Examining the construct validity of the elemental psychopathy assessment

Assessment. 2011 Mar;18(1):106-14. doi: 10.1177/1073191110393139. Epub 2010 Dec 30.

Abstract

Lynam and colleagues recently developed a new self-report inventory for the assessment of psychopathy, the Elemental Psychopathy Assessment (EPA). Using a sample of undergraduates (N = 227), the authors examined the construct validity of the EPA by examining its correlations with self and stranger ratings on the Five-Factor Model, as well as self-reported ratings of personality disorders, social cognition, and love styles. The EPA psychopathy scores manifested expected correlations with both self and stranger ratings of the Five-Factor Model, particularly with the domains of Agreeableness and Conscientiousness, and were significantly related to various forms of personality pathology such as narcissism and antisocial personality disorders. The EPA also manifested expected relations with aggressive social cognitions. Finally, the EPA psychopathy scores were correlated with romantic love styles indicative of game playing and infidelity. The current results provide further evidence of the construct validity of the EPA as it manifests relations consistent with the nomological network of psychopathy.

Publication types

  • Validation Study

MeSH terms

  • Antisocial Personality Disorder / diagnosis
  • Antisocial Personality Disorder / psychology
  • Cognition / physiology*
  • Female
  • Humans
  • Interpersonal Relations
  • Love*
  • Male
  • Models, Psychological
  • Narcissism
  • Personality Disorders / diagnosis*
  • Personality Disorders / psychology
  • Psychological Theory
  • Psychopathology / methods*
  • Reproducibility of Results
  • Self Report*
  • Social Perception*
  • Surveys and Questionnaires
  • Young Adult