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City slickers are more likely to be psychotic — or so says a study published in the Journal of Environmental Psychology, which found a correlation between people who exhibit darker personality traits and a preference for urban over suburban and rural areas.

Using the crowdsourcing website Prolific, researchers at the University of Derby surveyed 304 UK-based adults on their preferred geographical setting, how connected they felt with nature and their personality type. The resulting data showed a correlation between socially averse personality traits — like sadism and narcissism — and being partial to inner-city living. A second study of another 235 UK-based adults concluded similar results.

“Psychopathy is inversely associated with nature connectedness,” authors wrote in the study’s highlight section, noting that “high scoring on psychopathy was associated with a preference for inner-city living, but did not match residential history.”

Their findings are possibly reflective of big-city residents failing to get the quality of life improvements that nature brings to less urban dwellers.

“Our relationship with nature is a well-documented and timeless experience that is becoming increasing strained due to fast-paced living, hectic life schedules and an emphasis on convenience,” study author Dean Fido told PsyPost. “However, what we do know about individuals with high degrees of connection with nature is that said individuals are often healthier, have better perceptions of themselves and their body, show greater levels of empathy towards others, and importantly, report fewer instances of stress, anxiety and depression.”

Researchers are still unsure, however, if nature is the chicken or the egg: Do city dwellers become more psychotic because of their lack of a connection to nature, or does the lack of nature make urbanites more prone to becoming psychopaths?

“We need to go much further in the future to understand why exactly this relationship exists,” Fido told the publication. “Is it simply that individuals with higher levels of psychopathy develop a more self-serving set of skills that led them to caring more about themselves rather than others and/or nature, and as such their preferences to live in the city reflect greater opportunity to interact with others who can help to facilitate their success?”

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