Exploring the Links Between Psychopathy and Life History in a Sample of College Females: a Behavioral Ecological Approach

Abstract

In the present study, we tested the hypothesis that psychopathy emerges as an adaptive behavioral response to a harsh environment: psychopathy could represent a mediator in the link between a harsh environment and fast life history pathway. We measured environmental harshness, psychopathy (boldness, meanness, and disinhibition), and a wide range of life history parameters (expected longevity, covitality, age at first menstruation, age at first sex, mating success, planned age at first reproduction, and expected total fertility) in a sample of young female adults (N = 196). Factor analysis of the life history indicators produced three- and two-factor solutions and we decided to analyze the latter one—extracted components are described as long-term mating and expected future fitness. Environmental harshness was positively related to psychopathy and negatively to expected future fitness. Path analysis revealed that the disinhibition trait mediates the link between the environment and expected future fitness. Analysis also showed adaptive differences between boldness and disinhibition: while both psychopathy traits were negatively associated to long-term mating, boldness was positively related to expected future fitness, in contrast to disinhibition which showed negative associations with this life history measure. Hence, boldness showed the highest adaptive potential. Study results are in line with life history theory in humans and show the heuristic power of applying behavioral ecological framework to the study of psychopathy.