Females who maltreat animals

Abstract

Studies of animal maltreatment and of untoward or abnormal aggression predominantly involve male subjects, raising the question as to whether females who engage in such behaviors are like, or fundamentally different than, their male counterparts. Inquiry to address this issue could pertain to gender similarities and differences; moreover, it could provide greater understanding of the behavior itself, in this case, animal maltreatment. Of the various patterns of animal maltreatment in the literature, there are enough studies with gender addressed to allow some observations on two patterns: animal cruelty in childhood and animal hoarding. Animal cruelty among girls may be more common than is widely assumed, but substantial recurrent cruelty appears, as expected, to be more common among males and is consistent with conduct disorder occurring more frequently among boys. Females, especially older females who live alone, predominate among animal hoarders, whose psychology is altogether different from those who engage in antisocial cruelty. The potential significance of these observations is discussed within the contexts of developmental and gender psychology.