Examination of psychopathy in female homicide offenders--confirmatory factor analysis of the PCL-R.

The construct of psychopathy is essential in explaining criminal behavior, but unfortunately the empirical research on psychopathy in women has been inconsistent. In this study the underlying structure of psychopathy in women was examined by testing the two-factor model by Hare (2003) and the three-factor solution by Cooke and Michie (2001) using confirmatory factor analysis. We replicated the study by Warren et al.

The reasons for using restraint and seclusion in psychiatric inpatient care: A nationwide 15-year study.

Background: The containment or the prevention of actual violence is the primary justification for the use of restraint and seclusion in psychiatry. The aim of the present study was to determine the grounds for using restraint and seclusion in clinical practice in Finland, and whether these reasons have changed over a 15-year period as a result of legislative changes.

Method: A structured postal survey concerning the reasons for restraint and seclusion was completed in all the Finnish psychiatric hospitals during a predetermined week in 1990, 1991, 1994, 1998 and 2004.

Who are the restrained and secluded patients: a 15-year nationwide study.

Background: To find interventions for reducing the use of restraint and seclusion, it is necessary to identify who the restrained and secluded patients are. The aim of the present study was to determine which demographic and clinical groups of psychiatric inpatients are at risk of being restrained/secluded, and whether there have been changes in the restrained/secluded patients' profiles over a 15-year period in Finland.

Method: A structured postal survey concerning the demographic and clinical information of restrained/secluded patients was completed in all Finnish psychiatric hospitals during a predetermined week in 1990, 1991, 1994, 1998, and 2004.

Changes over time in homicides by women: a register-based study comparing female offenders from 1982 to 1992 and 1993 to 2005.

Background: The contribution of women to violent offending, including homicide, may be increasing as society changes.

Aims: The aim of this paper was to test for trends in homicide by women in Finland.

Methods: A retrospective register-based study was conducted by comparing two national cohorts: one from 1982 to 1992 and the other from 1993 to 2005.

Intoxication and violent women.

Alcohol and drugs have been linked to severe violent offending among women as well as men. The purpose of this study was to make a contribution to the limited knowledge of characteristics related to the state of intoxication in violent female offenders. The putative differences in the characteristics of female offenders and their violent offenses in relation to the state of intoxication at the time of the violent offending were examined.

A 15-year national follow-up: legislation is not enough to reduce the use of seclusion and restraint.

Background: Seclusion and restraint are frequent but controversial coercive measures used in psychiatric treatment. Legislative efforts have started to emerge to control the use of these measures in many countries. In the present study, the nationwide trends in the use of seclusion and restraint were investigated in Finland over a 15-year span which was characterised by legislative changes aiming to clarify and restrict the use of these measures.

Legal outcomes of all suspected neonaticides in Finland 1980-2000.

This nationwide study examined legal outcomes and possible psychiatric diagnoses of suspected cases of neonaticide. Neonaticide is commonly defined as the killing of a newborn on the day of its birth, and is considered to have not only a low prevalence but also a high level of concealed criminality. This hidden nature guided us to find out what the final legal outcomes of suspected neonaticide were.

Neonaticides may be more preventable and heterogeneous than previously thought - neonaticides in Finland 1980-2000.

Neonaticide is a sad and infrequent crime with possibly a high level of underreporting. The aim of this study was to examine the circumstances of neonaticide, and whether there are subtypes of offenders, or suggestions for prevention. The study was retrospective and register-based using comprehensive nation-wide material of all cases of suspected neonaticide during 1980-2000 in Finland.

Psychiatric trainees in Finland 2001.

This study examined Finnish psychiatric trainees' views on their education. This was a survey study of nationwide data on Finnish psychiatric trainees in 2001. The quality of training was considered at least moderate by 84% of the respondents.

Psychopathy in violent female offenders in Finland.

Background: The base rate and construct of psychopathy in violent female offenders were examined.

Sampling And Methods: More than half of all violent female offenders in Finland who where either hospitalised (n=12) or incarcerated (n=46) during the year of the study were assessed by the Hare Psychopathy Checklist-Revised (PCL-R), Structured Clinical Interview II for DSM-IV, Beck Anxiety Inventory, Beck Depression Inventory-II and Wechsler Adult Intelligence Scale-Revised.

Results: PCL-R mean scores and a base rate of psychopathy were found to be in line with earlier studies, showing both lower values and prevalence in females.

The use of harmful to others-criterion for involuntary treatment in Finland.

During the past decades the Western countries have paid attention to their Mental Health legislation, in particular, by making changes concerning involuntary treatment. In Western countries legislation allows involuntary treatment of the mentally ill. Involuntary psychiatric treatment is motivated by either potential harm to others (for the good of society) or by need for treatment and/or potential self-harm (for the good of the patient).

The violent female perpetrator and her victim.

The aim of the present study was to examine the relationship between violent female offenders and their victims as well as the putative differences in the motives and specific psychological factors among three groups of female offenders: women who have victimised someone closely related to them, those who have victimised an acquaintance and lastly women who have victimised a stranger. More than half (N=61) of all violent female offenders hospitalised or incarcerated in Finland during the year of study were interviewed and assessed by Structured Clinical Interview II for DSM-IV (SCID-II) and Hare's Psychopathy Checklist-Revised (PCL-R). In 34% of the cases the victims were persons close to the offender, in 41% the victims were acquaintances and in 25% strangers.

Risk of repeat offending among violent female offenders with psychotic and personality disorders.

Objective: The aim of this study was to examine the rate of criminal recidivism among female homicide offenders evaluated by forensic psychiatrists, to compare this rate with that of other violent female offenders, and to analyze the explanatory variables of recidivism.

Method: This was a retrospective study of all women (N=132) sent for forensic psychiatric examination after being convicted of homicide or attempted homicide in Finland during 1982-1992; subjects were followed up until mid-1999. Data were collected from the national crime register, the prisoner record, and Statistics Finland.

Violent women, blame attribution, crime, and personality.

Background: The attribution of blame for criminal act has an impact, both on the way the offender must come to terms with the offence and on the risk of recidivism. Blame attribution has been found to be related to the type of crime and personality.

Aims: This study examined the relationship of blame attribution and feelings of guilt in violent female offenders, according to factors related to crime, background and personality.