A new study examined the link between psychopathic traits and number of children in a community sample of men and women, finding that prototypical psychopathy was associated with having more children among men, but not women. This research was published in Evolutionary Behavioral Sciences.
Research on psychopathy from an evolutionary perspective suggests it may be a strategy for higher offspring production at the cost of lower parental investment, but findings are inconsistent. Men with pronounced psychopathic traits often have more children, yet some studies point to fewer offspring in such individuals, particularly among non-criminal adults and women.
Psychopathy, characterized by traits such as manipulativeness and callousness, can manifest to varying degrees across genders and social contexts. The present study examined the relationship between psychopathic traits and offspring count in a general population of both men and women.
Researchers Kristopher Brazil and Anthony Volk recruited 253 young men and 243 young women ages 24 to 35 to complete an online survey. Participants provided demographic information, including age, relationship status, and income. Additionally, they indicated the number of children they had, with response options ranging from zero to three or more children.
The participants also completed a short form of the Self-Report Psychopathy measure, which consists of 29 items rated on a scale from 1 (strongly disagree) to 5 (strongly agree). This measure assesses psychopathy across multiple dimensions, encompassing interpersonal traits (e.g., “I have pretended to be someone else in order to get something”), affective characteristics (e.g., “I never feel guilty over hurting others”), lifestyle tendencies (e.g., “I enjoy doing wild things”), and antisocial behaviors (e.g., “I have broken into a building or vehicle in order to steal something or vandalize”).
First, Brazil and Volk observed that having a partner was associated with higher income for both men and women, and number of children was correlated with men’s (but not women’s) income. Relationship status and age emerged as predictors for number of children in both genders.
Interestingly, the researchers noted that among women, only the antisocial facet of psychopathy was associated with number of children. In contrast, when it came to men, number of children was associated with the interpersonal, affective, and antisocial facets of psychopathy. Notably, the lifestyle facet did not exhibit any significant association with number of children for either men or women. Furthermore, in men, the presence of prototypical psychopathy was linked to number of children. Women’s likelihood of having more children was primarily influenced by their relationship status and age.
A limitation to the current study is that the researchers did not differentiate between biological and step children. Previous research has indicated that psychopathic men involved in the justice system may be more inclined to form relationships with women who already have children; thus, this would be an important consideration for future research.
Brazil and Volk concluded, “Our findings call for more research on the possible links between psychopathic traits and indices of adaptive outcomes in community as well as justice-involved and high-risk populations of men and women.”
The study, “Psychopathic Traits and Number of Children in Community Men and Women”, was authored by Kristopher J. Brazil and Anthony A. Volk.