Abstract

Previous research has found association between antisocial behavior and deficits in executive functioning. However, research into a link between them accounting for criminal history has found divergent results in western countries. The present study sought to determine the severity of executive functioning deficits in offenders compared to a normative sample, and the differences between first time offenders as compared to recidivists in Uruguay using a cross-sectional design. The neuropsychological performance of 334 male adult inmates was assessed using the BRIEF- A and a normative sample of 377. Results indicated that offenders performed significantly worse than non-offenders in the global score and the subscales of the BRIEF-A. Moreover, first time offenders exhibited less performance deficits in cognitive functioning than recidivist offenders. Compared to first time offenders, recidivist showed executive dysfunction concerning behavioral regulation index and globally. These results enhance our knowledge about executive dysfunction associated with criminality and may help to tailor the offenders’ programs to offenders with executive deficits.

摘要

先前的研究发现反社会行为与执行功能缺陷之间存在关联。然而，研究它们之间的联系解释了犯罪史，在西方国家发现了不同的结果。本研究旨在确定与规范样本相比，罪犯执行功能缺陷的严重程度，以及使用横断面设计的乌拉圭初犯与累犯之间的差异。使用BRIEF-A 和377 个标准样本评估了334 名成年男性囚犯的神经心理表现。结果表明，在总体评分和BRIEF-A 的子量表中，罪犯的表现明显低于非罪犯。此外，与累犯相比，初犯在认知功能方面表现出更少的表现缺陷。与初犯相比，累犯在行为调节指数和全球范围内表现出执行功能障碍。这些结果增强了我们对与犯罪相关的执行功能障碍的认识，并可能有助于为有执行缺陷的罪犯量身定制罪犯的计划。