The psychometric properties of the Beck Depression Inventory-II (BDI-II) as a self-administered screening tool for depressive symptoms were examined in a sample of community-dwelling older and younger adults. Participants completed the BDI-II, the Center for Epidemiologic Studies Depression Scale, the Coolidge Axis II Inventory, the Perceived Stress Scale, and the Short Psychological Well-Being Scale. Internal reliability of the BDI-II was found to be good among older and younger adults. The average BDI-II depression score did not differ between younger and older adults. Solid evidence for convergent and discriminant validity was demonstrated by correlations between the BDI-II with the other measures. The BDI-II appears to have strong psychometric support as a screening measure for depression among older adults in the general population. Implications for using the BDI-II as an assessment instrument in behaviorally based psychotherapy are discussed.

During the penalty phase of capital trials, defendants may introduce mitigating evidence that argues for a punishment "less than death." In the past few years, a novel form of mitigating evidence-brain scans made possible by technological advances in neuroscience-has been proffered by defendants to support claims that brain abnormalities reduce their culpability. This exploratory study assessed the impact of neuroscience evidence on mock jurors' sentencing recommendations and impressions of a capital defendant. Using actual case facts, we manipulated diagnostic evidence presented by the defense (psychosis diagnosis; diagnosis and neuropsychological test results; or diagnosis, test results, and neuroimages) and future dangerousness evidence presented by the prosecution (low or high risk). Recommendations for death sentences were affected by the neuropsychological and neuroimaging evidence: defendants deemed at high risk for future dangerousness were less likely to be sentenced to death when jurors had this evidence than when they did not. Neuropsychological and neuroimaging evidence also had mitigating effects on impressions of the defendant. We describe study limitations and pose questions for further research.

There are few published studies of attention-deficit/hyperactivity disorder (ADHD) in adult inmates, and even fewer studies that have considered ADHD in adult inmates by gender. The present study examined the prevalence of ADHD, its subtypes, and associated psychological and neuropsychological comorbidity as a function of gender in a sample of 3,962 inmates (3,439 men and 523 women; mean age = 33.6 years, range 17-73) who had completed the 250-item, self-report, Diagnostic and Statistical Manual of Mental Disorders, 4th edition (Text Revision) (DSM-IV-TR)-aligned Coolidge Correctional Inventory (CCI). The overall ADHD prevalence rate found was 10.5%, which is substantially higher than the rate among adults in the general population (2-5%). The female inmate ADHD prevalence rate (15.1%) was higher than the male inmate ADHD rate (9.8%), consistent with some previous studies. The most prevalent ADHD subtype for both genders was the hyperactive-impulsive subtype. The combined and inattentive ADHD subtypes had higher levels of comorbid psychopathology than the hyperactive-impulsive ADHD subtype. As the presence of ADHD and associated gender differentials may impact the success of rehabilitation and educative programs with inmates, the assessment of ADHD and comorbid psychopathology should be a priority in initial inmate screening and evaluation.

The present study reports on the preliminary psychometric characteristics of a new personality and neuropsychological, 250-item, self-report measure, the Coolidge Correctional Inventory (CCI), in an archival de-identified sample of 3,962 prison inmates. The median internal reliability for the 33 CCI scales and subscales was alpha = .79 (range: alpha = .49 to .93). A prevalence estimate, based on the polythetic criteria in DSM-IV-TR, of at least one personality disorder was 61% of the entire sample, and the prevalence of ADHD was estimated to be 16%. Drug and alcohol problems were also highly prevalent (60%). These results appear to support the preliminary reliability and validity of the CCI and also reveal a high rate of psychopathology and neuropsychological dysfunction among prison inmates.

The purpose of the present study was to report on the psychometric properties of a revised version of a brief inventory designed to screen and assess personality disorders. The short form of the Coolidge Axis II Inventory (SCATI) is a 70-item, self-report, form of the 250-item Coolidge Axis II Inventory (CATI). On a community sample of 588 adults (range=16-88 years), the median internal scale reliability for the 14 personality disorder scales was .66, and the median test-retest reliability (1 week) was .83. Principal components analysis (PCA) revealed a four-component structure, essentially similar to previous PCA studies of the SCATI and CATI. Good convergent validity was obtained between a five-factor model of psychopathology and the 14 SCATI personality disorder scales. Gender differences were obtained on some scales, although the effect sizes were generally small. These preliminary psychometric properties establish that the SCATI has sufficient reliability and validity to warrant further research, particularly in clinical samples.