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Review
. 2025 Jun 10;15(6):107.
doi: 10.3390/ejihpe15060107.

Cyberpsychopathy: A Multidimensional Framework for Understanding Psychopathic Traits in Digital Environments

Alexandre Hudon  1   2   3   4 , Emmy Harvey  4 , Sandrine Nicolas  4 , Mathieu Dufour  3   4 , Caroline Guérin-Thériault  3   4 , Julie Bérubé-Fortin  3   4 , Isabelle Combey  3   4 , Yu Chen Yue  3   4 , Antoine Perreault  3   4   5 , Stéphanie Borduas Pagé  1   4 , Véronique MacDermott  3   4
Affiliations
Review

Cyberpsychopathy: A Multidimensional Framework for Understanding Psychopathic Traits in Digital Environments

Alexandre Hudon et al. Eur J Investig Health Psychol Educ. .

Abstract

The rapid expansion of digital communication platforms has created new spaces for antisocial, manipulative, and emotionally detached behaviors. While psychopathy has been extensively studied in clinical and forensic settings, its digital manifestation, referred to as cyberpsychopathy, remains conceptually underdefined. This integrative review aimed to synthesize empirical research exploring psychopathy and aversive personality traits in online contexts to identify key conceptual domains and propose a preliminary definition. A systematic search across five databases yielded 35 peer-reviewed studies meeting the inclusion criteria. Using a biopsychosocial framework and thematic synthesis, six interrelated domains were identified: online behaviors (e.g., trolling and deception), online environments (e.g., anonymity and reward mechanisms), sociodemographic factors (e.g., age and gender), personality traits (e.g., psychopathy and narcissism), psychological factors (e.g., emotion dysregulation and low self-esteem), and motivations (e.g., dominance and emotional compensation). These domains interact to shape how psychopathic tendencies manifest online. Most studies were of moderate-to-high methodological quality, though variability limited direct comparisons. We propose cyberpsychopathy as a multidimensional construct representing the expression of aversive traits facilitated by digital affordances and psychological vulnerabilities. This review provides a foundational framework for understanding cyberpsychopathy and underscores the need for empirical validation and the development of assessment tools suited to digital behavior in both clinical and forensic settings.

Keywords: aversive personality traits; cyberbullying; digital behavior; digital mental health; emotion dysregulation; online aggression; psychiatry; psychopathy; social media; trolling.

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Conflict of interest statement

The authors declare no conflicts of interest.

Figures

Figure 1
Figure 1
PRISMA (Preferred Reporting Items for Systematic Reviews and Meta-Analyses) flowchart for the inclusion of studies.
Figure 2
Figure 2
Conceptual framework for cyberpsychopathy.
See this image and copyright information in PMC

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