Rep36 Understanding Personality Disorder

References
Bandura, A. (1986). 
Social foundations of thought and action
. Englewood Cliffs, N. J.: Prentice-Hall.
Blackburn, R. (1993). 
The psychology of criminal conduct: Theory, research and practice
. Chichester: Wiley. 

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Revised (PCL-R; Hare, 1991, 2003). Male
offenders who score highly on the PCL-R have
been found to reoffend – generally and violently
– on release from prison up to four times more
frequently than those with lower scores
(Hemphill 
et al.
, 1998). In addition, research
indicates that individuals with psychopathic traits
tend to reoffend more quickly, they continue
offending at a higher rate into middle age than
those without such traits, and they are more
violent when incarcerated (Doyle & Dolan, 2000;
Hare & Hart, 1993). Psychopathy is a risk factor
for sexual violence, although it is associated
more with the nature and severity of sexual
violence than with its likelihood (Hart 
et al.
, 2003). 
Some types of offending may be associated
with personality disorders. For example, research
has shown a link between arson and borderline
personality disorder (e.g. Duggan & Shine,
2001). However, individuals who have been
diagnosed with personality disorder
understandably feel unfairly stigmatised by the
association with offending behaviour (Ferguson
et al
. 2003). Psychological perspectives on
violence risk emphasise the importance of
assessing the range of criminogenic or risk
factors, of which personality disorder may be
only one. Violent – and sexually violent –
behaviour is linked to many factors such as
substance misuse, contacts with criminal
associates, criminal attitudes, a previous history
of offending, lack of interpersonal and cognitive
skills, and so on. Thus, it is vital to consider the
range of relevant risk factors when assessing the
nature and likelihood of future criminal
behaviour and not personality disorders in
isolation. Research into offending behaviour and
the ways in which some types of offending may
be associated with personality disorder will help
to differentiate more clearly the links.