The study about whether cats are psychopaths has been all over the news recently. And I am here to tell you this study is based on really bad science, so of course the conclusions are flawed.
The evaluation used in the research involves measurements for human behavior. And the first thing everyone should know about cats is that they are driven by a completely different mentality than humans. Plus the queries it presents are, of course, answered by the humans the cats cohabitate with. They are ridiculous statements such as, “My cat disobeys house rules” (of course referring to rules humans make that cats find meaningless). Or “My cat damages things (e.g. scratches furniture, pushes objects off surfaces),” without taking into account that maybe the cat doesn’t have anything else to scratch, or is not getting enough human interaction.
So once again, here is another study that, instead of seeking to understand cats and improve their lives, pins negative labels on them. This makes me sad… but it didn’t stop me from wanting to take this test!
The study and the test can be found here. But it’s really time consuming, the scoring is difficult, and it doesn’t really give you any way to measure your cat’s results against a so-called norm. So I hunted around for an easier online test that I could share with you — and I found one! You (or your cat) can take it here.
These were my results:
Note that I score 0% in Unfriendliness. As a therapy cat, it would have been kind of embarrassing if I’d scored anything but that! As for the 15% meanness, I can only conclude that it refers to the fact that I don’t consider the kitchen counter off limits. Boldness and disinhibition actually enhance my ability to be comfortable in unfamiliar places and seek attention from people. I’m actually surprised I scored lower in boldness than the average. In any case, I think anyone would agree that I’m not much of a psychopath.
On the other hand (or paw), my human wondered how Binga would have scored if she were still around, so she took the test with her in mind. I think the score speaks for itself.
What do you think of this test? And if you take it, I want to hear about your score!
Other posts you’ll enjoy:
- Study Accuses Cats of Being Freeloaders!
- Are Cats as Smart as Cuttlefish… or Preschoolers? An Experiment on Delayed Gratification
- Scientists Finally Figure Out Cats Respond to Slow Blinking (Plus Tips)
See Summer! Wee mew you are NOT a Psychopathic Kitteh!!!
Mee on THE other paw, mew mew mew…..
**nose rubss** BellaDharma an **giggellss** BellaSita Mum
TBT went there and took the test, but he had trubble answering fer all of us at the same time. Well, of course! We are all different. So he is gonna go back and do it fer each of us individually. We will post about that soon…
Just more human silly stuff. Cats are cats and are the best x
Cats are not psychopaths! They are cats!! Those behaviors are normal for cats.
I have found that most “scientific” studies published about cat behavior are the result of the insanity and ignorance (and perhaps stupidity for lack of intellectual ability to observe objectively) of the person(s) conducting the study.
I only got 28% psychopath (and I got a 0% for unfriendliness too!).
Well, you are one of the friendliest cats I know. Summer!
Poor Binga, I don’t believe those results.
Awww, poor Binga. I knew you’d score low, low, low on unfriendlyness!
Mudpie got 15% boldness, 55% disinhibition, 5% meanness, 0% unfriendliness = 19% psychopath.
You’re so right…humans are the psychos!
It’s hard to believe this test is serious. Obviously no one who has any familiarity with cats (and I mean ANY familiarity !) would expect this to be a serious evaluation.
https://www.amazon.com/All-Cats-Are-Autism-Spectrum-ebook/dp/B089596SBC/ref=sr_1_3?keywords=all+cats+have+asperger%27s+syndrome&qid=1639696384&s=digital-text&sr=1-3
This is a tongue-in-cheeek look designed to introduce some information about autism. It makes much more sense and is closer to the “truth”
I have that book as well as the one All Cats Have Aspergers. They are so cute.
Those tests are utterly ridiculous. And we still think that Binga was one of the most wonderful cats ever! As are you, Summer!
Purrs,
Tama and Benny
I wonder f there is one test like that for dogs??
We need to take that test but we don’t like the “meanness” part
Aren’t all torties kind of psycho? I know my Katie Baby sure is. Treeno scores similar to you as far as unfriendliness and so forth. He loves all the people.
Yep….yep…..that was surely the Binga cat. What a precious.
You, wonderful that you are, certainly should have scored 0% on
meanness so the test has to be flawed.
LOL! That looked about right for Binga!
Sounds like a silly test to me!
Another reason to pick on cats. We cats are purrfect 😉
Well, OK, maybe just a tad wild at times 😉
Hey, we all get the zoomies. MOL!
Purrs, Julie