A meta-analysis of studies investigating the links between sociosexual orientation and psychopathy found that individuals with higher levels of psychopathic traits tend to be more open to engaging in casual sex without closeness or emotional intimacy—that is, to adopting an unrestricted sociosexual orientation. The paper was published in Personality and Individual Differences.
Sociosexual orientation describes individual differences in people’s willingness to engage in sexual activity outside of a committed relationship. It is typically measured along a continuum from restricted to unrestricted. People with a restricted sociosexual orientation prefer sex only within emotionally close, committed partnerships. In contrast, those with an unrestricted sociosexual orientation are comfortable with casual sex and do not require emotional closeness or commitment beforehand.
Differences in sociosexual orientation are linked to personality traits, cultural context, and evolutionary factors. For example, higher openness and extraversion are associated with more unrestricted sociosexuality. Restricted individuals tend to prioritize long-term mating and parental investment, while unrestricted individuals are more likely to pursue short-term mating opportunities.
Study author Kaitlyn P. White and her colleagues wanted to systematize existing findings about the links between sociosexual orientation and psychopathy. They also wanted to explore whether this link depends on a person’s sex, their age, the way psychopathy was assessed, or their status as a college student.
These authors conducted a meta-analysis of existing studies. They searched scientific databases like PsycINFO, OneSearch, and ProQuest for studies reporting the link between psychopathy (assessed using self-report measures) and sociosexual orientation. Studies were required to be in English or have an English translation available. The search returned 1,170 articles.
However, a detailed inspection of those articles revealed that only 37 were research studies containing all the elements the study authors were looking for. These research studies included a total of 48 independent samples with 15,471 participants. The number of participants in individual studies ranged from 46 to 1,474.
Results showed that in 41 of the 48 samples, psychopathy was significantly associated with an unrestricted sociosexual orientation. On average, this association was a medium-sized effect, which the study notes is considered relatively large in the context of personality research. This means that individuals with more pronounced psychopathic traits tended to have a more unrestricted sociosexual orientation. In other words, they were more open to engaging in casual sex without requiring closeness, commitment, or emotional intimacy.
Contrary to the researchers’ initial hypothesis, the strength of the association was not significantly different between men and women. However, the strength of the link did depend on the psychological scale used to assess psychopathy. When psychopathy was assessed using the Dirty Dozen inventory, the association was weaker, but it was more than twice as strong in studies that utilized the Self-Report Psychopathy Scale-II.
“This quantitative synthesis provides compelling evidence that people with higher levels of psychopathy are more likely to engage in short-term mating opportunities, such as casual sex and one-night stands,” the study authors concluded.
The study contributes to the scientific understanding of the behavioral tendencies of individuals with pronounced psychopathic traits. However, it should be noted that this meta-analysis only included studies published in English, which may limit the range of cultures represented.
The paper, “A meta-analysis of psychopathy and the sociosexual orientation inventory,” was authored by Kaitlyn P. White, Marisa A. Muhonen, Keara A. Werth, and Andrew Lac.
