Psychopathy Checklist Revised - Forensic Psychology Test

ISSUES IN FORENSIC PSYCHOLOGY
Psychopathy Checklist-Revised (PCL-R)

The Psychopathy Checklist-Revised (PCL-R) is a standardized test for assessing psychopathy. The PCL-R assesses two separate dimensions or factors: (1) Selfish, callous, remorseless use of others; gilbness and grandiosity; (2) Chronically unstable, antisocial, socially deviant lifestyle, impulsivity and sensation seeking.
The relevant data demonstrate that the PCL-R is valid for various assessment endeavors. For example, Factor 2 of the PCL-R accurately predicts future criminal behavior.
3. Despite the favorable reputation the PCL-R enjoys, there are problems when using it in legal proceedings. These problems involve: (1) PCL-R validity data do not necessarily extend to its clinical applications. (2) There are problems related to defining what amounts to a sufficient data base for scoring the PCL-R. (3) Questions remain regarding appropriate training for using the PLC-R.
Robert Hare, the developer of the PCL-R, has advised: "experts hired by the defense always seem to come up with considerably lower PCL-R ratings than do experts who work for the prosecution." Hare's comments underscore the "elasciticity" of the PLC-R. It can be stretched in accordance with an evaluators a priori agenda.
The voluminous validity data supporting the PCL-R were collected by researchers. Assuming that retained experts bring the same level of detached objectivity to their PCL-R scoring is naive. As a result, the research validity of the PCL-R does not necessarily extend to using it clinically in legal proceedings.
Hare advocates that the PCL-R can be used without interviewing the subject of an evaluation. In particular, Hare advises: "reliable and valid PCL-R ratings can be made solely on the basis of collateral information if it is of sufficiently high quality." Unfortunately, there is no objective method available for ascertaining the quality of collateral information.
Exactly what constitutes sufficient training for using the PCL-R remains unidentified. Hare recommends that PCL-R evaluators have demonstrated "that they make reliable PCL-R ratings." How PCL-R users demonstrate such facility, however, amounts to an ambiguous issue open to varying interpretations.

If you are dealing with the PCL-R, you may want to order a reprint of the following article authored by Dr. Campbell.

Campbell, T.W. (2006). The validity of the Psychopathy Checklist-Revised in adversarial proceedings. Journal of Forensic Psychology Practice.

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