The Significance of an Abnormal EEG in Psychopathic Personalities

Abstract

The clinical features of 100 patients with psychopathic personalities presenting to an acute psychiatric service are described. Neurotic symptoms were frequently found to co-exist with psychopathic traits. Fifty-three patients had abnormal electroencephalograms. The abnormalities were significantly negatively correlated with age, and positively with the occurrence of epileptic convulsions, but few other significant clinical correlates were found. It is suggested that an abnormal EEG may be positively misleading if misinterpreted as evidence of epilepsy or of an “organic” disorder. The medico-legal and therapeutic implications of this conclusion are discussed. It is suggested that environmental deprivation may be one of the factors responsible for the delay in electroencephalographic maturation so frequently found in psychopaths.