Duquesne University Duquesne Scholarship Collection Electronic Theses and Dissertations Summer 2010 Describing Emotional, Social, and Cognitive Processes in Adolescents with and without Psychopathic Traits: Examining Rorschach Variables Vanessa Rae Talkington Follow this and additional works at: https://dsc.duq.edu/etd Recommended Citation Talkington, V. (2010). Describing Emotional, Social, and Cognitive Processes in Adolescents with and without Psychopathic Traits: Examining Rorschach Variables (Doctoral dissertation, Duquesne University). Retrieved from https://dsc.duq.edu/etd/1267 This Immediate Access is brought to you for free and open access by Duquesne Scholarship Collection. It has been accepted for inclusion in Electronic Theses and Dissertations by an authorized administrator of Duquesne Scholarship Collection. For more information, please contact [email protected]. DESCRIBING EMOTIONAL, SOCIAL, AND COGNITIVE PROCESSES IN ADOLESCENTS WITH AND WITHOUT PSYCHOPATHIC TRAITS: EXAMINING RORSCHACH VARIABLES A Dissertation Submitted to the School of Education Duquesne University In partial fulfillment of the requirements for the degree of Doctor of Philosophy By Vanessa Talkington August 2009 Copyright by Vanessa Talkington 2009 DUQUESNE UNIVERSITY SCHOOL OF EDUCATION Department of Counseling, Psychology and Special Education Dissertation Submitted in partial fulfillment of the requirements for the degree of Doctor of Philosophy School Psychology Doctoral Program Presented by: Vanessa Talkington B.A. Psychology and Philosophy, Duquesne University, 2005 M.S.Ed. Graduate School Psychology Program, Duquesne University, 2006 July 29, 2009 DESCRIBING EMOTIONAL, SOCIAL, AND COGNITIVE PROCESSES IN ADOLESCENTS WITH AND WITHOUT PSYCHOPATHIC TRAITS: EXAMINING RORSCHACH VARIABLES Approved by: _____________________________________________, Chair Tammy Hughes, Ph.D. Associate Professor/Chair Department of Counseling, Psychology & Special Education Duquesne University _____________________________________________, Member Jeffrey A. Miller, Ph.D., ABPP Professor/Associate Dean Graduate Studies and Research Duquesne University _____________________________________________, Member Carol Parke, Ph.D. Associate Professor Department of Educational Foundations and Leadership Duquesne University iii ABSTRACT DESCRIBING EMOTIONAL, SOCIAL, AND COGNITIVE PROCESSES IN ADOLESCENTS WITH AND WITHOUT PSYCHOPATHIC TRAITS: EXAMINING RORSCHACH VARIABLES By Vanessa Talkington August 2009 Dissertation supervised by Tammy Hughes, Ph.D. The current study examined the effectiveness of select Rorschach Inkblot Method (RIM) variables in detecting individual differences among youth diagnosed with Conduct Disorder (CD) who were either high or low on psychopathic traits. Twenty-nine male adolescents with CD in an alternative education school setting were placed into high or low psychopathy groups based on their Hare Psychopathy Checklist (PCL: YV) scores. Significant differences were found for WSum6, a RIM variable that measures cognitive ideation. However, both CD groups gave very few answers that yielded rich RIM protocols. That is, answers tended to be simple and similar, making inferential statistics uninterpretable. Consequently, students with PCL: YV scores ≥ 30 were examined to determine if there were any patterns in RIM scores. Overall descriptive data of the entire sample (N = 63) were also examined to provide a description of the types of students that iv may be found in similar settings. Implications for treatment according to emotional, social, and cognitive functioning, and as related to the practice of school psychologists, are also provided. v ACKNOWLEDGEMENT Ultimately I would like to thank my family for all of their love, support, and encouragement that enabled me to succeed this far in life and to achieve beyond what I ever thought imaginable. To my father for encouraging my thinking, providing unending encouragement and patience, and instilling within me a sense of self-determination that I carry with me in every day that I challenge. To my mother for always believing in me, and for providing unending support and love. I cannot express how thankful I am for both of your sacrifices. You both have taught me the most important things in life that an education could never compete with. I would also like to thank my sister for being my other half. I appreciate having you to grow with and for helping me to become who I am today. To her family as well, including my niece and nephew, the new loves of my life. I am particularly thankful to my dissertation committee, as well as the faculty as a whole, for providing me with the educational experiences that have allowed me to grow over the years, as well as helped to shape me into the professional that I am becoming. To my dissertation chair, Dr. Hughes, for your knowledgeable guidance and support, for being proactive in seeking opportunities for me, and for your support in the dissertation process. To Dr. Miller, my faculty advisor, for all of your encouragement and constructive feedback, and for helping me to realize my potential. And to Dr. Parke, I am grateful for your patience and for helping me to understand critical components of my dissertation. I would also like to acknowledge the committee’s hard work and flexibility as a whole that enabled me to reach my ambitious deadlines in the completion of this vi process. Further, I would like to extend particular thanks to Dr. Gacono for his insight, patience, and openness in helping me to understand my data and its implications, as well as his direction that helped to guide my efforts. I am especially thankful to my cohort and other students in the program for their continued support and camaraderie. Particularly, I would like to thank my directed research group for their assistance in gathering and compiling the data used for this study. Special thanks are extended to Dr. Greene and my directed research group for their efforts in building the database used for this study over the past several years. Finally, I would like to thank my friends and loved ones for understanding, supporting, and standing by me through all of my social sacrifices over the many years that you have known me as a student. May I be able to continue to support you in all of your own endeavors and offer you the same friendship and love in return. vii TABLE OF CONTENTS Page Abstract.............................................................................................................................. iv Acknowledgement ............................................................................................................. vi List of Tables ................................................................................................................... xiii Chapter 1: Introduction........................................................................................................1 Theoretical Basis..................................................................................................................2 Relevant Literature...............................................................................................................3 Problem Statement...............................................................................................................4 Definitions............................................................................................................................5 Research Questions and Hypotheses ...................................................................................5 Chapter 2: Literature Review...............................................................................................7 Conduct Disorder and Adolescents......................................................................................7 Significance and Prevalence ................................................................................................7 Conduct Disorder and the DSM-IV .........................................................................7 Characteristics and Theories of Conduct Disorder ..................................................8 Gender and Age...........................................................................................9 Biology.........................................................................................................9 Temperament .............................................................................................10 Familial Influences.....................................................................................11 Comorbidity ...............................................................................................12 Developmental Pathways to Conduct Disorder .........................................13 Psychopathy .......................................................................................................................15 viii Significance and Prevalence ..................................................................................15 History of Psychopathy..........................................................................................16 Development of Psychopathy ................................................................................19 Callous-Unemotional Traits.......................................................................21 Psychopathy and Conduct Disorder.......................................................................23 Psychopathy and Juvenile Offenders.....................................................................25