Psychopathy Essay Example for Free

Psychopathy Essay There have been many studies linking conduct disorder to antisocial personality disorder and sometimes to psychopathy as well. Conduct disorder appears in children and adolescents and involves behavior that violates rights of others and/or societal norms or rules. According to the Diagnostic and Statistical Manual for Mental Disorders, Fourth Edition (DSM-IV), the individual’s behavior must include actions such as aggression to people or animals, destruction of property, deceitfulness or theft, serious violations of rules, as well as a clinically significant impairment in the adolescent’s social, academic, or occupational functioning. The DSM-IV states that in order for a child or adolescent to be found to be presenting Conduct Disorder he or she must present with three or more of the above listed behaviors in the past twelve months, including at least one in the past six months (McCaullum, pp. 6-12, 2001). Those who present with antisocial personality disorder may or may not present with psychopathy. There are two main assessment devices used to evaluate the level of psychopathy that a person exhibits. The Psychopathy Checklist-Revised (PCL-R) was developed by Robert Hare in 1980 and revised in 1991 (Blair et al, 2005). The Antisocial Process Screening Device (APSD) is another device used to assess psychopathy in adults (Frick Hare, 2001a). Both of these assessments consist of twenty behavioral items, scored from zero to two, that are used to measure whether or not a person possesses certain traits that, when combined, are common to those of people diagnosed with psychopathy. There have been many research studies conducted over the years concerning the validity and effectiveness of the Psychopathy Checklist- Revised. One such study was aimed at assessing whether or not the level of psychopathy of an individual, as measured by the Psychopathy Checklist- Revised, was correlated to that individual’s probability of violent recidivism (Tengstrom, Grann, Langstrom, Kullgren, 2000). The study had a sample size of 202 male violent offenders presenting with schizophrenia that ranged in ages from 16 to 67. The base rate for each individual’s Psychopathy Checklist- Revised score was 26 and the base rate for reconvictions during follow-up was 21% (Tengstrom, Grann, Langstrom, Kullgren, 2000). Overall, his study showed a positive relationship between score on the Psychopathy Checklist- Revised and the level of violent recidivism. The implications of this research study show that the Psychopathy Checklist- Revised can be used as a tool to gauge the likelihood of reconvictions concerning violent crimes, at least when discussing male violent offenders that present with schizophrenia. Another study, conducted by Walters and colleagues (2003), strived to determine whether the Psychopathy Checklist- Revised or the Lifestyle Criminality Screening Form (LCSF) compared to each other when assessing levels of disciplinary adjustment and recidivism. Although the results of the study showed that the two tests were similar in results, the Lifestyle Criminality Screening Form only took about ten minutes to complete while the Psychopathy Checklist- Revised takes between two and three hours (Walters et al, 2003). Therefore, it was concluded in the study that if there was a high risk of offender recidivism or disciplinary maladjustment, the Lifestyle Criminality Screening Form would possibly be a better choice due to the cost-effectiveness of the inventory. Due to the abundance of characteristics tested for in the Psychopathy Checklist- Revised, there have been many studies to assess which of those have a greater effect than others when discussing propensity to commit violent offenses. According to Blair and associates (2002), one of the specific symptoms presented in individuals with psychopathy is a reduced level of empathic response. There has been a positive relationship found between high levels of antisocial behavior and low levels of empathetic response. This supports the reason that both the Psychopathy Checklist-Revised (PCL-R) and the Antisocial Process Screening Device for children include the lower levels of empathetic response to victims in their criteria of psychopathy (Blair et al, 2005). One of the most common methods in which this theory has been tested is by measuring the level of skin conductance in individuals while presenting them with images of people in distress. Both children with psychopathic tendencies and adults with psychopathy present reduced autonomic responsiveness (Blair et al, 1997). This study shows that while those not presenting with psychopathy show high levels of autonomic responsiveness through sweating due to empathy felt by viewing the disturbing images, those that present with psychopathy or psychopathic tendencies do not. According to a study conducted by Blair and Coles (2000), individuals presenting with psychopathic tendencies or psychopathy tend to have a reduced ability to name both fearful facial expressions and fearful vocal affect (Stevens et al, 2001). An interesting fact coinciding with this finding is that while both children with psychopathic tendencies as well as adults with psychopathy present with this lowered empathetic response to fear and sadness, they do not show impairment in responding to expressions of happiness, anger, or surprise (Blair et al, 2005). Another factor associated with psychopathic tendencies or psychopathy is a partially inhibited ability to make the distinction between moral and conventional transgressions. A moral transgression is explained by Turiel (1983) as one that is defined by its consequences pertaining to the rights and well-being of individuals, such as hurting a person. A conventional transgression is assessed by its consequences for the social order (Turiel, 1983). A person that is not presenting with psychopathy will not present with an inability to distinguish between moral and conventional transgressions. They tend to reference the victim in a moral or conventional transgression situation more frequently when explaining their reason as to why they believed the transgression to be wrong. In the case of those presenting with psychopathic tendencies, psychopathy, as well as some other antisocial disorders, individuals make less references to the victims included in the situation and also seem to have a more difficult time distinguishing between moral and conventional transgressions discussed in the situation (Blair et al 1995a). The second of the two previously mentioned deficiencies in the ability to distinguish between moral and conventional transgressions is even more prevalent when the rules banning the specific transgressions are removed from the scenario. Thus, if there is no law or rule prohibiting the act or transgression, children with psychopathic tendencies, adults with psychopathy, as well as other antisocial populations will show a decreased ability to distinguish between the two types of transgressions (Nucci Herman, 1982). Another area that is studied in order to search for differences in populations that present with psychopathy is that of gender and ethnicity. In a study by McCoy and Edens (2006), researchers looked to test the theory that stated that individuals of African descent are more likely to present with psychopathy. The study included 945 Black and White youths who were assessed using the Psychopathy Checklist- Youth Version. There was a lack of results showing any significant difference between Caucasians and those of African descent. However, there was an unexplained heterogeneity among the individual races. The researchers from this study advised that more research should be conducted in this area of study in order to attempt to discover the reason for this similarity within the individual races. Another study, this one conducted by Kosson, Smith, and Newman (1990), used a combination of three separate research projects in order to come to a conclusion. The first study was aimed at examining the internal structure of the Psychopathy Checklist and and its scores in relation to several constructs relevant to psychopathy. This first study found that there were differences between Whites and Blacks in the distribution of psychopathy scores. It also noted a difference between the two groups in the relation of psychopathy to measures of impulsivity. The second study was focused on assessing patterns of passive avoidance manifestations as compared to the results in a study conducted by Newman and Kosson (1986). It found that the levels of passive avoidance manifestations were similar, but not identical, in the two groups. The third and final study consisted of assessing the levels of criminal charges received by both psychopaths and non-psychopaths. This portion of the study was particularly interesting in that it found that psychopaths do, in fact, receive more criminal charges than do non-psychopaths (Kosson, Smith, Newman, 1990).

Erich Maria Remarques All Quiet on the Western Front and Mary Shelleys :: Remarque Western Shelley Frankenstein Essays

Erich Maria Remarque's All Quiet on the Western Front and Mary Shelley's Frankenstein Erich Maria Remarque's All Quiet on the Western Front and Mary Shelley's Frankenstein shows how the change in society has an effect on people. But they both take different methods of showing it. All Quiet on the Western Front shows how war takes the lives of others and the effects on people during the war.Frankenstein, even though it is fictional, tells a story of a distraught dream of science by artificial means of life. Both stories have different effect surrounding each character want and needs throughout the plot. First, to understand All Quiet on the Western Front and Frankenstein it must be analyze first. Then, they must be broken down for a compare and contrast. All Quiet on the Western Front takes place in Germany. The war that is being fought is World War I. There, the young are basically joined the military for the idea of adventure. First, they go to training relaxed and basically thinking nothing of the war that is ahead. As they enter the war, they are shocked to see the conditions of it. When on the battlefield they rush into trenches to avoid the on coming fire and shells. When solider go to hospital it wasn't uncommon for there boots to be taken. It was a way to how war leave mental scare on people. It was a kind of respect to show that a solider was important to others. After the death of Kemmerich, Paul kills a Frenchmen and looks at as he has killed a man. Instead of looking at the Frenchman death as a victory it is more of remorse because it was a death of a human being. Paul then goes though a metal state to help the family of the Frenchmen. He lost his frontline position and was sent home. As he tells his war stories, friend a family believed him to be a fool. The people in the town had no idea what effects of World War I had on people and left old soldier to be 'coward'. A few of the symbols in All Quiet on the Western Front where the boots of other men that dies in World War I and the life of what they missed at home. A pair of boots showed the loss of a fellow soldier as a way to move on. It leave behind that though that this was a man that died here, not a pawn that is uses for war. Also, the boots stood for a friendship that other soldier might have had for him.

Five Factor Theory

One of the long held goals of psychology has been to establish a model that can conveniently describe human personality and disorders therein, with the intent to use this model in the remedying of personality disorders and improving general understanding of personality. Currently, a handful of models have risen to prominence, and have thus far stood the test of time. Some models are more generally accepted than others. Support for some models seems to come and go in cycles. One of the more prominent models in contemporary psychology is what is known as the five-factor model of personality. This theory incorporates five different variables into a conceptual model for describing personality. These five different factors are often referred to as the â€Å"Big 5†. The five-factor theory is among the newest models developed for the description of personality, and this model shows promise to be among the most practical and applicable models available in the field of personality psychology. Thorough critical attention is given to the proposal that the five-factor model is in fact a great theory. As it became evident to many psychologists that, mathematically, combinations of five factors were useful in describing personality, there was a need to clearly define what these factors were. Indeed, this process led to some dissent in the ranks. One dissenter from the five-factor theorists was renowned psychologist H. J. Eysenck. Eysenck felt that, due to overlaps in the five factors and their correlates, in fact a three-factor model was more appropriate and accurate. His theory is called the PEN model (which stand for psychoticism, extroversion, neuroticism), or sometimes is even shortened to the two factor E-IN model (extroversion-introversion, neuroticism). Many psychologists support Eysenck's PEN model. However, of the major â€Å"factor-analytic models†¦ the Big Five dominates the landscape of current psychological research† (Ewen, 1998, p. 141). Through extensive debating and experimenting, there is currently a general consensus in the realms of scholarly psychology as to the identity of the five factors, and their basic interpretations and values to analysis of personality. The five factors are extroversion-introversion, neuroticism, agreeableness, conscientiousness, and openness. Extroversion has long been one of the traits that has appeared in factor-analytic models, and is one of the two traits to appear in both the five-factor model and Eysenck's PEN and E-IN models. Extroversion also is sometimes referred to as social adaptability, though the popularity of this term seems to be waning. Extroversion is defined as a trait characterized by a keen interest in other people and external events, and venturing forth with confidence into the unknown. Neuroticism is the other trait to play a role in most of the contemporary factor models for personality. In some studies, adjustment is examined as a factor, instead of neuroticism. In this case, higher scores will indicate a positive result, consistent with the other four factors. This is because the term neuroticism has an inherent negative denotation (Bradshaw, 1997). The bases of neuroticism are levels of anxiety and volatility. Within these bounds, neuroticism is a dimension of personality defined by stability and low anxiety at one end as opposed to instability and high anxiety at the other end. Openness, agreeableness, and conscientiousness are all terms with which most people outside the realm of psychology are familiar. In general, openness refers to how willing people are to make adjustments in notions and activities in accordance with new ideas or situations. Agreeableness measures how compatible people are with other people, or basically how able they are to get along with others. Conscientiousness refers to how much a person considers others when making decisions. As with the two factors in the big five from Eysenck's E-IN, these three are also placed on sliding scales. These three scales, like neuroticism and extroversion, slide between their limits to give a clear picture of personality. The limits of these scales give a clear idea of their applications and are defined as trusting and helpful versus suspicious and uncooperative (agreeableness), hard working and reliable versus lazy and careless (conscientiousness), and nonconformist and creative versus conventional and down-to-earth (openness). Never the less, there are many other theorist who have evaluated the five factor theory in a much boarder aspect. These researchers began by studying all known personality traits and then factor- analyzing hundreds of measures of these traits in self-report and questionnaire data, peer rating and objective measures from experimental settings in order to find the basic, underlying factors of personality. The big five factors of personality are five broad domains or dimensions of personality which have been scientifically discovered to define human personality at the highest level of the organization. These five over-arching domains have been found to ontain and subsume more or less all known personality traits within their five domains and to represent the basic structure behind all personality traits. They have brought order to the often-bewildering array of specific lower level personality concepts that are constantly being proposed by psychologists, which are often found to be overlapping and confusing. These five factors provide a rich conceptual frame work for integrating all the research fi ndings and theory in personality psychology. Three sets of researchers have worked independently for decades on this problem and have indentified generally the same Five Factors. They are Goldberg at the Oregon Research Institute, Cattell at the University of Illinois, and Costa and McCrae at the National Institutes of Health. These three sets of researchers used somewhat different methods in finding the five traits, and thus each set of five factors has somewhat different names and definitions. However, all three sets have been found to be highly inter-correlated and factor-analytically aligned. The Big Five Factors are commonly known as Openness, Conscientiousness, Extraversion, Agreeableness and Neuroticism, also Known as OCEAN or CANOE. OPENNESS Openness is a general appreciation for art, emotion, adventure, unusual ideas, imagination, curiosity, and variety of experience. The trait distinguishes imaginative people from down-to-earth conventional people. People who are open to experience are intellectually curious, appreciative of art, and sensitive to beauty. They tend to be, compared to closed people more creative and more aware of their feeling. They are more likely to hold unconventional beliefs. In addition, people with low scores on openness tend to have more conventional, traditional interest. They prefer the plain, straight forward and obvious over the complex, ambiguous and subtle. They may regard the arts and sciences with suspicion, regarding these endeavours as abstruse or of no practical use. Close people prefer familiarity over novelty. They are conservative and resistant to change. CONSCIENTIOUSNESS Conscientiousness is the tendency to show self-discipline, act dutifully and aim for achievement. The trait shows a preference for planned rather than spontaneous behaviour. It influences the way in which we control, regulate, and direct our impulses. Conscientiousness includes the factor known as Need for Achievement or NAch. It is obvious that the benefits of conscientiousness are high. Conscientious individuals avoid trouble and achieve high levels of success through purposeful planning and persistence. They are also positively regarded by others as intelligent and reliable. On the negative side, they can be compulsive perfectionists and workaholics. EXTRAVERSION Extraversion is characterized by positive emotions, surgency and the tendency to seek out stimulation and the company of others. The trait is marked by pronounced engagement with the external world. Extraverts enjoy being with people and are often perceived as full of energy. They tend to be enthusiastic, action oriented individuals who are likely to say â€Å"I most certainly will! † or â€Å"Come on let’s go! † to opportunities that will excite them. When placed in groups they are likely the first to talk, and assert themselves, just to draw attention to themselves. However, Introverts lack the exuberance, energy and activity levels of extraverts. These individuals tend to be quiet, low-key, deliberate, and less involved in society. Their lack of social involvement should not be interpreted as shyness or depression. Introverts simply need less stimulation than extraverts and more time alone. AGREEABLENESS Agreeableness is a tendency to be compassionate and cooperative rather than suspicious and antagonistic towards others. The trait reflects individual differences in general concern for social harmony. Agreeable individuals value getting along with others. They are generally considerate, friendly, generous, helpful and willing to compromise their interests with others. Agreeable people also have an optimistic view of human nature. They believe people are basically honest, decent and trustworthy. On the other hand, disagreeable individuals place self-interst above getting along with others. They are generally unconcerned with others’ well being and are less likely to extend themselves for other people. Sometimes their scepticism about others’ motives causes them to be suspicious, unfriendly and uncooperative. NEUROTICISM Neuroticism is the tendency to experience negative emotions, such as anger, anxiety or depression. Emotional instability it is sometime called. Individuals who score high in neuroticism are emotionally reactive and vulnerable to stress. They are more likely to interpret ordinary situations as threatening and minor frustrations as hopelessly difficult. Their negative emotional reactions tend to persist for unusually long periods of time, which means they are often in a bad mood. These problems in emotional regulation can diminish the ability of a person scoring high on neuroticism to think clearly, make decisions and cope effectively with stress. However, on the other end of the scale, those who score low in neuroticism are less easily upset and are less emotionally reactive. These individuals tend to be calm, emotionally stable, and free from persistent negative feelings. Freedom from negative feelings does not mean that low scorers experience a lot of positive feelings. Frequency of positive emotions is a component of the Extraversion domain.

RADAR and Doppler RADAR Invention and History

Sir Robert Alexander Watson-Watt created the first radar system in 1935, but several other inventors have taken his original concept and have expounded and improved on it over the years.  The question of who invented radar is a bit murky as a result. Many men had a hand in developing radar as we know it today.   Sir Robert Alexander Watson-Watt   Born in 1892 in Brechin, Angus, Scotland and educated at St. Andrews University, Watson-Watt was a physicist who worked at the British Meteorological Office. In 1917, he designed devices that could locate thunderstorms. Watson-Watt coined the phrase ionosphere in 1926. He was appointed as the director of radio research at the British National Physical Laboratory in 1935 where he completed his research to develop a radar system that could locate aircraft. Radar was officially awarded a British patent in April 1935. Watson-Watts other contributions include a cathode-ray direction finder thats  used to study atmospheric phenomena, research in electromagnetic radiation, and inventions used for flight safety. He died in 1973. Heinrich Hertz In 1886, Germany physicist Heinrich Hertz discovered that an electric current in a conducting wire radiates electromagnetic waves into the surrounding space when swinging rapidly back and forth. Today, we call such a wire an antenna. Hertz went on to detect these oscillations in his lab using an electric spark in which the current oscillates rapidly. These radio waves were first known as Hertzian waves.†Ã‚  Today we measure frequencies in Hertz (Hz) -- oscillations per second --and at radio frequencies in megahertz (MHz). Hertz was the first to experimentally demonstrate the production and detection of â€Å"Maxwell’s waves,† a discovery that leads directly to radio. He died in 1894.   James Clerk Maxwell James Clark Maxwell was a Scottish physicist best known for combining the fields of electricity  and magnetism to create the theory of the  electromagnetic field. Born in 1831 to a wealthy family, the young Maxwell’s studies took him to the Edinburgh Academy where he published his first academic paper in the Proceedings of the Royal Society of Edinburgh at the astounding age of 14. He later attended the University of Edinburgh and the University of Cambridge. Maxwell began his career as a professor by filling in the vacant Chair of Natural Philosophy at Aberdeen’s Marischal College in 1856. Then Aberdeen combined its two colleges into one university in 1860, leaving room for only one Natural Philosophy professorship which went to David Thomson. Maxwell went on to become Professor of Physics and Astronomy at King’s College in London, an appointment that would form the foundation of some of the most influential theory of his lifetime. His paper on physical lines of force took two years to create and was ultimately published in several parts. The paper introduced his pivotal theory of electromagnetism – that electromagnetic waves travel at the speed of light and that light exists in the same medium as electric and magnetic phenomena. Maxwell’s 1873 publication of â€Å"A Treatise on Electricity and Magnetism† produced the fullest explanation of his four partial different equations which would go on to become a major influence on  Albert Einstein’s theory of relativity.  Einstein summed up the monumental achievement of Maxwell’s lifes work with these words: â€Å"This change in the conception of reality is the most profound and the most fruitful that physics has experienced since the time of Newton.† Considered one of the greatest scientific minds the world has ever known, Maxwell’s contributions extend beyond the realm of electromagnetic theory to include an acclaimed study of the dynamics of Saturn’s rings, the somewhat accidental -- although still important—capturing of the first color  photograph, and his kinetic theory of gases which led to a law relating to the distribution of molecular velocities. He  died on November 5, 1879, at the age of 48 from abdominal cancer. Christian Andreas Doppler Doppler radar gets its name from Christian Andreas Doppler, an Austrian physicist. Doppler first described how the observed frequency of light and sound waves was affected by the relative motion of the source and the detector in 1842. This phenomenon became known as the Doppler effect, most often demonstrated by the change in the sound wave of a passing train. The trains whistle becomes higher in pitch as it approaches and lower in pitch as it moves away. Doppler determined that the number of sound waves reaching the ear in a given amount of time, called the frequency, determines the tone or pitch that’s heard. The tone remains the same as long as you’re not moving. As the train moves closer, the number of sound waves reaching your ear in a given amount of time increases and the pitch therefore increases. The opposite occurs as the train moves away from you. Dr. Robert Rines Robert Rines is the inventor of high definition radar and the sonogram. A patent attorney, Rines founded the Franklin Pierce Law Center and devoted a great deal of time to chasing the Loch Ness monster, a mission for which hes best known. He was a major supporter of inventors and a defender of inventors rights. Rines died in 2009. Luis Walter Alvarez Luis Alvarez invented a radio distance and direction indicator, a landing system for aircrafts and a radar system  for locating planes. He also co-invented the hydrogen bubble chamber which is used to detect subatomic particles. He developed the microwave beacon, the linear radar antennae, and ground-controlled radar landing approaches for aircraft. An American physicist, Alvarez won the 1968 Nobel Prize in physics for his studies. His many inventions demonstrate ingenious applications of physics to other scientific areas. He died in 1988. John Logie Baird John Logie Baird Baird patented various inventions related to  radar  and fiber optics, but hes best remembered as the inventor of mechanical television—one of the earliest versions of television. Along with American Clarence W. Hansell, Baird patented the idea of using arrays of transparent rods to transmit images for television and facsimiles in the 1920s. His 30-line images were the first demonstrations of television by reflected light rather than back-lit silhouettes. The television pioneer created the first televised pictures of objects in motion in 1924, the first televised human face in 1925, and the first moving object image in 1926. His 1928 trans-Atlantic transmission of the image of a human face was a broadcasting milestone. Color television, stereoscopic television, and television by infra-red light were all demonstrated by Baird before 1930. When he successfully lobbied for broadcast time with the British Broadcasting Company, the BBC began broadcasting television on the Baird 30-line system in 1929. The first British television play, The Man with the Flower in his Mouth,† was transmitted in July 1930. The BBC adopted television service using the electronic television technology of Marconi-EMI—the worlds first regular high-resolution service at 405 lines per picture – in 1936. This technology finally won out over Bairds system. Baird died in 1946 in Bexhill-on-Sea, Sussex, England.