Citation

Meloy JR, Meloy MJ. J. Threat Assess. 2003; 2(2): 21-33.

Copyright

(Copyright © 2003, Informa - Taylor and Francis Group)

DOI

10.1300/J177v02n02_02

PMID

unavailable

Abstract

The authors analyzed 584 questionnaires from mental health and criminal justice professionals in 12 U.S. cities concerning their physical reaction while interviewing a psychopathic subject. Of the respondents who had interviewed a psychopathic subject, 77.3% reported a physical reaction. Their narratives describe a physiological change, most often dermatological and least often pulmonary, due to likely sympathetic activation of their autonomic nervous system. Female respondents were significantly more likely to have a physical reaction when compared to male respondents; criminal justice professionals were significantly less likely to have a physical reaction when compared to mental health professionals. No other demographic variables showed significant differences. The data are interpreted as suggestive evidence of a primitive, autonomic, and fearful response to a predator, and understood in the context of: (a) other evolutionary and ethological findings concerning such an evolved defense against an interspecies or intraspecies threat; and (b) the demonstrable finding in other research studies of frequent predatory violence among psychopathic subjects, whom the authors consider an intraspecies predator.