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STRUCTURAL BRAIN IMAGING IN PSYCHOPATHY
by
Yaling Yang
A Dissertation Presented to the
FACULTY OF THE GRADUATE SCHOOL
UNIVERSITY OF SOUTHERN CALIFORNIA
In partial Fulfillment of the
Requirements for the Degree
DOCTOR OF PHILOSOPHY
(PSYCHOLOGY)
August 2008
Copyright 2008 Yaling Yang
Object Description
| Title | Structural brain imaging in psychopathy |
| Author | Yang, Yaling |
| Author email | yaling.yang@gmail.com |
| Degree | Doctor of Philosophy |
| Document type | Dissertation |
| Degree program | Psychology |
| School | College of Letters, Arts and Sciences |
| Date defended/completed | 2008-05-15 |
| Date submitted | 2008 |
| Restricted until | Unrestricted |
| Date published | 2008-06-22 |
| Advisor (committee chair) | Raine, Adrian |
| Advisor (committee member) |
Lu, Zhong-Lin Biederman, Irving Manis, Frank Colletti, Patrick |
| Abstract | Psychopathy is a clinical condition characterized by interpersonal dysfunction, emotional impairments, antisocial behavior, and criminal lifestyle. Several influential models have been proposed in the attempt to account for features of psychopathy (e.g. low fear, somatic marker), nevertheless, only few recent ones have provided predictions on the neural mechanisms underlying psychopathy. Based on these models and findings from lesion studies, it is suggested that deficits in the prefrontal cortex and the amygdala may be associated with psychopathy. However, limited number of empirical studies has been conducted to date to examine the structural integrity of these regions in individuals with psychopathy. By using the anatomical magnetic resonance imaging data from a community sample of 86, for the first time, structural alterations in the prefrontal sub-regions and the amygdala in psychopaths as well as subgroups of psychopaths (i.e. unsuccessful and successful psychopaths) were investigated. Psychopaths (N = 27) showed significant prefrontal gray matter volume reductions in the right middle frontal cortex, bilateral orbitofrontal cortex, and right rectal gyri compared to controls (N = 32). Bilateral amygdala volume reductions, most pronounced in the basolateral and superficial nuclei group, were found in psychopaths compared to controls. Unsuccessful psychopaths (with convictions; N = 16) showed structural abnormalities in the prefrontal and the amygdala similar to those observed in the psychopathy group. In contrast, successful psychopaths (without convictions; N = 10) showed relatively intact gray matter volume in the prefrontal sub-regions and the amygdala.; In addition, psychopaths showed cortical thinning in the frontal and parietal cortex, particularly the middle frontal cortex, sensorimotor cortex, and surrounding association areas. Correlational analyses on the entire sample revealed negative correlations between total/ facet psychopathy scores and volumes of the middle frontal cortex, orbitofrontal cortex, rectal gyrus, and the amygdala. Structural deficits in these prefrontal sub-regions and the amygdala may account for the emotional dysregulation, poor behavioral control, and impaired moral decision making in psychopaths. Results are consistent with prior hypotheses and implicate the structural abnormalities in the orbitofrontal regions, dorsolateral prefrontal cortex, and the amygdala to play crucial roles in the neural bases underlying psychopathy. |
| Keyword | psychopathy; MRI; prefrontal cortex; amygdala |
| Language | English |
| Part of collection | University of Southern California dissertations and theses |
| Publisher (of the original version) | University of Southern California |
| Place of publication (of the original version) | Los Angeles, California |
| Publisher (of the digital version) | University of Southern California. Libraries |
| Type | texts |
| Legacy record ID | usctheses-m1283 |
| Rights | Yang, Yaling |
| Repository name | Libraries, University of Southern California |
| Repository address | Los Angeles, California |
| Repository email | http://www.usc.edu/isd/libraries/services/ask_a_librarian/email/ |
| Filename | etd-Yang-20080622 |
| Archival file | uscthesesreloadpub_Volume44/etd-Yang-20080622.pdf |
Description
| Title | Page 1 |
| Full text | STRUCTURAL BRAIN IMAGING IN PSYCHOPATHY by Yaling Yang A Dissertation Presented to the FACULTY OF THE GRADUATE SCHOOL UNIVERSITY OF SOUTHERN CALIFORNIA In partial Fulfillment of the Requirements for the Degree DOCTOR OF PHILOSOPHY (PSYCHOLOGY) August 2008 Copyright 2008 Yaling Yang |
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