Callous-Unemotional Traits and Happy Victimization: Relationships with Delinquency in a Sample of Detained Girls

Abstract

The current study examined associations between callous-unemotional (CU) traits (total CU, callousness, uncaring, and unemotional), happy victimization (i.e., the experience of positive emotions or absence of negative emotions following a transgression) and delinquency (total, violent, and nonviolent) in 59 detained girls (78% African American, 22% Caucasian) aged 12 to 18 years. Results indicated positive associations between happy victimization, CU traits, and delinquency. Happy victimization was also positively associated with delinquency, even when controlling for CU traits. Further, the callousness dimension of CU traits selectively moderated these relationships such that happy victimization was positively associated with total delinquency and violent delinquency only under high callousness conditions.

Keywords:

• happy victimization
• delinquency
• callous-unemotional traits
• girls