Cited by 365Psychopathy, Forensic Psychiatry, Sexual OffendingNeural and Behavioral Psychology StudiesChild and Adolescent Psychosocial and Emotional Development

Abnormal ventromedial prefrontal cortex function in children with psychopathic traits during reversal learning

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Finger, Elizabeth C., Marsh, Abigail A., Mitchell, Derek G., Reid, Marguerite E., Sims, Courtney, Budhani, Salima, Kosson, David S., Chen, Gang +4 more·2008·Archives of General Psychiatry

Abstract

CONTEXT: Children and adults with psychopathic traits and conduct or oppositional defiant disorder demonstrate poor decision making and are impaired in reversal learning. However, the neural basis of this impairment has not previously been investigated. Furthermore, despite high comorbidity of psychopathic traits and attention-deficit/hyperactivity disorder, to our knowledge, no research has attempted to distinguish neural correlates of childhood psychopathic traits and attention-deficit/hyperactivity disorder. OBJECTIVE: To determine the neural regions that underlie the reversal learning impairments in children with psychopathic traits plus conduct or oppositional defiant disorder. DESIGN: Case-control study. SETTING: Government clinical research institute. PARTICIPANTS: Forty-two adolescents aged 10 to 17 years: 14 with psychopathic traits and oppositional defiant disorder or conduct disorder, 14 with attention-deficit/hyperactivity disorder only, and 14 healthy controls. MAIN OUTCOME MEASURE: Blood oxygenation level-dependent signal as measured via functional magnetic resonance imaging during a probabilistic reversal task. RESULTS: Children with psychopathic traits showed abnormal responses within the ventromedial prefrontal cortex (Brodmann area 10) during punished reversal errors compared with children with attention-deficit/hyperactivity disorder and healthy children (P < .05 corrected for multiple comparisons). CONCLUSIONS: To our knowledge, this study provides the first evidence of abnormal ventromedial prefrontal cortex responsiveness in children with psychopathic traits and demonstrates this dysfunction was not attributable to comorbid attention-deficit/hyperactivity disorder. These findings suggest that reversal learning impairments in patients with developmental psychopathic traits relate to abnormal processing of reinforcement information.

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Authors
Finger, E. C., Marsh, A. A., Mitchell, D. G., Reid, M. E., Sims, C., Budhani, S., Kosson, D. S., Chen, G., Towbin, K. E., Leibenluft, E., Pine, D. S., & Blair, J. R.
Affiliations
  • National Institutes of Health (US)
  • Western University (CA)
Venue
Archives of General Psychiatry
Published
2008-05-01
Volume
65
Issue
5
Pages
586
ISSN
0003-990X (ISSN-L)
OpenAlex
W2172003132
Cited by
365
References
83
Citations by year
2026: 3 · 2025: 2 · 2024: 5 · 2023: 9 · 2022: 14 · 2021: 12 · 2020: 54 · 2019: 16 · 2018: 13 · 2017: 24 · 2016: 26 · 2015: 28 · 2014: 25 · 2013: 38 · 2012: 30
FWCI
23.74
Type
journal article
Language
en
Open access
Locations
  • Archives of General Psychiatry (publishedVersion)
  • PubMed (publishedVersion)
  • PubMed Central (acceptedVersion)
  • PhilPapers (PhilPapers Foundation) (submittedVersion)
Funders
  • National Institutes of Health
  • National Institute of Mental Health (R01MH057714, ZIAMH002860)
Topics
  • Social Sciences › Psychology › Clinical Psychology › Psychopathy, Forensic Psychiatry, Sexual Offending
  • Life Sciences › Neuroscience › Cognitive Neuroscience › Neural and Behavioral Psychology Studies
  • Social Sciences › Psychology › Clinical Psychology › Child and Adolescent Psychosocial and Emotional Development
Keywords
psychopathic traits, ventromedial prefrontal cortex, reversal learning, conduct disorder, oppositional defiant disorder, attention deficit hyperactivity disorder, adolescents, decision-making, neural correlates
MeSH terms
Adolescent, Antisocial Personality Disorder, Attention Deficit Disorder with Hyperactivity, Female, Humans, Male, Reversal Learning, Severity of Illness Index, Ventromedial Hypothalamic Nucleus, Prefrontal Cortex, Diagnostic and Statistical Manual of Mental Disorders

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