Psychopathy in Adolescence Predicts Official Reports of Offending in Adulthood

The present study examines the incremental predictive utility of psychopathy assessed at age 13 using the Childhood Psychopathy Scale (CPS) in predicting official records of arrests and convictions between the ages of 18 and 26. Data from 338 men from the middle sample of the Pittsburg Youth Study were used. A variety of control variables were included: demographics (race, family structure, SES, and neighborhood SES), parenting (physical punishment, inconsistent discipline, lax supervision, and low positive parenting), peer delinquency, and individual difference variables (impulsivity, Verbal IQ, Attention Deficit/Hyperactivity Disorder, and Conduct Disorder). CPS scores at age 13 predicted the variety of arrests and convictions 5 to 13 years later, even after controlling for other well-established and well-measured risk factors. It is concluded that juvenile psychopathy is an important and useful risk factor for future antisocial behavior. Implications of these findings and reasons for resistance to the juvenile psychopathy construct are discussed.