Association of Self‐Rated Attribution of Blame for Criminal Acts and of Psychiatric Symptoms Among Patients Undergoing Specialist Forensic Psychiatric Treatment in Japan

This is the first study to compare blame attribution for a serious index offence and mental state simultaneously, albeit at various stages of treatment and time after the offence. The association of persistent positive symptoms with externalising blame is understandable in terms of the nature of the symptoms, almost invariable including paranoid delusions. The absence of a relationship with acceptance of guilt or understanding the role of mental disorder in the offending suggests that many of these patients require further treatment to accept personal agency. A longitudinal study is indicated to test these possibilities further.