PSYCHOPATHY - A CLINICAL CONSTRUCT WHOSE TIME HAS COME

Although the evolution of psychopathy as a formal clinical disorder be gan more than a century ago, it is only recently that scientifically s ound psychometric procedures for its assessment have become available. The result has been a sharp increase in theoretically meaningful and replicable research findings, both in applied settings and in the labo ratory. The construct of psychopathy is proving to be particularly use ful in the criminal justice system, where it has important implication s for sentencing, diversion, placement, and treatment options and for the assessment of risk for recidivism and violence. Although the etiol ogy of the predatory, cold-blooded nature of psychopathy remains obscu re, the theories and methods of cognitive neuroscience and behavioral genetics promise to greatly increase our understanding of this disorde r.