Differential Predictors of Male versus Female Psychopathic Traits in the Cambridge Study in Delinquent Development (CSDD)

• In Event: New Findings from the Cambridge Study in Delinquent Development

Abstract

The aim of the current study is to investigate early predictors of female versus male psychopathic traits in the children (G3) of the original Cambridge Study in Delinquent Development sample of males (G2). The CSDD is a prospective longitudinal study of 411 males (G2) followed from 8 until 56 years of age. Recently, the G2’s biological children were interviewed and assessed at the approximate age of 25 (Mean age=25.4). The current study compared risk factors for adult psychopathic traits in the females (n=260) and males (n=291). A range of socio-environmental factors (parental, family, socioeconomic, attainment, impulsiveness, and behavioral) were investigated in relation to psychopathic traits (measured by the PCL-SV). The calculated odds ratios indicated several similarities between male and female G3 risk factors. It is clear that several parental, family, and behavioral risk factors increase the risk for psychopathic traits in adulthood, but the results indicate that socioeconomic factors (e.g. low socioeconomic status) are more important for the development of male psychopathic traits than for females. Implications for the understanding of female versus male psychopathic traits are discussed.

Authors

• Henriette Bergstrøm, University of Derby

• David Farrington, Cambridge University