Psychopathy in the treatment of forensic psychiatric patients; Assessment, prevalence, predictive validity, and clinical implications

Concern about the effectiveness of treatment of forensic psychiatric patients focuses particularly on patients who are diagnosed with psychopathic personality disorder, because of the complex nature of the disorder itself, its co-morbidity with other types of mental disorder and its association with criminogenic risks and needs. Given the compelling evidence for its validity, the Hare Psychopathy Checklist - Revised (PCL-R; Hare, 1991) a 20-item clinical rating scale, has emerged as the standard for the assessment of psychopathy. This study is the fist to consider the role of PCL-R psychopathy in Dutch male offenders involuntarily admitted to a forensic psychiatric hospital under the socalled TBS-order (terbeschikkingstelling). The topic is of increasing importance, because of the growing societal and political pressure on the forensic psychiatric hospitals societal and political pressure on the forensic psychiatric hospitals to provide effective treatment and to minimize re-offending of their patients. Is psychopathy related to verbal and physical aggression within the hospital? Do psychopathic offenders show improvement after inpatient treatment? What is the relationship between psychopathy and compliance with treatment activities? Are psychopathic patients more likely than nonpsychopathic offenders to commit further offenses after release? This compelling and critical book deals with all of these fundamental questions regarding the treatment of pyschopathic patients.