نتایج مثبت به عنوان یک میانجی بین صفات نوجوانان سنگدلانه-عاری از احساس و رفتار ضد اجتماعی ادراک شده
کد مقاله | سال انتشار | تعداد صفحات مقاله انگلیسی |
---|---|---|
37319 | 2014 | 6 صفحه PDF |
Publisher : Elsevier - Science Direct (الزویر - ساینس دایرکت)
Journal : Personality and Individual Differences, Volume 69, October 2014, Pages 129–134
چکیده انگلیسی
Abstract This study investigated perceived positive outcomes as a mediator of the relation between callous-unemotional (CU) traits and antisocial behavior (i.e., delinquency, aggression) and the potential moderational influence of anxiety in that model. Participants were 149 adolescents, ages 16–19 years (124 males, 25 females) in a residential setting. Perceived positive outcomes for antisocial behavior mediated the relation between CU traits (callousness and uncaring) and such behaviors. Additionally, anxiety had a moderating effect on the relation between callousness and perception of positive outcomes, and the indirect effect of callousness on antisocial behavior was conditional based on varying levels of anxiety. These results suggest a potential mechanism through which CU traits are associated with adolescent behavioral problems.
مقدمه انگلیسی
Introduction Callous-unemotional (CU) traits (e.g., lack of emotion, guilt, or remorse; callous disregard for others) comprise the affective component of psychopathy and are uniquely associated with stable, aggressive, and severe problem behavior (see Frick and White (2008) for review), as well as with poor adherence to psychological or behavioral treatment (Roose, Bijttebier, Decoene, Claes, & Frick, 2010). CU traits have been conceptualized as consisting of three domains, labeled “callousness” (e.g., lack of empathy or remorse), “uncaring” (e.g., lack of concern about one’s performance or others’ feelings), and “unemotional” (e.g., absence of emotional expression) using the Inventory of Callous-Unemotional Traits (ICU; Essau, Sasagawa, & Frick, 2006). Research has demonstrated moderate associations for callousness and uncaring with externalizing problems and nonsignificant or even negative relations for unemotionality and such problems (Berg et al., 2013 and Essau et al., 2006). Further understanding of the factors that might contribute to the relation between CU traits and behavioral problems in youth is needed. One such factor may be how a young person interprets, and responds to, the behavioral contingencies in his or her environment. That is, the individual’s belief that antisocial behavior is rewarded – or that the positive consequences outweigh the negative consequences – may partially explain the persistent connection between CU traits and such behaviors. Such perceptions could provide a potential target for intervention for youth with CU traits insofar as altering the perceived positive outcomes of antisocial behavior might reduce the likelihood of its occurrence. The present study is a preliminary investigation of the role of such perceptions in the connection between CU traits and adolescent problem behaviors. CU traits have been linked to response modulation deficits whereby an individual has difficulty adapting his/her behavior to altered contextual factors or contingencies (see O’Brien and Frick, 1996 and Roose et al., 2013). Thus, when a behavior has been previously rewarded, an individual with high levels of CU traits may have particular difficulty modifying that behavior even if it is met with increasing rates of punishment (Newman et al., 1987 and O’Brien and Frick, 1996). Moreover, CU traits have been associated with a tendency to perceive social rewards from aggression (Pardini & Byrd, 2012). Adolescents with high levels of CU traits also tend to be unconcerned about possible social conflicts that may come at the expense of reaching their social goals (Pardini, 2011). Therefore, CU traits are governed by processes that attend to potential positive outcomes for engaging in negative behaviors, whereas potential negative outcomes (both to the victim and to the perpetrator) are largely ignored (Pardini & Byrd, 2012). For the present study, we theorized that the reward-oriented approach reflected in experimental paradigms of reward dominance would be evident in self-reported perceptions regarding antisocial behavior, meaning that adolescents with high levels of CU traits would report engaging in behaviors that have potentially negative results (i.e., delinquency and aggression) at least in part because of the perceived opportunity for a positive result. This perceived likelihood of positive outcomes may override any concerns or awareness of the potential negative outcomes of those behaviors, particularly if the individual has previously experienced such positive outcomes. 1.1. Anxiety and the relation between CU traits and antisocial behavior Previous research suggests that anxiety plays a mitigating role in the connection between CU traits and reward dominance such that individuals with CU traits and co-occurring anxiety are less likely to persist with a response that is increasingly punished than are those with CU traits alone (O’Brien and Frick (1996)). Therefore, individuals with high levels of CU traits who also have relatively high levels of anxiety may be more inhibited against engaging in antisocial behavior than individuals with high levels of CU traits and lower levels of anxiety. As such, perceived positive outcomes for antisocial behavior may play less of a role in mediating the relation between CU traits and antisocial behavior if an individual is also relatively anxious. That is, among individuals with high levels of both CU traits and anxiety, the perceived benefits of antisocial behavior may be tempered, thus inhibiting engagement in such behavior. 1.2. Present study and hypotheses The primary aim of the present study was to determine the potential mediating role of perceived positive outcomes for engaging in antisocial behavior in the relation between CU traits and those behaviors. In particular, the study sought to extend the literature by examining whether self-reports of perceived outcomes for antisocial behavior were relevant in a manner similar to what has been demonstrated from laboratory tasks. Furthermore, anxiety was examined as a potential moderator in the proposed model. It was hypothesized that the callousness and uncaring aspects of CU traits in particular would be positively related to antisocial behavior (i.e., delinquency and aggression; Hypothesis 1). It was also hypothesized that adolescents’ perceived positive outcomes for antisocial behavior would mediate the above relations (Hypothesis 2). It also was predicted that anxiety would moderate the same mediations such that the presence of higher levels of CU traits along with lower levels of anxiety would be associated with higher perceived positive outcomes for antisocial behavior (Hypothesis 3). Finally, conditional indirect effects models were examined to determine if perceived positive outcomes mediated the relation between CU traits and antisocial behavior only for low levels of anxiety (i.e., moderated mediation). Alternative conceptual models were considered, including the moderating effect of anxiety on the relation between perceived positive outcomes and antisocial behavior, between CU traits and antisocial behavior, and among all three stages of the mediation model simultaneously.
نتیجه گیری انگلیسی
6. Conclusions Despite these limitations, the current findings provide support for a model that is consistent with longstanding theory regarding psychopathy in general – and CU traits in particular – and with views on its connection to recidivism. Future research in this area should involve longitudinal methods to further an understanding of the developmental precursors of an individual’s perception of consequences and its apparent connection to CU traits. Furthermore, investigation of the perception of specific positive and negative outcomes in specific situations or contexts may provide useful information. For example, there may be a difference in the salience or power of a specific reward or punishment, and certain situations (e.g., delinquent peer affiliations) may be more likely to elicit a focus on positive outcomes or rewards. Lastly, because a CU-related specifier has been added to the DSM-5 diagnostic criteria for conduct disorder ( American Psychiatric Association, 2013), further understanding of the role of CU traits in treatment efforts is paramount. Work has been conducted on the potential usefulness of considering CU traits in diagnoses of conduct disorder (e.g., Kahn, Frick, Youngstrom, Findling, & Youngstrom, 2012). To the extent that perceived rewards for behavioral problems is a hallmark feature of youth with CU traits, further identification of a child’s orientation toward positive consequences for antisocial behavior could assist in specific diagnostic and intervention decisions.