Date of Award

Spring 8-1-2009

Document Type

Dissertation

Degree Name

Doctor of Psychology (PsyD)

Department

Psychology

First Advisor

Jennifer L. Boothby

Second Advisor

Patrick R. Bennett

Third Advisor

Michael J. Murphy

Abstract

This study is a direct extension ofNoble's (2006) research that showed that psychopathy and social interest are related to disciplinary infractions committed by male inmates. While Noble's (2006) population used male inmates, this study examined the relationship of these constructs to female inmates' disciplinary infractions. Psychopathy is defined by a lack of empathy, egocentricity, and superficial charm (Cleckley, 1964). Social interest, on the other hand, is characterized by a willingness to cooperate with others and an ability to accept responsibility (Kaplan, 1991 ). Participants in this investigation were 114 female inmates from a prison facility within the Indiana Department of Corrections. Participants completed two self-report questionnaires, the Psychopathic Personality Inventory- Short Form (PPI-SF) (Lilienfeld & Hess, 2001) and the Sulliman Scale of Social Interest (SSSI) (Sulliman, 1973). The researcher measured disciplinary infractions by the total number of disciplinary infractions committed and by a weighted total consisting of the interaction between severity and total number of disciplinary infractions. Contrary to the findings obtained by Noble (2006), the results failed to find a significant correlation between total scores on the PPI-SF and SSSI with disciplinary infractions. However, the PPI-SF subscale 5 (Fearlessness) found a significant positive relationship with the weighted total of disciplinary infractions. Age was the only other variable that significantly correlated with the criterion variables. The discussion addresses these findings with particular attention on the differences between these results with female inmates and previous results with male inmates.

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