Journal of Psychology and Psychiatry

ABSTRACT

Youth offenders with high levels of callous unemotional (CU) traits are characterized by a lack of empathy and deficits in emotionality that in turn depict a pattern of consistent and violent antisocial behavior. This review aims to identify the impact of the criminal justice involvement in male youths who score high on callous unemotional traits in order to develop comprehensive intervention methods. Offending behavior among adolescents who are high on CU traits tends to be more frequent with a high degree of violence and has lasting influences amongst peers. To test the hypothesis that CU traits lead to higher involvement in crime among adolescents who have previously been in contact with the criminal justice system (CJS), a systematic literature review is conducted to assess prior empirical knowledge on this relation and identify potential uses for treatment. Overall findings indicate that contextual factors, such as neighborhood disorganization, maternal warmth, and a high trusting therapeutic-alliance relationship act as protective factors that mitigate the detrimental effects of severe delinquency and antisocial behavior on youth offenders with high levels of CU.

Keywords: Callous Unemotional traits (CU traits), Youth Delinquency, Adolescent Offenders, Juvenile Justice System, Antisocial Behavior, Recidivism, Conduct Disorder, Therapeutic Intervention, Psychopathy in Youth.