Reliability and Validity of the Comprehensive Assessment of Psychopathic Personality—Self-Report—German Version (CAPP-SR-GV) in a German Non-Criminal Sample

TL;DR

This study evaluates a German version of a self-report psychopathy assessment, testing its reliability and structure in a non-criminal sample.

Contribution

The study validates and optimizes the German version of the CAPP-SR psychopathy assessment using empirical data.

Findings

An exploratory factor analysis confirmed the six-factor structure of the CAPP-SR in a German sample.

Confirmatory analysis suggested optimizations for the CAPP-SR-GV version.

Construct validity was assessed using the Triarchic Psychopathy Measure.

Abstract

The structure of psychopathy is conceptualized differently in various models and no consensus has yet been reached. This study aimed to further clarify psychopathy’s content and structure by validating the German Comprehensive Assessment of Psychopathic Personality—Self-Report (CAPP-SR). For this purpose, we used a sample of n = 458 participants. The CAPP’s six factors were replicated in an exploratory factor analysis. Further confirmatory analysis revealed recommendations for optimizing the CAPP. Thus, both an optimized version and the original CAPP-SR were examined. The construct validity of both versions was then examined using a different self-rating instrument for psychopathy, the Triarchic Psychopathy Measure. The implications of the findings and further research directions are discussed.