Dissociative Experiences and Psychopathology Among Inmates in Italian and Portuguese Prisons

Abstract

The association between dissociation and psychopathological symptoms is well established, yet studies with inmates are lacking. If higher rates of dissociation and psychiatric symptoms are reported in inmate samples, it is not clear whether they represent two separate, albeit related, characteristics. We examined the association between dissociation and psychopathological symptoms among 320 Italian subjects (122 inmates and 198 community participants) and a Portuguese inmate sample ( n = 67). Then, we tested whether dissociation and psychopathology levels were higher among inmates. Both hypotheses were supported, confirming the relevance of dissociative, paranoid, and psychotic symptoms among inmates, as well as their interrelations. Notably, the group difference in dissociation remained significant after partialing out the variance associated with other psychopathological symptoms. Conversely, only the difference in paranoid symptoms remained-marginally-significant when controlling for the influence of dissociation. This finding suggests that dissociation may have unique relevance for the psychological functioning of inmates.

Single and Multiple Clinical Syndromes in Incarcerated Offenders: Associations With Dissociative Experiences and Emotionality

“…The total DES-II score is the mean of all 28 items scores, and represents a valid and reliable index of dissociative symptoms ( Carlson & Putnam, 1993 ). The validity of the DES-II to measure dissociative experiences in inmate populations from different countries has been shown in prior studies ( Becker-Blease & Freyd, 2007 ; Moskowitz et al, 2005 ; Poythress, Skeem, & Lilienfeld, 2006 ; Zavattini et al, 2015 ). In the present study, internal consistency was very good (α = .93).…”

“…Even though in recent years there has been an increased interest for specific psychopathological features of violent offenders ( Nestor, 2002 ), there is a need to clarify how specific psychological issues characterize inmates’ mental functioning. Among possible correlates of psychiatric morbidity in prisoner populations, some evidence has been found regarding the role of dissociative symptoms (i.e., a detachment from physical and emotional experience including derealization, depersonalization, and absorption symptoms; Ruiz, Poythress, Lilienfeld, & Douglas, 2008 ; Zavattini et al, 2015 ), emotion dysregulation, and negative emotionality ( Garofalo, Holden, Zeigler-Hill, & Velotti, 2016 ; Sun, Luo, Wu, & Lin, 2016 ), as well as selected psychological symptoms such as paranoid ideation and delusional thinking ( Fazel & Yu, 2011 ; Nestor, 2002 ). For instance, greater levels of dissociative experiences have consistently been reported among prisoners, as compared with community samples ( Moskowitz, Barker-Collo, & Ellson, 2005 ), and this difference remained significant after controlling for general psychological distress ( Zavattini et al, 2015 ).…”

“…Among possible correlates of psychiatric morbidity in prisoner populations, some evidence has been found regarding the role of dissociative symptoms (i.e., a detachment from physical and emotional experience including derealization, depersonalization, and absorption symptoms; Ruiz, Poythress, Lilienfeld, & Douglas, 2008 ; Zavattini et al, 2015 ), emotion dysregulation, and negative emotionality ( Garofalo, Holden, Zeigler-Hill, & Velotti, 2016 ; Sun, Luo, Wu, & Lin, 2016 ), as well as selected psychological symptoms such as paranoid ideation and delusional thinking ( Fazel & Yu, 2011 ; Nestor, 2002 ). For instance, greater levels of dissociative experiences have consistently been reported among prisoners, as compared with community samples ( Moskowitz, Barker-Collo, & Ellson, 2005 ), and this difference remained significant after controlling for general psychological distress ( Zavattini et al, 2015 ). Furthermore, inmates typically present higher levels of negative emotionality ( Verona, Patrick, & Joiner, 2001 ), and in particular higher levels of disgust, fear, guilt, and shame ( Garofalo, 2015 ; Tangney, Stuewig, Mashek, & Hastings, 2011 ).…”

Faces of Shame: Implications for Self-Esteem, Emotion Regulation, Aggression, and Well-Being

“…Differential Emotions Scale-IV (DES-IV; Izard et al, 1993) The DES-IV consists of 36 items aimed at capturing the frequency of the experience of specific positive and negative emotions in the daily life. For the purpose of this study, only the six items assessing shame (e.g., 'Feel embarrassed when anybody sees you make a mistake'; a D .63) and guilt (e.g., 'Feel regret, sorry about something you did'; a D .68) of the Italian adaptation of the DES-IV (Zavattini et al, 2015) were administered.…”

Faces of Shame: Implications for Self-Esteem, Emotion Regulation, Aggression, and Well-Being

“…For the purpose of this study, only the six items assessing shame (e.g., 'Feel embarrassed when anybody sees you make a mistake'; a D .63) and guilt (e.g., 'Feel regret, sorry about something you did'; a D .68) of the Italian adaptation of the DES-IV (Zavattini et al, 2015) were administered.…”