Journal of Abnormal Child Psychology, Vol. 18, No. 4, 1990, pp. 451-463 Reward Dominance and Passive Avoidance Learning in Adolescent Psychopaths Angela Scerbo, 1.2 Adrian Raine, l Mary O'Brien, ~ Cheryl-Jean Chan, ~ Cathy Rhee, I and Norine Smiley ~ Manuscript received in final form April 3, 1990. This study tests predictions that adolescent psychopaths are hyperrespon- sive to rewards (Quay, 1988) and deficient in passive avoidance learning (New- man & Kosson, 1986). Forty male adolescent juvenile offenders were divided into psychopaths and nonpsychopaths using cluster analysis. Sub- jects were administered a passive avoidance learning task which required learning when to respond to cards associated with either reward or punish- ment. Results showed a greater responsivity to reward in psychopaths, with no group differences in passive avoidance errors. Results lend support to the view that psychopaths tend to focus on the prospect of reward under condi- tions of mixed incentives and, when sufficiently motivated, are capable of improved performance. Together with findings of recent psychophysiologi- cal studies, these results suggest that adolescent psychopaths may have la- tent abilities which couM have treatment implications. One influential theory of psychopathic behavior is that psychopaths suffer from a deficit in passive avoidance learning. Lykken (1957) observed that adult psychopaths were less able to learn to passively avoid punished responses where the punishment in question consisted of the administration of an elec- tric shock and interpreted this finding as consistent with the notion of reduced conditioned anxiety in psychopaths. This finding of poorer passive avoidance The authors are greatly indebted to the boys and staff of the testing institution for their kind cooperation in this study. Thanks are also due to Dr. Rand Wilcox for statistical consultation and Cheryl Eurton and Marni Ayers for assistance in data coding. ~University of Southern California, University Park, Los Angeles, California 90089. 2Address all correspondence to Angela Scerbo, Department of Psychology, S. G. M. Building, University of Southern California, University Park, Los Angeles, California 90089-i061. 451 0091-0627/90/0800-0451506.00/0 9 1990 Plenum Publishing Corporation