Psychopathy, a developmental disorder characterized by profound social disturbance, is associated with impaired recognition of distress cues. Since distress processing and moral socialization are closely linked, uncovering techniques to improve distress recognition could have positive treatment implications for developmental disorders that feature empathy impairments. Previous studies demonstra...

The current project seeks to integrate literatures on personality risk for antisocial behavior (ASB) by examining how callous-unemotional traits relate to (a) the development of disinhibited traits and (b) the association between disinhibited traits and ASB. In Study 1, using a nationally representative sample of youth (N > 7,000), we examined whether conduct problems and lack of guilt assessed...

Deficits in emotional reactivity are frequently reported in Disruptive Behavior Disorders (DBDs). A deficit in prosocial emotions, namely the callous unemotional traits (CU), may be a mediator of emotional reactivity. Our aim is to investigate subjective emotional reactivity towards visual stimuli with different affective valence in youths with DBDs and healthy controls. The clinical sample inc...

Children with conduct problems (CP) persistently violate others' rights and represent a considerable societal cost. These children also display atypical empathic responses to others' distress, which may partly account for their violent and antisocial behavior. Callous traits index lack of empathy in these children and confer risk for adult psychopathy. Investigating neural responses to others' ...

The aim of this study was to compare callous-unemotional (CU) traits versus the multidimensional psychopathy construct in their ability to predict future and stable antisocial behavior. At baseline, a community sample of 996 Cypriot 12-year old adolescents (52% girls) completed measures that tap conduct problems (CP) and psychopathic traits, including CU. CP, aggression, and substance use were ...

There are few studies that explore the association between cognitive and affective factors according to gender types of crime in juvenile offenders. This study analyzed callous-unemotional traits, empathy, moral disengagement mechanisms differences criminal typology 149 adolescents (M = 17.72 years, SD 1.34) prosecuted by Criminal Responsibility System (SRPA) placed custodial measures. The 81.2...

The present study investigated differences in the behavioral and psychophysiological responses to provocation and in the level of callous-unemotional traits in boys exhibiting different patterns of aggression. Eighty-five boys (ages 13-18) in a juvenile detention center played a competitive computer task against a hypothetical peer who provided low and high levels of provocation. Youth high on ...

This study presents evidence on the reliability and construct validity of the Dutch version of the Youth Psychopathic traits Inventory (YPI), a self-report instrument for psychopathic traits in adolescent boys and girls. In a sample of 776 Dutch non-referred adolescents, the YPI was found to have good internal consistency. Furthermore, exploratory Principal Components Analysis (PCA) indicated a...

The present study investigated differences in the behavioral and psychophysiological responses to provocation and in the level of callous-unemotional traits in boys exhibiting different patterns of aggression. Eighty-five boys (ages 13-18) in a juvenile detention center played a competitive computer task against a hypothetical peer who provided low and high levels of provocation. Youth high on ...