Patient History: A 32-year-old man is seen by a jail psychiatrist after getting into a fight with another inmate over a bet. Jailed for forging bad checks, this is the patient’s fourth incarceration. Previous incarcerations were for assaulting a police officer, stealing from a department store, and at age 13, stealing a car.
The patient states that he fought with the other inmate because “I was bored and felt like it.” He admits that the bet was not really a reason, to begin with, but he shows no remorse either about trying to take the money or about getting into a physical altercation with the other inmate. Moreover, the patient states that he has seen psychiatrists in the past (always reluctantly and always because of demands made either by his mother or by the courts) but states, “There isn’t anything wrong with me, so why should I?” He denies using drugs or alcohol while…
