Studying Configurations of Psychopathic Traits: Exploring the Viability of Psychopathic Personality in Early Childhood

Abstract

The idea that very young children can manifest a constellation of personality traits that looks like psychopathy has rarely been explored. To fill this void, data from 2,247 children, aged 3-6 (M=4.25; SD=0.91), from the ELISA study was utilized. Parents and teachers completed questionnaires at baseline and at one-year later follow-up. Using three parent-rated psychopathy dimensions as indicators, latent profile analysis arrived at five latent classes: Control (39.2%), Impulsive-Need of Stimulation (34.8%), Grandiose-Deceitful (16.5%), Callous-Unemotional (6.2%), and Putative Psychopathic Personality (3.3%). Children in the PP class, overall, engaged in higher levels of concurrent, future and stable conduct problems and reactive and proactive aggression, and lower levels of prosocial behavior, rated by parents or teachers. Findings also revealed meaningful differences between the remaining four classes. Person-oriented analyses seem to offer a fruitful avenue to identify 3- to 6-year-olds who exhibit a putative psychopathic personality and are at risk for future maladjustment.