A preliminary investigation of the construct of psychopathic personality (psychopathy) in chimpanzees (Pan troglodytes)

J Comp Psychol. 1999 Dec;113(4):365-75. doi: 10.1037/0735-7036.113.4.365.

Abstract

Although the construct of psychopathy has received considerable attention in humans, its relevance to other animals is largely unknown. We developed a measure of psychopathy for use in chimpanzees (Pan troglodytes), the Chimpanzee Psychopathy Measure (CPM), and asked 6 raters to complete this index on 34 chimpanzees. The CPM (a) demonstrated satisfactory interrater reliability and internal consistency; (b) exhibited marginally significant sex differences (males > females); (c) correlated positively with measures of extraversion, agreeableness, and observational ratings of agonism, sexual activity, daring behaviors, teasing, silent bluff displays, and temper tantrums, and negatively with observational ratings of generosity; and (d) demonstrated incremental validity above and beyond a measure of dominance. Although further validation of the CPM is needed, these findings suggest that the psychopathy construct may be relevant to chimpanzees.

Publication types

  • Research Support, U.S. Gov't, P.H.S.

MeSH terms

  • Age Factors
  • Analysis of Variance
  • Animals
  • Antisocial Personality Disorder / diagnosis*
  • Antisocial Personality Disorder / psychology
  • Ethology / methods*
  • Female
  • Male
  • Observer Variation
  • Pan troglodytes / psychology*
  • Psychiatric Status Rating Scales / standards*
  • Reproducibility of Results
  • Sex Characteristics
  • Social Behavior*