Abstract
This study was designed to investigate personality differences between two groups of federal inmates: One group (group IA) was composed of individuals incarcerated for assaulting an intimate, the other (group SA) was composed of individuals incarcerated for assaulting a stranger. A control group (group CO) composed of nonviolent offenders was also included. Potential participants were identified by reviewing all inmate files at a Canadian federal penitentiary. Ultimately 119 male inmates participated and contributed a mix of archival and directly collected data regarding basic personality processes, interpersonal style, and criminal history. The resulting pattern of data revealed that intimate-violent subjects were more depressed and reported a higher number of suicide attempts than stranger- violent subjects. Aside from these differences, the target groups produced very similar profiles, with most differences emerging in comparison to the control group. These results are discussed with reference to the extant literature and the need to explore alternative research paradigms.
| Original language | English |
|---|---|
| Pages (from-to) | 59-85 |
| Number of pages | 27 |
| Journal | American Journal of Forensic Psychology |
| Volume | 16 |
| Issue number | 1 |
| Publication status | Published - 1998 |
