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This study examines whether psychopathic traits in a nonreferred (and presumably nonpsychopathic) sample could enhance the accuracy of perceptions of victim vulnerability. In a previous study, the interpersonal and affective component of psychopathy was associated with increased accuracy in assessing vulnerability in dyadic conversations, and Grayson and Stein (1981) established that vulnerability could be assessed by observing targets walking. The purpose of this study was to determine whether individuals scoring higher on psychopathic traits would be better able to judge vulnerability to victimization after viewing short clips of targets walking. Participants provided a vulnerability estimate for each target and completed the Self-Report Psychopathy Scale: Version III (SRP-III). Higher SRP-III scores were associated with greater accuracy in assessing targets' vulnerability to victimization. Implications for the prevention of victimization are discussed.

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The relationship between psychopathic traits and the perception of nonverbal communication, including facial expressions and body language, is investigated. Participants include 59 prison inmates and 60 community members. Psychopathic traits among inmates are measured using the Psychopathy Checklist-Revised (PCL-R) and Levenson's Self Report Psychopathy Scale. Participants categorize the emotion of posed facial photographs and rate intensity of emotion. They view videotaped interactions of a confederate and a target individual and rate assertiveness using the Rathus Assertiveness Scale. There is a trend for the PCL-R to be positively correlated with the inmates' accuracy of emotional intensity ratings. Psychopathic traits are also positively associated with the accuracy of assertiveness ratings. P sychopathy is characterized by irresponsibility, impulsivity, antisocial behavior, an inability to learn from punishment, and a lack of long-term goals (Cleckley, 1941). The key characteristics of psychopathy are measured in the Psychopathy Checklist-Revised (PCL-R; Hare, 1991). The 20-item instrument was originally thought to consist of two factors: (a) affective and interpersonal symptoms, such as reduced affect, lack of empathy, manipulativeness, and lack of remorse, and (b) symptoms of social deviance, including a lack of long-term goals and behavioral problems. Patrick (1994) aptly relabeled these factors emotional detachment and antisocial behavior. Other research has suggested the existence of three factors (Cooke & Michie, 2001), and at the point of the last revision of the PCL-R, factor analyses indicate that there are four facets (subsumed under the two factors given above; Hare, 2003): interpersonal, affective, lifestyle, and antisocial. The interpersonal and affective facets make up the interpersonal/affective component (Factor 1), and the lifestyle and antisocial facets make up the social deviance component (Factor 2).Because affect and empathy are typically attenuated in psychopaths, Cleckley (1941) suggested that psychopaths suffer from emotional poverty, a view that is shared by others 531

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Previous research has shown that victims display characteristic body language, specifically in their walking style (Grayson & Stein, 1981). Individuals scoring higher on the interpersonal/affective aspects of psychopathy (Factor 1) are more accurate at judging victim vulnerability simply from viewing targets walking (Wheeler, Book, & Costello, 2009). The present study examines the relation between psychopathy and accuracy in assessing victim vulnerability in a sample of inmates from a maximum security penitentiary in Ontario, Canada. Forty-seven inmates viewed short video clips of targets walking and judged how vulnerable each target was to victimization. Higher Factor 1 psychopathy scores (as measured by the PCL-R; Hare 2003) were positively related to accuracy in judging victim vulnerability. Contrary to research with noninstitutional participants (Wheeler et al., 2009), inmates higher on Factor 1 of psychopathy were more likely to rationalize their vulnerability judgments by mentioning the victim's gait. Implications of these findings are discussed.