The Nexus of Psychopathy, Moral Reasoning, and Family Support Among Youth in the Juvenile Justice System: New Evidence on Gender Differences

Background: Psychopathy is a disorder composed of affective, interpersonal, and behavioral features that predispose young people to contact with the criminal legal system. High levels of psychopathy in juveniles caught in the net of the justice system raises the risk of recidivism and a bevy of poor outcomes. Moral reasoning and family support have been shown to be protective factors against adolescent delinquency. Taken together, understanding the interactions between these multidimensional factors among youth exposed to the juvenile justice system is crucial for creating evidence-informed delinquency prevention and treatment interventions.

Methods: The study used data from a non-probability sample of 13 to 19-year-old youths in two (one male and one female) Western Pennsylvania long-term residential treatment facilities for juvenile offenders (males = 151, females = 101). Youth were committed to the facilities for various property, person, drug, and status violations. Most youths recorded many years of delinquent behavior and involvement in juvenile court. Psychopathy (dependent variable, M = 104.1, SD = 20.53), was assessed using the Youth Psychopathic traits Inventory, ranging from 62 to 180. Family support (independent variable, M = 12.08, SD = 3.2) was measured by a series of questions on family support (e.g., There was someone in my family whom I could talk to about my problems), ranging from 0 to 16. Moral reasoning (independent variable, M = 55.49, SD = 6.74) was measured by a standardized scale including 15 items (e.g., It is okay to insult a classmate because beating him/her is worse), ranging from 15 to 75. Higher scores signify higher levels of all measured variables (e.g., a higher score of moral reasoning implies higher moral reasoning levels). Multivariate regression by gender status was used to examine the relationships of psychopathy with family support and moral reasoning, while controlling for demographic characteristics and number of previous arrests.

Results: In multiple regression analyses, moral reasoning was statistically and negatively associated with psychopathy in both males (b=-.735, p < .05) and females (b= -.923, p < .001). Family support was negatively associated with psychopathy in females (b=-1.409, p < .05); however, not statistically significant in males (b=-.366, p > .05). While all estimated regression coefficients were in the expected direction, the association between family support and psychopathy for males is not statistically different from zero. Hence, the results show a different pattern by gender on the relationships of psychopathy with family support and moral reasoning.

Conclusion: These findings imply that moral reasoning and family support with respect to gender differences may be important factors in lowering psychopathic tendencies in juvenile offenders. Reducing psychopathy in female adolescent offenders may depend more on family support. However, moral reasoning may play a more significant role in lowering psychopathy in male adolescent offenders. In short, moral reasoning predicts psychopathy in males, while family support is more influential among females. These results emphasize the necessity for gender-specific facets in psychopathy research as well as the need for specific approaches to address risk factors for psychopathy among juvenile offenders.