A recently published study found that men with higher levels of psychopathic traits are more likely to engage in sexual coercion and exhibit suspicious jealousy in their romantic relationships. The study, which was published in the Archives of Sexual Behavior, highlights the need for further research and interventions to address the risks associated with psychopathic men and to better understand sexual coercion within intimate relationships.
“Not a lot of information is available on how men with elevated levels of psychopathic traits function within their romantic relationships, yet research shows that these men do tend to have (sometimes several) romantic relationships,” said study author Kristopher Brazil, a postdoctoral fellow at Carleton University.
“Two streams of research informed the specific topic area of sexual coercion in relationships. First, psychopathy has been linked with higher levels of mating effort, which captures the time and energy organisms direct toward mating success. But most studies have focused on mating effort as it applies to obtaining new mates, so we wanted to examine a component of mating effort that involves mating success with one’s current partner.
“The second stream of research is the association between psychopathy and sexual coercion. But here again, most studies have looked at sexual coercion against strangers or acquaintances, and less have examined sexual coercion of partners.”
“From a theoretical point of view, evolutionary perspectives argue that men who engage in sexual coercion of their partner may be suspicious of them cheating,” Brazil explained. “By engaging in these harmful but self-serving behaviors then, they are (not necessarily consciously) working to increase their paternal certainty if the union should produce children. Thus, we can ask ourselves to what degree do men higher in psychopathy engage in sexual coercion in the context of their relationship and are they suspicious or jealous of their partner?”
To understand the relationship between psychopathy, jealousy, and sexual coercion in intimate relationships, the researchers conducted a survey with a total of 296 participants, consisting of 148 heterosexual couples. The participants were recruited through the Prolific online platform and they all reported being in a committed heterosexual relationship for at least six months.
The participants completed measures of psychopathy, jealousy, and sexual coercion through a secure website. The participants were instructed to provide their responses separately, without knowing their partner’s specific answers.
The researchers used various measures to assess the variables of interest. Psychopathic traits in men were measured using the Self-Report Psychopathy Scale: Short Form 4. This scale consists of 29 items and assesses psychopathic traits such as deception, grandiosity, callousness, impulsivity, and aggression.
Jealousy in men was measured using the Multidimensional Jealousy Scale, which has subscales for emotional, cognitive, and behavioral forms of jealousy. The Sexual Coercion in Intimate Relationships Scale was used to assess the frequency of men’s engagement in acts of sexual coercion in their current intimate relationship.
Both men and women completed the questionnaires, with women evaluating their male partner’s jealousy and sexual coercion. The researchers also collected demographic information such as sex, age, and relationship length from each participant.
There was generally a strong agreement between men and women in their reports of the same constructs (e.g. male jealousy). This suggests that partners were similar in their assessments of these variables, although not identical.
The researchers found that men’s self-reported psychopathic traits were positively associated with sexual coercion and suspicious jealousy. In other words, men who agreed with statements such as “A lot of people are ‘suckers’ and can easily be fooled” were more likely to agree with statements such as “I told my partner that if she loved me, she would have sex with me” and “I suspect that [my partner] may be attracted to someone else.”
Women’s reports also indicated that men’s psychopathic traits were positively associated with women’s reports of sexual coercion and suspicious jealousy. This suggests that men with psychopathic traits are more likely to use manipulative or forceful tactics in their relationships and have increased tendencies of distrust and control over their partners.
“Some theories of psychopathy expect individuals with psychopathic traits to be unaffected emotionally and psychologically by others,” Brazil told PsyPost. “However, our findings showed that from both self-report and partner-report, men higher in psychopathy showed more suspicious jealousy. This could suggest psychopathic men have greater concern and/or insecurity about their partner’s fidelity, but it could also be a general distrust of others.”
“Either way, it seems unlikely that psychopathic individuals are completely unaffected by others. Future research should examine the link psychopathy may have with suspicious jealousy as it could impact engaging in sexual coercion (e.g., being suspicious of a partner’s infidelity may increase the tendency to engage in sexual coercion).”
However, there was a disagreement between informants when it came to the association between men’s psychopathy and reactive jealousy. Men’s self-reports did not show a significant association, whereas women’s reports indicated that men with higher psychopathic traits were perceived as having lower levels of reactive jealousy by their partners. This discrepancy suggests that women who are in relationships with psychopathic men perceive their partners as less emotionally affected by jealousy-inducing situations.
The results further revealed that suspicious jealousy mediated the association between men’s psychopathic traits and sexual coercion. This suggests that suspicious jealousy plays a key role in the decision-making process of engaging in coercive sexual acts.
“Men who are higher in psychopathic traits do indeed enter romantic relationships and they often do so using charm, high energy, and confidence,” Brazil said. “However, our findings show that once in a relationship these men exhibit both jealous tendencies and sexual coercion of their partners. Members of the public should be aware of both ways psychopathy may impact romantic relationships—the positive, charming aspects and the negative, coercive aspects.”
The inclusion of control variables, such as relationship length and age, in both men’s and women’s reports models did not change the results regarding psychopathic traits, jealousy, and relationship sexual coercion. But the study, like all research, includes some caveats. For instance, the researchers recruited adults from the general community, so the findings may not apply to other populations, such as incarcerated men.
“Psychopathic traits tend to be higher in offender populations, so it would be important to examine the romantic relationships of men who are incarcerated,” Brazil told PsyPost.
Overall, the study highlights the importance of understanding the dynamics between psychopathic traits, jealousy, and sexual coercion in intimate relationships. It suggests the need for further research and interventions to address the elevated risk associated with psychopathic men and to improve our understanding of sexual coercion within relationships.
“Examining the evolutionary aspects of psychopathy should not lull us into justifying its negative impact on the lives of others,” Brazil explained. “Additionally, evolutionary researchers engaged with understanding psychopathy should attempt to synthesize their findings with other theories and findings in psychopathy. By gaining a better understanding of the evolutionary and non-evolutionary aspects of the syndrome, we may be in a better position to prevent it from developing in the first place.”
The study, “Men’s Psychopathy and Mating Effort in Intimate Relationships: Links with Jealousy and Sexual Coercion“, was authored by Kristopher J. Brazil, Gavin Vance, Virgil Zeigler‑Hill, and Todd K. Shackelford.
