Understanding Experiences with and Impact of Psychopathic Individuals on Intimate Partners

Sara Lapsley

Psychopathic individuals comprise approximately 1% of the population and display maladaptive personality traits that have significant negative impacts on society. Intimate partner violence perpetrated by individuals with psychopathic traits has been documented to be severe and to include several types of abuse. Such violence frequently results in substantial harm to survivors. Aftermath Surviving Psychopathy Foundation assisted in recruiting for a study conducted by Sara Lapsley at Carleton University under the supervision of Dr. Adelle Forth from 2023-2025.

This study builds on previous findings that identified numerous harms to survivors of psychopathy due to abuse, distress, coping, social support and posttraumatic growth. It also measured financial harm and documented economic abuse perpetrated by psychopathic individuals for the first time, using an exploratory lens to understand the lived experience of survivors.

In Study 1, the Financial Harm Inventory (FHI) was developed to measure the impact of economic abuse on survivors. A group of 827 current and former romantic partners, friends, families, and acquaintances of someone they believed had psychopathic traits (participants completed a self-report scale assessing psychopathic traits in partners, relatives, friends, and acquaintances) completed the FHI. The final 12-item scale was found to provide a reliable measure of financial harm.

Study 2 surveyed 542 respondents who self-identified as having previously been in an intimate relationship with someone whom they believed had psychopathic traits. Participants reported high levels of emotional, sexual, financial, and physical harm in their relationships as well as high levels of depression, trauma symptoms and anxiety. Complex relations between psychopathy, distress, coping, and social support were found, patterns consistent with those reported in previous research. The strongest finding was that maladaptive coping was associated with higher levels of distress. Adaptive coping was associated with posttraumatic growth and social support.

Study 3 sought to better understand the experiences of survivors in an exploratory study using a qualitative methodology. Fifteen interviews were conducted with individuals who self-identified having been in a romantic relationship with a partner who had psychopathic traits. Participants were asked to describe their experiences with their intimate partner and were asked the following questions: What was harmful about this experience? What was helpful about this experience? and What people, places, things or other resources that you wish you had at your disposal during this experience? Their answers were identified as falling within several distinct themes. One common theme was the harmful aspects of the relationship such as experiences of psychological, financial and physical abuse, and involvement with the justice system. Participants identified some aspects of the relationships that were helpful to them, including those experiences that contributed to personal growth (e.g., increased self-worth, sense of personal strength), the importance of education in their recovery, and coming to accept that people with psychopathic traits do not generally change. Participants also shared what resources they wished they had available to them during their abusive relationship. These included resources to help increase greater mental health literacy and awareness, find social support, and obtain legal protection for survivors.

These findings from these three studies provide support for and build upon previous research examining the experiences of intimate partner survivors of individuals with psychopathic traits. The measurement of financial harm and examination of financial exploitation add incrementally to our understanding of how survivors may be impacted. Novel understandings of participants’ experience suggest avenues for future research and highlight the importance of providing adequate supports for survivors and prevention efforts that may reduce the substantial harms caused by individuals with psychopathic traits.