About
The main aim of this project was to advance our understanding of the neurocognitive deficits underlying antisocial behaviour in individuals with Antisocial Personality Disorder (ASPD) with and without psychopathy. More specifically, we aimed to identify which specific dimensions of empathic and moral functioning are impaired in these individuals and characterise the neural mechanisms that underlie atypical functioning. To accomplish this aim, we pooled extensive national and international expertise in a collaborative programme of research between CIPsi (Dr. Ana Seara Cardoso (P.I.); Prof. Adriana Sampaio, Prof. Oscar Gonçalves, Prof. Rui Gonçalves), University College London (Prof. Essi Viding), Royal Holloway University of London (Dr. Catherine Sebastian) and University of North Texas (Prof. Craig Neumann).
We combined experimental and functional magnetic resonance imaging (fMRI) methods to compare empathic and moral processing of individuals with ASPD with and without psychopathy; this allowed us to identify the processes and characterise the mechanisms that are compromised in these different subgroups of offenders and underpin their antisocial behaviour.
Understanding the specific processes and mechanisms that underlie persistent and severe patterns of violence has important potential treatment and public policy implications as it can provide valuable information for determining targets for intervention and thus the development of tailored intervention, rehabilitation and early prevention programmes.
