To tell or not to tell? Psychopathic traits and response integrity in youth delinquency surveys

• Published in: Criminal behaviour and mental health 2016-04, Vol.26 (2), p.81-93
• Main Authors: Laajasalo, Taina, Aronen, Eeva T., Saukkonen, Suvi, Salmi, Venla, Aaltonen, Mikko, Kivivuori, Janne
• Format: Article
• Language: English
• Subjects: Adolescent; Adolescent Behavior; Antisocial personality disorder; Antisocial Personality Disorder - diagnosis; Antisocial Personality Disorder - psychology; Behavior; Capabilities; Crime; Crime - statistics & numerical data; Criminality; Delinquency; Drug abuse; Female; Finland; Honesty; Humans; Juvenile delinquency; Juvenile Delinquency - psychology; Juvenile Delinquency - statistics & numerical data; Juvenile offenders; Male; Medical screening; Mental disorders; Morality; Narcissism; Personality; Personality Inventory - statistics & numerical data; Property; Property offences; Psychopathology; Response style; Self Report; Surveys and Questionnaires; Violence; Violence - psychology; Violent crime
• ISSN: 0957-9664; 1471-2857
• DOI: 10.1002/cbm.1940

Background Individuals with high psychopathy scores are capable of providing valid self‐reports on their own personality traits, but there have been no empirical studies of the effect of psychopathic features on responding to sensitive survey questions about specific behaviours. Aims The aim of this study is to investigate any relationship between facets of psychopathy and participants' willingness to report antisocial acts in youth delinquency surveys, controlling for demographic variables known to be associated with response integrity. Methods In a nationally representative sample of 4,855 Finnish mainstream adolescents aged 15–16, honesty of responding was assessed through direct response integrity questions related to violence, property crime and drug use. Psychopathy was measured with the Antisocial Process Screening Device – Self Report (APSD‐SR). Results Callous–unemotional traits and, to a lesser degree, narcissistic features were associated with a dishonest response style, although the effect size was modest. Conclusions Although psychopathy does not seem to influence the capability and willingness to report personality traits accurately, it may be associated with endorsing dishonest responses to questions about specific behaviours that have possible repercussions. Our findings suggest that previously observed associations between adolescents' self‐reported delinquent behaviour and psychopathic traits may be underestimations of the strength of the effects. Copyright © 2014 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.