Advances in Maturity Explain Declines in Psychopathy from Adolescence to Adulthood

• In Event: The Interplay of Biological, Physiological, and Developmental Factors in Understanding Psychopathy and Antisocial Behavior

Abstract

Measuring psychopathy in juveniles has been debated due to its decline from adolescence to adulthood, which could be attributed to desistance from inherently “juvenile” characteristics (e.g., parasitic lifestyle, impulsivity). Simultaneously, Maturity of Judgment (MoJ) improves over this period, with components (e.g., emotional maturity, consideration of others) conceptually linked to psychopathy-related deficits. Using mediation analyses, this study explored whether advancements in MoJ contributed to an aging-out of juvenile psychopathy phenomenon for an otherwise relatively stable personality characteristic.

We examined data from Pathways to Desistance, a longitudinal study of 1,170 justice-involved males (aged 14-17) who were followed across 11 waves over 7 years. We tested whether a latent growth curve of MoJ from ages 14 to 26 mediated psychopathy scores from the first to the last wave. Results revealed that the intercept and slope growth factors of MoJ mediated this relationship (p < .05).

Gains in MoJ contribute to psychopathy’s downward trend over this period, calling into question whether “juvenile” or immaturity-related characteristics of psychopathy may be unduly bolstering psychopathy scores in adolescence, and contributing to declines in psychopathy into adulthood. Findings suggest MoJ development’s impact on psychopathy should be considered when assessing, conceptualizing, and treating juvenile psychopathy.

Authors

• Scarlet J. Cho, University of California, Irvine

• Romain Decrop, University of California, Irvine

• Elizabeth Cauffman, University of California, Irvine