In South Dakota we pride ourselves on being down-to-earth, well adjusted, and even tempered. But the results of a new study may cause us to rethink all of that.

Quartz Media is sharing the estimates of Southern Methodist University professor Ryan Murphy about the number of psychopaths residing in each of the lower 48 states in America.

South Dakota checks in at an alarming 13th overall.

The calculation is based in part on previous research that established the levels of big five personality traits (extroversion, agreeableness, conscientiousness, neuroticism, and openness to experience) in each state.

The top ten states with the most psychopaths:

  1. Connecticut
  2. California
  3. New Jersey
  4. New York
  5. Wyoming
  6. Maine
  7. Wisconsin
  8. Nevada
  9. Illinois
  10. Virginia

The states with the fewest psychopaths are New Mexico, North Carolina, Tennessee, Vermont, and West Virginia.

So South Dakotans, the key takeaway here is how well do you know your neighbors?

Maybe not as well as you thought.


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