NCJ Number
236247
Journal
Aggression and Violent Behavior Volume: 16 Issue: 5 Dated: September/October 2011 Pages: 371-380
Date Published
October 2011
Length
10 pages
Annotation
This article reviews research and theory on the orgins of psychopathy.
Abstract
Psychopathy represents a unique set of personality traits including deceitfulness, lack of empathy and guilt, impulsiveness, and antisocial behavior. Most often in the literature, psychopathy is described as pathology a disorder that has been linked to a variety of biological deficits and environmental risk factors. However, from an evolutionary perspective, psychopathy, while it could be a disorder, has been construed in the context of an adaptive strategy. In this article the authors will examine the strengths and weaknesses of two models suggesting that psychopathy is an adaptive strategy, and one model suggesting that it is a form of pathology resulting from accumulated mutations. Overall, the authors did not find that there is strong enough evidence to draw firm conclusions about one theory over another, but they highlight some areas where future research may be able to shed light on the issue. (Published Abstract)