Agreeableness Accounts for the Factor Structure of the Youth Psychopathic Traits Inventory

Abstract

The present study investigated the relationship between the Five-Factor Model (FFM) and the Youth Psychopathic Traits Inventory (YPI; Andershed, Ker, Stattin, & Levander, 2002) in an undergraduate sample. It was hypothesized that Agreeableness would saturate the lower- and higher-order scales of the YPI, and that taking Agreeableness into account would reduce the intercorrelations among the three factors of the YPI. These hypotheses were explored in a sample of 466 undergraduates who completed the YPI and the Revised NEO Personality Inventory (NEO-PI-R; Costa & McCrae, 1992). Results demonstrated that Agreeableness was the strongest, most consistent correlate of the lower-order scales and three higher-order factors of the YPI. Additionally, analyses showed that Agreeableness accounted for large portions of the three YPI factors, as well as the overlap among factors, helping explain their intercorrelations. Current results underscore the centrality of Agreeableness to the assessment and understanding of psychopathy, particularly as measured by the YPI.