TY  - EJOU
AU  - Guo, Fengbo 
AU  - Zhong, Leru 
AU  - Huang, Xingru 
AU  - Chen, Zewei 
AU  - Sun, Xiaoyuan 

TI  - Childhood Environmental Unpredictability and Psychopathy: Mediating Roles of Insecure Attachment and Life History Strategy
T2  - International Journal of Mental Health Promotion

PY  - 2025
VL  - 27
IS  - 2
SN  - 2049-8543

AB  -  <b>Background:</b> Childhood environmental unpredictability (CEU) is crucial to personal development, profoundly influence physical and psychological growth particularly, and psychopathy is recognized as a dark personality trait. The aim of this study is to investigate the effects of insecure attachment and life history strategy (LHS) on the relationship between CEU and psychopathy by establishing a sequential mediation model based on evolutionary life history theory and cognitive-affective personality system. <b>Methods:</b> A group of 532 undergraduates completed the measurements for CEU, insecure attachment, LHS, and psychopathy, and Bootstrap mediation test through SPSS 25.0 and PROCESS macro tool was used to examine the relationship among these variables. <b>Results:</b> The results revealed positive relations between CEU and insecure attachment (β = 0.87, <i>p</i> < 0.001), CEU and LHS (β = 0.11, <i>p</i> < 0.001), and CEU and psychopathy (β = 0.14, <i>p</i> < 0.001). Insecure attachment was also positively associated with LHS (β = 0.62, <i>p</i> < 0.001) and psychopathy (β = 0.04, <i>p</i> < 0.001). In addition, LHS was significantly associated with psychopathy (β = 0.08, <i>p</i> < 0.001). The relationship between CEU and psychopathy is mediated independently and sequentially by insecure attachment and LHS. <b>Conclusion:</b> The current research shows the relationship between CEU and psychopathy, as well as the mechanism of insecure attachment and life history strategy as mediators.
KW  - Childhood environmental unpredictability; psychopathy; insecure attachment; life history strategy; mediating effect

DO  - 10.32604/ijmhp.2025.058874