The extreme working and living conditions at Antarctic stations cause numerous psychological changes in expeditioners. However, research on the changes in expeditioners' personality traits is virtually non-existent. Therefore, the present study aims to determine the changes in expeditioners' personality measures during 1 year Antarctic expeditions. This study examined 56 expeditioners working at the Ukrainian Antarctic Akademik Vernadsky station (52 men, 4 women; ages 20–63 years, M = 38.12, SD = 10.01) who participated in five annual expeditions between 2016 and 2021. The Ukrainian adaptations of four measures were used: the Thomas-Kilmann Conflict Mode Instrument, the Eysenck Personality Questionnaire, the Leonhard-Schmieschek Questionnaire and the Leary Interpersonal Checklist. During 1 year Antarctic expeditions, 8 of the 26 indicators used to describe expeditioners' personality measures changed significantly (P < 0.001–0.1). These indicators belonged to three of the four measures used in the study and were assessed as personally unfavourable. They included increased psychoticism and competing, managerial-autocratic, aggressive-sadistic, responsible-hypernormal, competitive-narcissistic and self-effacing-masochistic styles and a decreased accommodating style. Based on these results, promising areas for further research that could improve psychological selection, training and work for Antarctic expedition personnel are outlined.

The present study verified the existence of psychological profiles among Brazilian adolescent offenders, using data from a sample (n=858) collected with the Brazilian version of the Revised Jesness Inventory (JI-R-Br). This instrument is a comprehensive, self-report measure of personal dispositions (traits) that are associated with vulnerability to antisocial behavior (Impulsivity, Aggression/Hostility, Sensation Seeking) and adaptive patterns (Antisocial Values/Beliefs and Antisocial Attitudes). Cluster analyses showed three significantly distinct groups: group 1 (n=276), called Asocial, was comprised of impulsive/aggressive adolescents with high antisocial motivation, low self-control and very focused on their own needs. Group 2 (n=346), called Neurotic Antisocial, was comprised of adolescents with high rates of depression and anxiety, as well as low self-control, but with less antisocial motivation when compared with group 1. Group 3 (n=236) was similar to group 4 (normative group; n=572). Our results corroborate those described by other studies in the literature. They show the importance of different practices and/or interventions when working with offenders, given that there are different profiles based on different psychological characteristics/needs for this population.

This work presents validation of the Jesness Inventory, particularly its revised version, to the Brazilian reality. It was developed by Carl Jesness, based on his clinical experience and research programs for juvenile offenders, to assess juvenile offenders, particularly to understand the functioning of their personality, offering clues to customize psychosocial intervention, and verification of results from this, in terms of changes in adolescents’ beliefs/values and attitudes. Regarding the psychometric properties, the revised version showed an adequate internal consistency and temporal stability. For the evidence of validity, the results of the concurrent criterion and simultaneous validity were in agreement with those found in other studies, emphasizing the specific capacities of this instrument to distinguish adolescent offenders from non-offenders and properly classify them, denoting its quality in helping the diagnostic process. Research to verify predictive and construct validity is being carried out.

Patients with amyotrophic lateral sclerosis (ALS) often show deficits on neuropsychological tests that tap functions related to the integrity of the prefrontal lobes. Various aspects of personality are also known to be mediated by prefrontal regions, particularly ventromedial prefrontal cortex (vmPFC). Other than apathy, personality changes have not been widely reported in patients with ALS, although clinical observations indicate such changes might be relatively common. Here, we report on a middle-aged woman with bulbar onset ALS (diagnosed 06/2011, examined in Spring, 2012) whose neuropsychological exam did not reveal cognitive deficits. She performed normally on tests of executive functioning. Self-report measures of mood and personality were unremarkable. However, significant personality changes subsequent to disease onset were reported by her husband and two daughters, and these changes were quantified with the Iowa Scales of Personality Change. Results show that personality disturbance may manifest in the absence of notable cognitive changes in ALS, and careful assessment of personality may be important for documenting early neurobehavioral changes in some ALS patients. Findings also show that patients with ALS may not have good insight into personality changes, underscoring the importance of acquiring collateral information. More generally, the results provide further evidence that ALS may compromise the integrity of ventromedial prefrontal regions. (JINS, 2014, 20, 1–8)

Parkinson’s disease (PD) has several negative effects on speech production and communication. However, few studies have looked at how speech patterns in PD contribute to linguistic and social impressions formed about PD patients from the perspective of listeners. In this study, discourse recordings elicited from nondemented PD speakers (n = 18) and healthy controls (n = 17) were presented to 30 listeners unaware of the speakers’ disease status. In separate conditions, listeners rated the discourse samples based on their impressions of the speaker or of the linguistic content. Acoustic measures of the speech samples were analyzed for comparison with listeners’ perceptual ratings. Results showed that although listeners rated the content of Parkinsonian discourse as linguistically appropriate (e.g., coherent, well-organized, easy to follow), the PD speakers were perceived as significantly less interested, less involved, less happy, and less friendly than healthy speakers. Negative social impressions demonstrated a relationship to changes in vocal intensity (loudness) and temporal characteristics (dysfluencies) of Parkinsonian speech. Our findings emphasize important psychosocial ramifications of PD that are likely to limit opportunities for communication and social interaction for those affected, because of the negative impressions drawn by listeners based on their speaking voice. (JINS, 2010, 16, 49–57.)

Neuropsychologists routinely rely on response validity measures to evaluate the authenticity of test performances. However, the relationship between cognitive and psychological response validity measures is not clearly understood. It remains to be seen whether psychological test results can predict the outcome of response validity testing in clinical and civil forensic samples. The present analysis applied a unique statistical approach, classification tree methodology (Optimal Data Analysis: ODA), in a sample of 307 individuals who had completed the MMPI-2 and a variety of cognitive effort measures. One hundred ninety-eight participants were evaluated in a secondary gain context, and 109 had no identifiable secondary gain. Through recurrent dichotomous discriminations, ODA provided optimized linear decision trees to classify either sufficient effort (SE) or insufficient effort (IE) according to various MMPI-2 scale cutoffs. After “pruning” of an initial, complex classification tree, the Response Bias Scale (RBS) took precedence in classifying cognitive effort. After removing RBS from the model, Hy took precedence in classifying IE. The present findings provide MMPI-2 scores that may be associated with SE and IE among civil litigants and claimants, in addition to illustrating the complexity with which MMPI-2 scores and effort test results are associated in the litigation context. (JINS, 2008, 14, 842–852.)

Forensic neuropsychology studies usually address either cognitive effort or psychological response validity. Whether these are distinct constructs is unclear. In 122 participants evaluated in a compensation-seeking context, the present Exploratory Factor Analysis examined whether forced-choice cognitive effort measures (Victoria Symptom Validity Test, Test of Memory Malingering, Letter Memory Test) and Minnesota Multiphasic Personality Inventory, Second Edition (MMPI-2) validity scales (L, F, K, FBS, Fp, RBS, Md, Dsr2, S) load on independent factors. Regardless of factor rotation strategy (orthogonal or oblique), four response validity factors emerged by means of both Principal Components Analysis (82.7% total variance) and Principal-Axis Factor Analysis (74.1% total variance). The four factors were designated as follows: Factor I, with large loadings from L, K, and S—underreporting of psychological symptoms; Factor II, with large loadings from FBS, RBS, and Md—overreporting of neurotic symptoms; Factor III, with large loadings from VSVT, TOMM, and LMT—insufficient cognitive effort; and Factor IV, with the largest loadings from F, Fp, and Dsr2—overreporting of psychotic/rarely endorsed symptoms. Results reflect the heterogeneity of response validity in forensic samples referred for neuropsychological evaluation. Administration of both cognitive effort measures and psychological validity scales is imperative to accurate forensic neuropsychological assessment. (JINS, 2007, 13, 440–449.)

Objective: To compare the perceived accuracy of diagnostic information derived from psychiatric patients and a range of other informants using a schedule for assessing personality disorders (Personality Assessment Schedule). Method: The Personality Assessment Schedule includes a rating of reliability of the information obtained from whatever source. A record was made of these reliability scores in 405 patients with psychiatric disorder; 146 with both subjects and other informants and 259 with the informant only, and analysed using non-parametric statistics. Results: There was significant variation in the distribution of scores among the four psychiatrists who rated 232 of the interviews with informants, suggesting that inter-individual differences are paramount in deciding who is a reliable informant. Nevertheless, the views of other informants when they were spouses or cohabitees were judged to be more accurate than those of other relatives or acquaintances. No differences were found in the perceived reliability of data from subjects and informants when both were interviewed separately. Conclusions: Subjects and informants are judged to be equally reliable in giving assessments of personality status but the informants who have the closest relationship to subjects, spouses and cohabitees, are judged superior to informants of more distant immediate relationship in the accuracy of their information about personality status.