationship warmth was measured using a scale adapted from Conger et al. (1994). Hypotheses were tested using latent curve models with structured residuals.

RESULTS

Baseline levels of well-being were associated with maternal (β = 0.49, p < .001) and peer warmth, β = 0.52, p < .001. When an individual's maternal warmth was higher than predicted given their maternal warmth trajectory, their subsequent well-being was higher than expected given their well-being trajectory, b = 0.07, p < .001. When an individual's peer warmth was higher than predicted, their subsequent well-being was higher than expected, b = 0.06, p < .001. These relations were reciprocal, such that well-being also predicted increased maternal and peer warmth.

CONCLUSIONS

These findings suggest that increasing maternal or peer warmth may have cascading effects on the well-being of justice-involved adolescents. Interventions for justice-involved youth may benefit from targeting factors that increase positive development for these youth.

Using the Personality Assessment Inventory-Adolescent in Legal Settings

The Personality Assessment Inventory-Adolescent (PAI-A; Morey et al., 2007) is a self-report measure of personality and psychopathology appropriate for use with individuals aged 12-18. It is modeled after the Personality Assessment Inventory (PAI; Morey, 1991), a measure widely used with adults in clinical and legal settings. The PAI-A assesses a variety of features that have utility in legal settings, including validity scales that assess approach to testing, clinical scales measuring common types of psychopathology, and treatment consideration scales that provide indicators of treatment motivation and other factors that may be important for predicting outcomes. The PAI-A has been included in a limited number of research studies and few of those have focused on justice-involved youths. Additionally, because juvenile court records are not typically publicly available, there is limited information about the PAI-A available in case law. This manuscript reviews the properties, strengths, and weaknesses of the PAI-A and its existing literature. Factors for mental health and legal professionals to consider in relation to the admissibility of this measure, questioning and cross-examination, and how the PAI-A may be received in court are also discussed.