The Paradox of Childhood Cumulative Adversity in Antisocial Personality Disorder: Reconsidering Trauma-Informed Approaches in Carceral Settings

Introduction and Purpose: High levels of Adverse Childhood Experiences (ACEs), is often associated with Antisocial Personality Disorder (ASPD) psychopathology. Our study investigates if childhood adversities directly manifest through the dimensions of emotion regulation, psychopathy, impulsivity, and aggression. Dimensions that are commonly addressed in carceral settings. Methodology: A retrospective study conducted in a carceral setting. We analyzed records of male inmates with a clinical diagnosis of ASPD who consulted the prison psychiatric service from January to June 2025. Records with comorbid Borderline Personality Disorder (BPD) or active psychosis were excluded and only included medical records incorporating the relevant psychometric evaluations, the Difficulties in Emotion Regulation Scale (DERS), Psychopathy Checklist-Revised (PCL-R), Levenson Self-Report Psychopathy Scale (LSRP), Barratt Impulsiveness Scale (BIS-11), and Buss-Perry Aggression Questionnaire (BPAQ). Participants were stratified into High (ACE?4) and Low (ACE