Cluster-B personality disorders lead to 3.5x as many sexual partners and more offspring
Guitiérrez et al. (2013) conducted a study to determine if the various personality disorder clusters—Type A (Schizoid, Odd), Type B (Narcissistic, Anti-social) and Type C (Avoidant, OCD)—were solely detrimental in terms of life outcomes for the individuals with these personality disorders (PDs), or if they instead presented their sufferers with various potentially adaptive benefits, such as more plentiful sexual and social opportunities.
A sample of psychiatric outpatients (N = 738, 53% female, mean age 34.1 yrs, SD 10.9) were presented with a questionnaire designed to measure the presence and intensity of the ten personality disorders. A further questionnaire designed to broadly measure various life outcomes such as number of sexual partners, employment, income, and health was also administered.
A multiple linear regression performed by the researchers on the data was used by the authors to estimate the contribution of the PD scores to various life outcomes.
While finding that in general, PDs were resulting in more negative life outcomes broadly, there were some evolutionary adaptive benefits that seemed to accrue to bearers of these disorders.
Namely, those individuals high in type-B personality cluster traits (Narcissism, Anti-Social, Borderline, Histrionic) of both sexes have 3.5x as many sexual partners as low B subjects, with five times as many short-term mates and twice as many long term mates. The researchers also found that those higher in cluster B had 39% more children than those lower in cluster B traits.
Discussion:
It can be surmised that these personality traits, with all their concomitant adverse outcomes, both for the bearers of these disorders and their potential victims, are most likely being significantly sexually selected for in various modern societies.
Quotes:
- PDs even brought some fitness advantages: Whereas reduced fertility in other mental disorders had been mainly attributed to lower marriage rates ... our high-PD subjects had 32% more mates.
- The strength of these relationships should not be underestimated: Explained variance lies within the range of 1-5.7% usually found in phenotypic selection studies, in both humans and nonhumans.
- Further supporting a sexual selection scenario, our high-B subjects out-reproduced low-B by 39%.
- Likewise, high status, a strong priority for high-C subjects, has often been related in post-industrial societies to quality- rather then quantity-based mating and reproduction.
- In the literature however, Cluster A disorders are not reported to be completely detrimental. For example, A subjects have been found to spend more time in romantic relationships and to have more frequent or earlier parenthood. Likewise, some components of schizotypy seem to increase mating success ... more data on A traits are clearly needed.
References:
- Gutiérrez F, Gárriz M, Peri JM, Ferraz L, Sol D, Navarro JB, Barbadilla A, Valdés M. 2013. Fitness costs and benefits of personality disorder traits. Evolution and Human Behavior. 34(1): 41-48. [Abstract]
Women tend to be attracted to the Dark Triad—narcissism, manipulativeness, & psychopathy
The
dark triad consists of three personality dimensions:
- Narcissism (heightened sense of self-importance)
- Machiavellianism (manipulativeness)
- Psychopathy (low empathy)
These traits are often quantified by a quick scoring tool called the
dirty dozen:
- I tend to manipulate others to get my way.
- I tend to lack remorse.
- I tend to want others to admire me.
- I tend to be unconcerned with the morality of my actions.
- I have used deceit or lied to get my way.
- I tend to be callous or insensitive.
- I have used flattery to get my way.
- I tend to seek prestige or status.
- I tend to be cynical.
- I tend to exploit others toward my own end.
- I tend to expect special favors from others.
- I want others to pay attention to me.
In a study by Cartera et al. (2014), 128
women were presented with male characters of varying degrees of dark triad personality. Physicality was held constant. Men with dark traits were rated as dramatically more attractive to women compared to control characters who lacked these traits (with >99.9% statistical certainty, p < 0.001). Furthermore, the attractiveness of these dark traits was not explained by other characteristics like extroversion.
Discussion:
This suggests
personality does matter to women, but not in the manner
popularly claimed. Rather than preferring
empathetic and
responsible men, many are most attracted to narcissistic, manipulative and psychopathic men.
Evolutionary psychology may be able to explain this phenomenon. Women evolved to be dependent and
choosy due to their greater
parental investment. This caused men to evolve to be taller and stronger in an evolutionary arms race competing for mating opportunities. In response to this, women are thought to have evolved to choose the strongest and most
dominant man available to be protected from men attempting to coerce them into sex, male violence in general (
bodyguard hypothesis; Wilson & Mesnick, 1997) and to get access to high-quality foods and resources (Geary 2004). This aspect of human sexuality can be traced back to some of our oldest ancestor species, e.g. lizards, in which female animals
submit themselves to dominant males (Eibl-Eibesfeldt, 1989). Dark traits such as low empathy and cruelty may have proven useful in male intrasexual competition (Kruger & Fitzgerald 2011), so these traits and women's attraction to them might have co-evolved as a socially parasitic
reproductive strategy (Gervais 2018).
Dark behavior patterns may additionally serve as
honest/hard-to-fake signals of high status as only high status men can get away behaving in an overtly anti-social manner. Status, in this case, is not only determined by aggression and intimidation, but also by
income, looks,
competence etc. Men may also have been selected to mimic such dominance signals (Puts 2015). The fact that not all men exhibit dark traits indicates that men have evolved diverse strategies of
status ascension (
prestige vs
dominance strategy; Kruger 2015, Gervais 2018).
The sensitivity of this topic could even cause women to
downplay their attraction dark traits because it contradicts laws and norms against violence as well as
feminist ideals that women should be the equal of men rather than submitting to them. Women may thus be even more attracted to such men than they admit (
social desirability bias). Women's preferences for psychopathic men are possibly related to
rape fantasies. After all, it requires low empathy to rape someone.
Data:
| Mean | SD | |
|---|
| Condition | Attractiveness | |
|---|
| High DT | 4.44 | 1.17 |
| Low DT | 3.34 | 1.17 |
| Cohen's d = 0.94 | | |
Quotes:
- From Seffrin (2016): Men who show a willingness to take risks, have a high self-esteem, and a body that is physically imposing possess qualities that women may find desirable, but these qualities are also correlated with aggressive behavior (Apicella, 2014; Baumeister, Smart, & Boden, 1996; Brewer & Howarth, 2012; Frederick & Haselton, 2007; Sellet al., 2009). […] Men who would use physical violence to gain a competitive advantage may possess other qualities that are sexually appealing to women […]. This much has been suggested in research by Rebellon and Manasse (2004) who found that highly delinquent males report relative success in attracting female dating partners. Rebellon and Manasse (2004) interpret these findings using a derivative of sexual selection theory known as the “handicap principle” (Zahavi, 1975). The handicap principle suggests that behaviors that are potentially costly to males—such as fighting and showing disregard for authority, but which are valued by females, perhaps for the strength and bravado they symbolize—will be implemented as tactics in male sexual competition (see also Palmer & Tilley, 1995). Research on sexual selection theory also suggests that a preference for these qualities may have itself been selected for in females (Puts, 2010). This would help to explain why men have a penchant for violent behavior in the first place, in the sense that male aggression, and a preference for it among females, were selected for in the course of human prehistory. Partnering with an aggressive and/or criminally involved male may have its advantages, especially in an unsafe environment where threats of violence are commonplace. Yet displays of dominance and physical aggression play just as well to an all male audience, who serve as a source of encouragement and validation, thereby reinforcing the behavior as well as its symbolic value in the peer culture (Messerschmidt, 1993).
- Psychopathic traits (lack of morality; interpersonal hostility) are beneficial to a short-term strategy and are correlated with unrestricted pattern of sexual behaviour. (Cartera, 2014)
References:
- Cartera GL, Campbell AC, Muncer S. 2014. The Dark Triad personality: Attractiveness to women. Personality and Individual Differences. 56: 57-61. [Abstract] [FullText]
- Geary DC, Vigil J, Byrd‐Craven J. 2004. Evolution of human mate choice. Journal of sex research, 41(1), pp.27-42. [FullText]
- Wilson M, Mesnick SL. 1997. An empirical test of the bodyguard hypothesis. In Feminism and evolutionary biology (pp. 505-511). Springer, Boston, MA. [Abstract]
- Puts DA, Bailey DH, Reno PL. 2015. Contest competition in men. The handbook of evolutionary psychology. pp. 1-8.[Abstract]
- Kruger DJ, Fitzgerald CJ. 2011. Reproductive strategies and relationship preferences associated with prestigious and dominant men. Personality and Individual Differences. 50(3):365-9. [Abstract]
- Gervais N. 2018. ADHD, Autism, and Psychopathy as Life Strategies: The Role of Risk Tolerance on Evolutionary Fitness. [FullText]
- Seffrin PM. 2016. The Competition–Violence Hypothesis: Sex, Marriage, and Male Aggression. [Abstract]
- Eibl-Eibesfeldt I. 1989. Pair Formation, Courtship, Sexual Love. In: Human Ethology. Rougtledge. [Excerpt]
More psychopathic men tend to receive higher attractiveness ratings from women
Brazil & Forth conducted two studies that examined women's preferences for psychopathic males. 46 men were photographed from the waist up and rated by (N = 11) individuals blind to the purpose of the study. The men were then requested to complete the
Self-Report Psychopathy scale, used to measure the four-facet structure of psychopathy.
The four facets of psychopathy, according to this inventory, are defined as:
interpersonal (manipulative and exploitative behaviors),
affective (lack of remorse and empathy, cruelty to others),
lifestyle (parasitic behavior, lack of clear life goals, irresponsibility), and
antisocial (overt violent or criminal behaviors).
The subjects completed additional self-report inventories to measure their level of social intelligence and socio-sexual orientation (a measurement of an individual's openness to casual sex), respectively.
The first study had males participate in a simulated dating scenario with a female confederate (who was introduced as a female volunteer). After initial prompting by the female confederate, the conversations were allowed to proceed naturally between the participants and the confederate for between 90-120 seconds.
It was found that men who reported having sex were generally higher in levels of psychopathic traits, as measured by the self report psychopathy inventory (M = 169.33, SD = 22.65 for the men who had sex vs M = 142.08, SD = 19.84 for those not having sex). The various facets of psychopathy (apart from antisocial tendencies) were found to be generally related to greater social processing capability (ability to "read" other's intentions and emotional states).
Study 2 tested examined women's response to men varying in levels of psychopathy. 108 women viewed the interactions between the male participants from study 1 and the female confederate. The women then rated the men on how desirable they would be to date. After rating the videos, the participants were then instructed to leave a pretend voicemail message for the men, in the context of them requesting a date with the men.
The men were sorted into three different groups of physical attractive based on the judgement of the previously mentioned independent raters (women N = 7, men N = 4): significantly below average attractiveness, somewhat below average attractiveness, and average attractiveness, to control for the effects of physical attractiveness on the women's attraction to the men. The researchers then used software to analyze the vocal pitch of the women who left the voice messages to the males, vocal pitch being considered an objective, subconscious, measurement of female sexual attraction based on prior research.
It was found that women nearly always had a higher vocal pitch when leaving a message for a more psychopathic man vs a less psychopathic man of the same general level of physical attractiveness.
Further analysis of the data suggested that the affective traits of psychopathy such as: superficial charm, callousness, and lack of empathy were the most desired by women, while the more overtly violent antisocial traits were generally unfavored. The authors also noted that the affective traits of psychopathy were found to be strongly linked to sexual sadism and intimate partner violence in men, which had concerning implications on the
romantic relationships these men would be expected to have relative ease at initiating, compared to less psychopathic men.
Quotes:
- When comparing two men, those higher in psychopathic traits tended to receive higher ratings from women when considering the magnitude difference in psychopathic traits between the two men.
- Of the facets, lifestyle traits provided the strongest link to desirability ratings from women. These traits include disinhibition, lack of responsibility, and having a sensation-seeking orientation.
- Using voice pitch instead of subjective ratings as an indicator of desirability, the results did not suggest a preference for overall psychopathy. Post hoc exploratory analyses did, however, suggest affective traits elicited more interest and antisocial traits less interest based on voice pitch increasing and decreasing, respectively.
- The lack of preference for antisocial traits may suggest that if they are contributing to appearing as an attractive mate, they may be doing so through derogating and dominating potential rivals rather than generating direct appeal.
References:
- Brazil, KJ. Forth AE. 2019. Psychopathy and the Induction of Desire: Formulating and Testing an Evolutionary Hypothesis. Evolutionary Psychological Science, pp 1-18. [Abstract]
