psychopathy

American  

[sahy-kop-uh-thee] / saɪˈkɒp ə θi /

noun

Psychiatry.

psychopathies plural

1. a mental disorder in which an individual manifests amoral and antisocial behavior, lack of ability to love or establish meaningful personal relationships, extreme egocentricity, failure to learn from experience, etc.

2. any mental disease.

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psychopathy British  

/ saɪˈkɒpəθɪ /

noun

1. another name for psychopathic personality

2. any mental disorder or disease

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Other Word Forms

Noun Inflected Forms

• psychopathies
  plural

Etymology

Origin of psychopathy

First recorded in 1840–50; psycho- + -pathy

Explanation

Someone who suffers from a mental illness that makes them violent without any sense of remorse or empathy has psychopathy. Although it's a common term in criminal justice, psychopathy isn't an official psychiatric diagnosis. If someone has psychopathy, they're referred to as a psychopath. As common as these terms are, a psychiatrist or psychologist won't diagnose someone with psychopathy — a patient with these symptoms will likely get a diagnosis of "antisocial personality disorder." A common test measuring psychopathy is used to study prison populations and for sentencing violent criminals. Psychopathy comes from the Greek roots psykhe, "mind," and pathos, "suffering."

Example Sentences

They also interviewed the participants using the Psychopathy Checklist -- Revised, a widely used psychological assessment designed to measure psychopathic traits.

From Science Daily • May 10, 2026

Psychopathy is a composite of several interacting traits.

From Scientific American • Jul. 24, 2023

Psychopathy is a callous, impulsive antisocial personality trait.

From Salon • Apr. 16, 2022

Psychopathy is defined in the study as a “Temperamental and Uninhibited Region.”

From New York Times • Jun. 16, 2018

Psychopathy is a disease or disorder of the mind.

From Woman Her Sex and Love Life by Robinson, William J.