Abstract
Psychopathy is well-established as a risk-factor and predictor of violent and aggressive behavior. Psychopathic individuals, though an estimably small portion of the population, comprise a large portion of all violent crime committed. Psychopathic individuals display not only criminal versatility, but versatility in their approaches to violent and aggressive behavior. This chapter argues that understanding the association between the distinct facets of psychopathy and types of violent behavior and the mechanisms linking psychopathy to violence, and further establishing evidence-based strategies for men and women, should be a global public health priority in order to effectively break the psychopathy-violence link. Within this chapter, the similarities and differences of violent and aggressive behavioral outcomes, their distinct relations to the construct of psychopathy, implications, and recommendations for future research are explored.
Access this chapter
Tax calculation will be finalised at checkout
Purchases are for personal use only
Similar content being viewed by others
References
Anestis, J. C., Green, B. A., Arnau, R. C., & Anestis, M. D. (2017). Psychopathic personality traits in the military: An examination of the Levenson Self-Report Psychopathy Scales in a novel sample. Assessment, 26, 670–683.
Archer, J., & Coyne, S. M. (2005). An integrated review of indirect, relational, and social aggression. Personality and Social Psychology Review, 9(3), 212–230.
Barratt, E. S. (1991). Measuring and predicting aggression within the context of a personality theory. The Journal of Neuropsychiatry and Clinical Neurosciences, 3(2), S35–S39.
Berkowitz, L. (1993). Aggression: Its causes, consequences, and control. McGraw-Hill.
Björkqvist, K. (1994). Sex differences in physical, verbal, and indirect aggression: A review of recent research. Sex Roles, 30(3–4), 177–188.
Blais, J., Solodukhin, E., & Forth, A. E. (2014). A meta-analysis exploring the relationship between psychopathy and instrumental versus reactive violence. Criminal Justice and Behavior, 41(7), 797–821.
Brown, A. R., Dargis, M. A., Mattern, A. C., Tsonis, M. A., & Newman, J. P. (2015). Elevated psychopathy scores among mixed sexual offenders: Replication and extension. Criminal Justice and Behavior, 42(10), 1032–1044.
Bureau of Justice Statistics. (2017). Violent crime.
Cale, J., Lussier, P., McCuish, E., & Corrado, R. (2015). The prevalence of psychopathic personality disturbances among incarcerated youth: Comparing serious, chronic, violent and sex offenders. Journal of Criminal Justice, 43(4), 337–344.
Casey, H., Rogers, R. D., Burns, T., & Yiend, J. (2013). Emotion regulation in psychopathy. Biological Psychology, 92(3), 541–548.
CDC. (2020). Preventing intimate partner violence. https://doi.org/10.15585/mmwr.ss6711a1external
Chakhssi, F., Bernstein, D., & de Ruiter, C. (2014a). Early maladaptive schemas in relation to facets of psychopathy and institutional violence in offenders with personality disorders. Legal and Criminological Psychology, 19(2), 356–372.
Chakhssi, F., Kersten, T., de Ruiter, C., & Bernstein, D. P. (2014b). Treating the untreatable: A single case study of a psychopathic inpatient treated with Schema Therapy. Psychotherapy, 51(3), 447–461.
Cima, M., & Raine, A. (2009). Distinct characteristics of psychopathy relate to different subtypes of aggression. Personality and Individual Differences, 47(8), 835–840.
Cirilo, H. G., Adrián, V., Leopoldo, D., Norma, G., Brenda, G., & Chriztian, C. (2018). Psychopathy as a predictor variable of the disposition to steal. Revista Iberoamericana de Psicologia y Salud, 9(2), 137–148.
Coid, J., & Yang, M. (2011). The impact of psychopathy on violence among the household population of Great Britain. Social Psychiatry and Psychiatric Epidemiology, 46(6), 473–480.
Coid, J., Yang, M., Ullrich, S., Zhang, T., Sizmur, S., Roberts, C., Farrington, D. P., & Rogers, R. D. (2009). Gender differences in structured risk assessment: Comparing the accuracy of five instruments. Journal of Consulting and Clinical Psychology, 77(2), 337–348.
Colins, O. F., Fanti, K. A., Salekin, R. T., & Andershed, H. (2017). Psychopathic personality in the general population: Differences and similarities across gender. Journal of Personality Disorders, 31(1), 49–74.
Cope, L. M., Ermer, E., Gaudet, L. M., Steele, V. R., Eckhardt, A. L., Arbabshirani, M. R., Caldwell, M. F., Calhoun, V. D., & Kiehl, K. A. (2014). Abnormal brain structure in youth who commit homicide. NeuroImage: Clinical, 4, 800–807.
Cornell, D. G., Warren, J., Hawk, G., Stafford, E., Oram, G., & Pine, D. (1996). Psychopathy in instrumental and reactive violent offenders. Journal of Consulting and Clinical Psychology, 64(4), 783–790.
Culhane, S. E., Walker, S., & Hildebrand, M. M. (2019). Serial homicide perpetrators’ self-reported psychopathy and criminal thinking. Journal of Police and Criminal Psychology, 34(1), 1–13.
Cunha, O., Braga, T., & Gonçalves, R. A. (2018). Psychopathy and intimate partner violence. Journal of Interpersonal Violence, 36, 3–4.
de Vogel, V., & de Ruiter, C. (2005). The HCR-20 in personality disordered female offenders: A comparison with a matched sample of males. Clinical Psychology & Psychotherapy, 12(3), 226–240.
de Vogel, V., & Lancel, M. (2016). Gender differences in the assessment and manifestation of psychopathy: Results from a multicenter study in forensic psychiatric patients. International Journal of Forensic Mental Health, 15(1), 97–110.
de Vries Robbé, M., de Vogel, V., Wever, E. C., Douglas, K. S., & Nijman, H. L. I. (2016). Risk and protective factors for inpatient aggression. Criminal Justice and Behavior, 43(10), 1364–1385.
Declercq, F., Willemsen, J., Audenaert, K., & Verhaeghe, P. (2012). Psychopathy and predatory violence in homicide, violent, and sexual offences: Factor and facet relations. Legal and Criminological Psychology, 17(1), 59–74.
DeLisi, M., Reidy, D. E., Heirigs, M. H., Tostlebe, J. J., & Vaughn, M. G. (2017). Psychopathic costs: A monetization study of the fiscal toll of psychopathy features among institutionalized delinquents. Journal of Criminal Psychology, 8, 112–124.
Dhingra, K., & Boduszek, D. (2013). Psychopathy and criminal behaviour: A psychosocial research perspective. Journal of Criminal Psychology, 3(2), 83–107.
Dodge, K. A. (1991). The structure and function of reactive and proactive aggression. In D. Peppler & K. Rubin (Eds.), The development and treatment of childhood aggression (pp. 201–218). Erlbaum.
Dodge, K. A., & Coie, J. D. (1987). Social-information-processing factors in reactive and proactive aggression in children’s peer groups. Journal of Personality and Social Psychology, 53(6), 1146–1158.
Edens, J. F., & Ruiz, M. A. (2006). On the validity of validity scales: The importance of defensive responding in the prediction of institutional misconduct. Psychological Assessment, 18(2), 220–224.
Edens, J. F., Poythress, N. G., Lilienfeld, S. O., Patrick, C. J., & Test, A. (2008). Further evidence of the divergent correlates of the Psychopathic Personality Inventory factors: Prediction of institutional misconduct among male prisoners. Psychological Assessment, 20(1), 86–91.
FBI. (2017). Percent of offenses cleared by arrest or exceptional means.
Foellmi, M. C., Rosenfeld, B., & Galietta, M. (2016). Assessing risk for recidivism in individuals convicted of stalking offenses. Criminal Justice and Behavior, 43(5), 600–616.
Fox, B., & DeLisi, M. (2019). Psychopathic killers: A meta-analytic review of the psychopathy-homicide nexus. Aggression and Violent Behavior, 44, 67–79.
Grann, M., & Wedin, I. (2002). Risk factors for recidivism among spousal assault and spousal homicide offenders. Psychology, Crime & Law, 8(1), 5–23.
Haapasalo, J. (1994). Types of offense among the Cleckley psychopaths. International Journal of Offender Therapy and Comparative Criminology, 38(1), 59–67.
Hare, R. D. (2003). The Hare Psychopathy Checklist—Revised (2nd ed.). Multi-Health Systems.
Hare, R. D., & Neumann, C. S. (2008). Psychopathy as a clinical and empirical construct. Annual Review of Clinical Psychology, 4(1), 217–246.
Hawes, S. W., Boccaccini, M. T., & Murrie, D. C. (2013). Psychopathy and the combination of psychopathy and sexual deviance as predictors of sexual recidivism: Meta-analytic findings using the Psychopathy Checklist—Revised. Psychological Assessment, 25(1), 233–243.
Hecht, L. K., Berg, J. M., Lilienfeld, S. O., & Latzman, R. D. (2015). Parsing the heterogeneity of psychopathy and aggression: Differential associations across dimensions and gender. Personality Disorders, Theory, Research, and Treatment, 7, 2–14.
Heilbrun, K., Hart, S. D., Hare, R. D., Gustafson, D., Nunez, C., & White, A. J. (1998). Inpatient and postdischarge aggression in mentally disordered offenders. Journal of Interpersonal Violence, 13(4), 514–527.
Hildebrand, M., De Ruiter, C., & Nijman, H. (2004). PCL-R psychopathy predicts disruptive behavior among male offenders in a Dutch forensic psychiatric hospital. Journal of Interpersonal Violence, 19(1), 13–29.
Juodis, M., Starzomski, A., Porter, S., & Woodworth, M. (2014). A comparison of domestic and non-domestic homicides: Further evidence for distinct dynamics and heterogeneity of domestic homicide perpetrators. Journal of Family Violence, 29(3), 299–313.
Kiehl, K. A., & Hoffman, M. B. (2011). The criminal psychopath: History, neuroscience, treatment, and economics. Jurimetrics, 51, 355–397.
Klein Tuente, S., de Vogel, V., & Stam, J. (2014). Exploring the criminal behavior of women with psychopathy: Results from a multicenter study into psychopathy and violent offending in female forensic psychiatric patients. International Journal of Forensic Mental Health, 13(4), 311–322.
Kropp, P. R., Hart, S. D., Lyon, D. R., & Storey, J. E. (2011). The development and validation of the guidelines for stalking assessment and management. Behavioral Sciences & the Law, 29(2), 302–316.
Krstic, S., Neumann, C. S., Roy, S., Robertson, C. A., Knight, R. A., & Hare, R. D. (2018). Using latent variable- and person-centered approaches to examine the role of psychopathic traits in sex offenders. Personality Disorders, Theory, Research, and Treatment, 9(3), 207.
Langton, C. M., Hogue, T. E., Daffern, M., Mannion, A., & Howells, K. (2011). Personality traits as predictors of inpatient aggression in a high-security forensic psychiatric setting: Prospective evaluation of the PCL-R and IPDE dimension ratings. International Journal of Offender Therapy and Comparative Criminology, 55(3), 392–415.
Lawing, K., Frick, P. J., & Cruise, K. R. (2010). Differences in offending patterns between adolescent sex offenders high or low in callous-unemotional traits. Psychological Assessment, 22(2), 298–305.
Levenson, M. R., Kiehl, K. A., & Fitzpatrick, C. M. (1995). Assessing psychopathic attributes in a noninstitutionalized population. Journal of Personality and Social Psychology, 68(1), 151–158.
Lilienfeld, S. O., & Widows, M. R. (2005). Psychopathic Personality Inventory—Revised (PPI-R) professional manual. Psychological Assessment Resources.
Mager, K. L., Bresin, K., & Verona, E. (2014). Gender, psychopathy factors, and intimate partner violence. Personality Disorders, 5(3), 257–267.
Marsee, M. A., & Frick, P. J. (2007). Exploring the cognitive and emotional correlates to proactive and reactive aggression in a sample of detained girls. Journal of Abnormal Child Psychology, 35(6), 969–981.
McDermott, B. E., Quanbeck, C. D., Busse, D., Yastro, K., & Scott, C. L. (2008). The accuracy of risk assessment instruments in the prediction of impulsive versus predatory aggression. Behavioral Sciences & the Law, 26(6), 759–777.
Mokros, A., Osterheider, M., Hucker, S. J., & Nitschke, J. (2011). Psychopathy and sexual sadism. Law and Human Behavior, 35(3), 188–199.
Mouilso, E. R., & Calhoun, K. S. (2013). The role of rape myth acceptance and psychopathy in sexual assault perpetration. Journal of Aggression, Maltreatment & Trauma, 22(2), 159–174.
Okano, M., Langille, J., & Walsh, Z. (2016). Psychopathy, alcohol use, and intimate partner violence: Evidence from two samples. Law and Human Behavior, 40(5), 517–523.
Pajevic, M., Batinic, B., & Stevanovic, N. (2017). Subtypes of homicide offenders based on psychopathic traits. International Journal of Law and Psychiatry, 55, 45–53.
Parks, G. A., & Bard, D. E. (2006). Risk factors for adolescent sex offender recidivism: Evaluation of predictive factors and comparison of three groups based upon victim type. Sexual Abuse: A Journal of Research and Treatment, 18(4), 319–342.
Paulhus, D. L., Neumann, C. S., & Hare, R. D. (2016). Hare self-report psychopathy scale: Technical manual (4th ed.). Multi-Health Systems.
Pedersen, L., Kunz, C., Rasmussen, K., & Elsass, P. (2010). Psychopathy as a risk factor for violent recidivism: Investigating the Psychopathy Checklist Screening Version (PCL:SV) and the Comprehensive Assessment of Psychopathic Personality (CAPP) in a forensic psychiatric setting. International Journal of Forensic Mental Health, 9(4), 308–315.
Porter, S., & Woodworth, M. (2007). “I’m sorry I did it…but he started it” A comparison of the official and self-reported homicide descriptions of psychopaths and non-psychopaths. Law and Human Behavior, 31(1), 91–107.
Porter, S., Fairweather, D., Drugge, J., Herve, H., Birt, A., & Boer, D. P. (2000). Profiles of psychopathy in incarcerated sexual offenders. Criminal Justice and Behavior, 27(2), 216–233.
Porter, S., Woodworth, M., Earle, J., Drugge, J., & Boer, D. (2003). Characteristics of sexual homicides committed by psychopathic and nonpsychopathic offenders. Law and Human Behavior, 27(5), 459–470.
Reavis, J. A., Allen, E. K., & Meloy, J. R. (2008). Psychopathy in a mixed gender sample of adult stalkers. Journal of Forensic Sciences, 53(5), 1214–1217.
Reidy, D. E., Kearns, M. C., & DeGue, S. (2013). Reducing psychopathic violence: A review of the treatment literature. Aggression and Violent Behavior, 18(5), 527–538.
Reidy, D. E., Lilienfeld, S. O., Berke, D. S., Gentile, B., & Zeichner, A. (2016). Psychopathy traits and violent assault among men with and without history of arrest. Journal of Interpersonal Violence, 34, 2438–2457.
Robertson, C. A., & Knight, R. A. (2014). Relating sexual sadism and psychopathy to one another, non-sexual violence, and sexual crime behaviors. Aggressive Behavior, 40(1), 12–23.
Sewall, L. A., & Olver, M. E. (2018). Sexual offender treatment outcomes among psychopathy subtypes. Journal of Criminological Research, Policy and Practice. Chicago.
Sewall, L. A., & Olver, M. E. (2019). Psychopathy and treatment outcome: Results from a sexual violence reduction program. Personality Disorders, Theory, Research, and Treatment, 10, 59–69.
Sherretts, N., Boduszek, D., Debowska, A., & Willmott, D. (2017). Comparison of murderers with recidivists and first time incarcerated offenders from U.S. prisons on psychopathy and identity as a criminal: An exploratory analysis. Journal of Criminal Justice, 51, 89–92.
Smith, S. T., Edens, J. F., & McDermott, B. E. (2013). Fearless dominance and self-centered impulsivity interact to predict predatory aggression among forensic psychiatric inpatients. International Journal of Forensic Mental Health, 12(1), 33–41.
Storey, J. E., Hart, S. D., Meloy, J. R., & Reavis, J. A. (2009). Psychopathy and stalking. Law and Human Behavior, 33(3), 237–246.
Theobald, D., Farrington, D. P., Coid, J. W., & Piquero, A. R. (2016). Are male perpetrators of intimate partner violence different from convicted violent offenders? Examination of psychopathic traits and life success in males from a community survey. Journal of Interpersonal Violence, 31(9), 1687–1718.
Thomson, N. D. (2017). An exploratory study of female psychopathy and drug-related violent crime. Journal of Interpersonal Violence, 35, 794–808.
Thomson, N. D. (2018). Psychopathy and violent crime. In M. DeLisi (Ed.), Routledge international handbook of psychopathy and crime (pp. 508–525). Routledge.
Thomson, N. D. (2019). Understanding psychopathy: The biopsychosocial perspective. Routledge.
Thomson, N. D., Towl, G. J., & Centifanti, L. C. M. (2016). The habitual female offender inside: How psychopathic traits predict chronic prison violence. Law and Human Behavior, 40(3), 257–269.
Thomson, N. D., Kiehl, K. A., & Bjork, J. M. (2018). Predicting violence and aggression in young women: The importance of psychopathy and neurobiological function. Physiology & Behavior, 201, 130–138.
Thomson, N. D., Bozgunov, K., Aboutanos, M., Vasilev, G., & Vassileva, J. (2019a). Physical abuse moderates the psychopathy-violence link differently for men and women. Journal of Interpersonal Violence. https://doi.org/10.1177/0886260519865956
Thomson, N. D., Bozgunov, K., Psederska, E., & Vassileva, J. (2019b). Sex differences on the four-facet model of psychopathy predict physical, verbal, and indirect aggression. Aggressive Behavior, 45(3), 265–274.
Thomson, N. D., Vassileva, J., Kiehl, K. A., Reidy, D. E., Aboutanos, M. B., McDougle, R., & DeLisi, M. (2019c). Which features of psychopathy and impulsivity matter most for prison violence? New evidence among female prisoners. International Journal of Law and Psychiatry, 64, 26–33.
United States of America v. Brian David Mitchell, Memorandum Decision and Order, Case No. 2:08CR125DAK, 03/01/2010, pp. 1–149.
Walters, G. D., & Heilbrun, K. (2010). Violence risk assessment and Facet 4 of the Psychopathy Checklist: Predicting institutional and community aggression in two forensic samples. Assessment, 17(2), 259–268.
Warren, J., South, S. C., Burnette, M. L., Rogers, A., Friend, R., Bale, R., & Van Patten, I. (2005). Understanding the risk factors for violence and criminality in women: The concurrent validity of the PCL-R and HCR-20. International Journal of Law and Psychiatry, 28(3), 269–289.
Warren, J., Wellbeloved-Stone, J. M., Dietz, P. E., & Millspaugh, S. B. (2017). Gender and violence risk assessment in prisons. Psychological Services, 15, 543–552.
Willis, M., Birthrong, A., King, J. S., Nelson-Gray, R. O., & Latzman, R. D. (2017). Are infidelity tolerance and rape myth acceptance related constructs? An association moderated by psychopathy and narcissism. Personality and Individual Differences, 117, 230–235.
Woodworth, M., & Porter, S. (2002). In cold blood: Characteristics of criminal homicides as a function of psychopathy. Journal of Abnormal Psychology, 111(3), 436–445.
Author information
Authors and Affiliations
Corresponding author
Editor information
Editors and Affiliations
Rights and permissions
Copyright information
© 2022 Springer Nature Switzerland AG
About this chapter
Cite this chapter
Thomson, N.D., Kevorkian, S., Verdugo-Thomson, A.A. (2022). Psychopathy and Violence. In: Vitale, J.E. (eds) The Complexity of Psychopathy. Dangerous Behavior in Clinical and Forensic Psychology. Springer, Cham. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-030-83156-1_5
Download citation
DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-030-83156-1_5
Published:
Publisher Name: Springer, Cham
Print ISBN: 978-3-030-83155-4
Online ISBN: 978-3-030-83156-1
eBook Packages: Behavioral Science and PsychologyBehavioral Science and Psychology (R0)