Psychopathy and Sociopathy
Psychopathy and sociopathy both fall under the category of Anti-Social Personality Disorder (ASPD).1Walsh, A., & Wu, H. H. (2008). Differentiating antisocial personality disorder, psychopathy, and sociopathy: Evolutionary, genetic, neurological, and sociological considerations. Criminal Justice Studies, 21(2), 135-152. While some experts believe both terms mean the same thing, you’ll often find ‘ASPD’ and ‘sociopathy’ being used interchangeably.
Someone with ASPD engages in anti-social behavior primarily for selfish gain. Psychopaths and sociopaths comprise a small part of the population (1-4%), and men are more likely to be antisocial than women.2Black, D. W. (2015). The natural history of antisocial personality disorder. The Canadian Journal of Psychiatry, 60(7), 309-314. I prefer using the terms psychopathy and sociopathy separately because there are subtle differences between the two.
Let’s look at the similarities between psychopaths and sociopaths. Both are:
- Lacking in empathy
- Aggressive
- Selfish
- Dominant
- Fearless
- Narcissistic
- Manipulative
- Deceitful
- Power-hungry
- Callous
- Irresponsible
In this test, I eliminated these overlapping traits and focused on the differences to make it simpler and quicker to take.
Taking the test
This test has 14 items on a 2-point Yes/No scale. You’ll be scored separately on Psychopathy and Sociopathy. Though you’re likely to be a psychopath if you score higher on Psychopath (and vice versa for Sociopath), the test is not a formal diagnosis of ASPD.
Your results are only shown to you and not stored in our database. The test is free to take and no email is required to view the results.
