Exploratory and Confirmatory Factor Analysis of the Psychopathy Construct: Methodological and Conceptual Issues

Abstract

In 2004, factor analysis became 100 years old. Charles Spearman’s (1904) seminal article, “General Intelligence: Objectively Determined and Measured,” was fundamental in establishing the theory and methodology of factor analysis (www.fa100.info). No doubt, the long history of this statistical tool in social science research is, in part, testament to its utility. In this chapter we examine the use of exploratory and confirmatory factor analysis as tools for research focused on elucidating the dimensions of the psychopathy construct. It is not intended to be a technical discussion of how to conduct such analyses or the mathematical underpinnings of these statistical tools. The goals of the current chapter are to (a) provide a brief overview of previous exploratory factor analytic research on the Psychopathy Checklist (PCL) and Psychopathy Checklist–Revised (PCL–R); (b) present conceptual and methodological issues that pertain to the application of exploratory and confirmatory factor analysis for research on psychopathy; and (c) discuss the recent three-factor (Cooke & Michie, 2001) and four-factor (Hare, 2003) models of psychopathy. To assist in illustrating some of the issues raised in this chapter, a large sample (N = 4,865) of North American PCL–R data, provided by Dr. Robert Hare, is used to test contemporary factor models of psychopathy.