Bible Overclaiming and Intimate Partner Violence.

Religion has had a mixed impact on society, with some followers engaging in violent behavior. It remains unclear why some followers perpetrate violence and others are peaceful. We argue that religious overclaiming is one facet of religion to be considered when trying to understand the relationship between religion and violence. Across two studies (N = 551), we tested the hypothesis that a higher tendency to overclaim knowledge of the Christian Bible would be associated with higher perpetration of intimate partner violence (IPV). We also tested the hypotheses that men who overclaim would be most likely to engage in the perpetration of IPV, and that higher religiosity would attenuate the effects of religious overclaiming. In both studies, participants completed a measure of religious overclaiming, reported on their perpetration of IPV, and reported their religiosity. Our findings across both studies indicated that Bible overclaiming was associated with greater perpetration of IPV. Further, Study 1 found that those high in Bible overclaiming (especially men) engaged in the most perpetration of IPV. However, this gender-based finding did not replicate in Study 2. Both studies found that religiosity was unassociated with the perpetration of IPV. Our results provide evidence that Bible overclaiming is related to the perpetration of IPV. Specifically, individuals who claim to know religious concepts that do not exist are associated with a higher risk for IPV.

Mimicry Deception Theory applied to sexual abuse of children.

Sexual abuse of children remains a widespread problem with well-documented, adverse consequences. Often, abuse ending is contingent on a disclosure made by the victim, but victims delay disclosure if they tell someone at all. The factors associated with (non)disclosure are complex and interrelated. In this paper, we propose a new theoretical framework (Mimicry Deception Theory; MDT) to explore various aspects of the grooming process, using a qualitative content analysis of US court appeal cases (N = 25). Specifically, we focus on how MDT components contribute to the likelihood of a CSA disclosure. MDT is made up of five components: Victim Selection, Community Integration, Complexity of Deception, Resource Extraction, and Detectability. These five components allow us to look at several characteristics of abuse in tandem and examine how they interact to impact various outcomes, such as (non)disclosure. We provide a detailed codebook for this framework, that can be used to systematically extract relevant information from large amounts of data. Through the application of this framework, we were able to identify several factors that may play a role in delayed or non-disclosure. Further, we found repeat offenders were likely to use the exact same methods of access, grooming, and remaining undetected across victims. Implications for prevention, as well as clinical interventions with perpetrators as well as victims are discussed.

Empowerment or Threat: Perceptions of Childhood Sexual Abuse in the #MeToo Era.

The rise of the #MeToo movement has shed light on the prominence of sexual violence, and its victims who often remain silent. Despite increasing awareness, victims or survivors of sexual violence who disclose may be faced with negative reactions such as disbelief or blame. Such reactions extend to child victims of sexual abuse. This study aimed to shed light on gender differences in responses to sexual violence against a backdrop of #MeToo. Through an online survey (N = 253) on Amazon's Mechanical Turk, we assessed participants' exposure to and perception of the #MeToo movement. In addition, we measured proximity to a victim or perpetrator of sexual violence. The effect of these variables on participants' response to a disclosure of childhood sexual abuse was examined. Results indicated that men are more likely to perceive the movement as threatening than women. Furthermore, a discrepancy in proximity to sexual violence emerged, with women more likely to know a victim and men more likely to know a perpetrator. In response to a disclosure of childhood sexual abuse, men were more likely to respond in a skeptical manner than women. Positive perceptions of the #MeToo movement translated into more supportive responses to a disclosure. Proximity to a victim of sexual violence did not impact how people responded to a disclosure, but proximity to a perpetrator was associated with a more negative response. Although the aim of this movement is to give a voice to victims of sexual violence, it may trigger a defensive response from men, which makes them more skeptical toward disclosures of victimization.

Self-affirmation and False Allegations: The Effects on Responses to Disclosures of Sexual Victimization.

The rise of the #MeToo movement highlights the prevalence of sexual victimization and gives a voice to victims who may have been silent before. Nevertheless, survivors or victims of sexual violence who come forward may be blamed or not believed. These reactions are evident both with adult and child victims. Further, fears about false accusations of sexual misconduct may negatively impact responses to disclosures. This study aimed to examine gender differences in perceptions toward the #MeToo movement, and the extent to which these translate into a skeptical response to disclosure. Further, we wanted to explore whether proximity to false allegations of sexual violence was linked with more negative responses and whether use of self-affirmations may decrease the likelihood of such a response. Through an online survey (N = 235) on Amazon's Mechanical Turk, we assessed participants' exposure to and perceptions of the #MeToo movement. Further, we asked them about their proximity to sexual violence (victimization or perpetration) and to false allegations. Using a threat manipulation (news article about false accusation) and a self-affirmation exercise, we studied the effects of both variables on responses to disclosure. Results indicated that after reading an article about a false accusation, male participants were more likely to blame a victim of childhood sexual abuse and to perceive the abuse as less harmful, compared with female participants. Further, we found that self-affirmation was linked with more supportive responses to a disclosure. These findings highlight the threatening nature of false accusations of sexual violence for men, and how this threat may shape the narrative regarding sexual violence. Opportunities to use self-affirmation to change this narrative to a more supportive one are discussed.

Examining the Short Dark Tetrad (SD4) Across Models, Correlates, and Gender.

To date, no studies have examined a range of structural models of the interpersonally aversive traits tapped by the Short Dark Tetrad (SD4; narcissism, Machiavellianism, psychopathy, sadism), in conjunction with their measurement invariance (males vs. females) and how the models each predict external correlates. Using a large sample of young adults (N = 3,975), four latent variable models were compared in terms of fit, measurement invariance, and prediction of intrapersonal and interpersonal functioning. The models tested were as follows: (Model A) confirmatory factor analytic, (Model B) bifactor, (Model C) exploratory structural equation model, and (Model D) a reduced-item confirmatory factor analytic that maximized item information. All models accounted for item covariance with good precision, although differed in incremental fit. Strong invariance held for all models, and each accounted similarly for the external correlates, highlighting differential predictive effects of the SD4 factors. The results provide support for four theoretically distinct but overlapping dark personality domains.

Assessing Deception Differences with Mimicry Deception Theory.

Mimicry Deception Theory (MDT) argues that deception varies along a long- to short-term continuum. Long-term deception involves complex deception, community integration, slow resource extraction, and low detectability, whereas short-term deception is the opposite. To date, no self-report scale exists that assesses a dispositional orientation toward long-term deception. Across four studies, we developed and validated a Mimicry Deception Scale (MDS) to assess individuals' dispositional orientation toward long-term deception. Using theoretically driven items, we found a reliable four-factor structure through exploratory and confirmatory factor analyses. Further, MDS components were strongly correlated and had acceptable internal consistency. For convergent validity, long-term MDS positively correlated with Machiavellianism, conscientiousness, and planning. Finally, the test-retest reliability of the MDS was acceptable, and the complexity facet of the MDS predicted successful lying over time. The findings have implications for how to profile, identify, and recognize patterns of deception, especially with respect to long-term patterns using self-report.

Dark or disturbed?: Predicting aggression from the Dark Tetrad and schizotypy.

Research on the personality foundations of aggression typically implicates either (a) aspects of the so-called "Dark Tetrad" or (b) severe mental disturbance (psychosis). The appearance of psychotic symptoms in general populations is termed schizotypy. We conducted two studies to compare the effects of dark personalities and schizotypy on aggression. Study 1 used standard inventories to investigate the overlap of Dark Tetrad traits with schizotypy in a sample of 977 undergraduates. All tetrad traits except narcissism were positively associated with schizotypy, but only at moderate levels. Study 2 administered the same personality battery to 303 members of an online community sample: Aggression outcomes were measured with both self-reports and a behavioral measure-the Voodoo Doll Task. Regression analyses determined the unique contributions of the five personality variables. Two dark traits-psychopathy and sadism-were strong predictors of self-report aggression. Schizotypy added incrementally to the Dark Tetrad in predicting both self-report and behaviorally measured aggression.

The Association between Psychopathy and Influencing Others to Use Substances.

Background: Although a large body of research has examined the impact of peer influence on substance use, little is known about the psychology of who influences others to use substances and why. The Dark Triad is a set of personality traits that may inform the characteristics of people who influence others to use substances.Objective: The aim of the present two studies was to examine potential associations between Dark Triad personality traits, especially psychopathy, and influencing others to use substances.Methods: Two samples of 162 and 161 Mechanical Turk workers were recruited for Study 1 to complete an online survey that assessed Dark Triad traits, history of influencing others to use substances, and motivations for doing so. Similarly, 303 Mechanical Turk workers were recruited for Study 2 to complete an online survey that assessed personal substance use as well as psychopathy levels of participants' closest friends.Results: Study 1 found that individuals high in psychopathy were more likely to have provided illegal substances to others and indicated a willingness to do so in the future. Study 2 found that participants reported a higher likelihood of using substances if they indicated that their best friend was high in psychopathy and had themselves used substances in the past.Conclusions: Taken together, these findings suggest that psychopathy has a unique association with influencing others to use substances. These findings have implications for intervention targets.

Arbitrary signals of trustworthiness - social judgments may rely on facial expressions even with experimentally manipulated valence.

Generalization has been suggested as a basic mechanism in forming impressions about unfamiliar people. In this study, we investigated how social evaluations will be transferred to individual faces across contexts and to expressions across individuals. A total of 93 people (33 men, age: M = 29.95; SD = 13.74) were exposed to facial images which they had to evaluate. In the Association phase, we presented one individual with (1) a trustworthy, (2) an untrustworthy, (3) or an ambiguous expression, with either positive or negative descriptive sentence pairs. In the Evaluation phase participants were shown (1) a new individual with the same emotional facial expression as seen before, and (2) a neutral image of the previously presented individual. They were asked to judge the trustworthiness of each person. We found that the valence of the social description is transferred to both individuals and expressions. That is, the social evaluations (positive or negative) transferred between the images of two different individuals if they both displayed the same facial expression. The consistency between the facial expression and the description, however, had no effect on the evaluation of the same expression appearing on an unfamiliar face. Results suggest that in social evaluation of unfamiliar people invariant and dynamically changing facial traits are used to a similar extent and influence these judgements through the same associative process.

Aggression as a trait: the Dark Tetrad alternative.

Aggression is often construed as a unitary trait fully captured by the Buss-Perry Aggression Questionnaire (BPAQ). Our review of the literature questions that assumption in several respects. Instead of a top-down approach, we argue for a bottom-up conception based on the Dark Tetrad of personality, that is, narcissism, Machiavellianism, psychopathy, and sadism. We highlight research showing that each member of the tetrad responds to different provocations. We conclude that the unitary trait conception of aggression has yielded more confusion than understanding. The term aggression should be reserved for outcomes, with many possible trait×situation predictors. Future research should continue the investigation of moderators as well as cognitive mediators to clarify the triggering of aggression in the individual tetrad members.

Psychopathy and Deviant Workplace Behavior: A Comparison of Two Psychopathy Models.

Although psychopathy is an interpersonally harmful construct, few studies have compared different psycho athy models in predicting different types of workplace deviance. We examined how the Triarchic Psychopathy Model (TRI-PM) and the Self-Report Psychopathy-Short Form (SRP-SF) predicted deviant workplace behaviors in two forms: sexual harassment and deviant work behaviors. Using structural equations modeling, the latent factor of psychopathy was predictive for both types of deviant workplace behavior. Specifically, the SRP-SF signif cantly predicted both measures of deviant workplace behavior. With respect to the TRI-PM, meanness and disinhibition significantly predicted higher scores of workplace deviance and workplace sexual harassment measures. Future research needs to investigate the influence of psychopathy on deviant workplace behaviors, and consider the measures they use when they investigate these constructs.

Predicting Romantic Interest at Zero Acquaintance: Evidence of Sex Differences in Trait Perception but Not in Predictors of Interest.

We evaluated five competing hypotheses about what predicts romantic interest. Through a half-block quasi-experimental design, a large sample of young adults (i.e., responders; n = 335) viewed videos of opposite-sex persons (i.e., targets) talking about themselves and responders rated the targets' traits and their romantic interest in the target. We tested whether similarity, dissimilarity, or overall trait levels on mate value, physical attractiveness, life history strategy, and the Big-Five personality factors predicted romantic interest at zero acquaintance, and whether sex acted as a moderator. We tested the responders' individual perception of the targets' traits, in addition to the targets' own self-reported trait levels and a consensus rating of the targets made by the responders. We used polynomial regression with response surface analysis within multilevel modeling to test support for each of the hypotheses. Results suggest a large sex difference in trait perception; when women rated men, they agreed in their perception more often than when men rated women. However, as a predictor of romantic interest, there were no sex differences. Only the responders' perception of the targets' physical attractiveness predicted romantic interest; specifically, responders' who rated the targets' physical attractiveness as higher than themselves reported more romantic interest.

Duplicity among the dark triad: Three faces of deceit.

Although all 3 of the Dark Triad members are predisposed to engage in exploitative interpersonal behavior, their motivations and tactics vary. Here we explore their distinctive dynamics with 5 behavioral studies of dishonesty (total N = 1,750). All 3 traits predicted cheating on a coin-flipping task when there was little risk of being caught (Study 1). Only psychopathy predicted cheating when punishment was a serious risk (Study 2). Machiavellian individuals also cheated under high risk-but only if they were ego-depleted (Study 3). Both psychopathy and Machiavellianism predicted cheating when it required an intentional lie (Study 4). Finally, those high in narcissism showed the highest levels of self-deceptive bias (Study 5). In sum, duplicitous behavior is far from uniform across the Dark Triad members. The frequency and nature of their dishonesty is moderated by 3 contextual factors: level of risk, ego depletion, and target of deception. This evidence for distinctive forms of duplicity helps clarify differences among the Dark Triad members as well as illuminating different shades of dishonesty. (PsycINFO Database Record

Who does Red Bull give wings to? Sensation seeking moderates sensitivity to subliminal advertisement.

This study assessed whether subliminal priming of a brand name of a drink can affect people's choices for the primed brand, and whether this effect is moderated by personality traits. Participants with different levels of sensation seeking were presented subliminally with the words Red Bull or Lde Ublr. Results revealed that being exposed to Red Bull lead on average to small increases in participants' preferences for the primed brand. However, this effect was twice as strong for participants high in sensation seeking and did not occur for participants low in sensation seeking. Going beyond previous research showing that situational factors (e.g., thirst, fatigue…) can increase people's sensitivity to subliminal advertisement, our results suggest that some dispositional factors could have the same potentiating effect. These findings highlight the necessity of taking personality into account in non-conscious persuasion research.

The CAT: A Gender-Inclusive Measure of Controlling and Abusive Tactics.

Research has consistently found that partner violence, defined as physical abuse between married, cohabitating, or dating partners, is not the only type of abuse with long-term deleterious effects on victims. Male and female victims alike report that emotional abuse, along with controlling behaviors, are often as or more traumatic. Existing instruments used to measure emotional abuse and control have either been limited to male-perpetrated behaviors, as conceived in the well-known Duluth "Power and Control" wheel, or field tested on dating or general population samples. This study discusses the genesis and evolution of a gender-inclusive instrument, the Controlling and Abusive Tactics (CAT) Questionnaire, which was field tested on males and females with both a clinical and general population sample. For perpetration, a preliminary comparison across gender found no significant differences across gender for the great majority of items, with women reporting significantly higher rates on 9 items, and men reporting significantly higher rates on 6 items. Women reported higher rates of received abuse than men on 28 of 30 items in which gender differences were found to be significant, but both males and females reported higher victimization than perpetration rates on all items. Exploratory and confirmatory factor analyses resulted in the CAT-2, a valid and reliable instrument appropriate for clinical use by treatment providers as well as for research purposes.

Introducing the short Dark Triad (SD3): a brief measure of dark personality traits.

Three socially aversive traits-Machiavellianism, narcissism, and psychopathy-have been studied as an overlapping constellation known as the Dark Triad. Here, we develop and validate the Short Dark Triad (SD3), a brief proxy measure. Four studies (total N = 1,063) examined the structure, reliability, and validity of the subscales in both community and student samples. In Studies 1 and 2, structural analyses yielded three factors with the final 27 items loading appropriately on their respective factors. Study 3 confirmed that the resulting SD3 subscales map well onto the longer standard measures. Study 4 validated the SD3 subscales against informant ratings. Together, these studies indicate that the SD3 provides efficient, reliable, and valid measures of the Dark Triad of personalities.

Predatory Personalities as Behavioral Mimics and Parasites: Mimicry-Deception Theory.

Humans use a variety of deceptive tactics to extract resources from unsuspecting others. In this article, I suggest that much can be learned about patterns of human deception from predatory nonhuman animal behavior and parasitic infections. Nonhuman animals and parasitic infections utilize deceptive tactics to extract resources through two overarching strategies: (a) complex deception, slow resource extraction, heavy integration into a host or community, and low risk of detection, or (b) superficial deception, immediate resource extraction, little host or community specificity, and increased risk of detection. Predatory and parasitic human personalities may operate in analogous ways. Guided by analogies derived from nonhuman animal mimicry (such as color or behavioral deception) and micro-organismic infections, I have developed a theoretical framework to better understand deceptive and parasitic human behaviors as well as the characteristics defining them. Although applicable to areas of predatory and parasitic human behavior, two specific traits (psychopathy and Machiavellianism) are highlighted that have dire consequences for financial fraud, interpersonal harm, and organizational misbehavior.

The associations among dark personalities and sexual tactics across different scenarios.

Although malevolent individuals may be willing to use any tactic necessary to obtain sex, not all antagonistic traits will predict coercion or coaxing in all situations. A sample of 447 adult men, collected in two waves, reported their intentions to engage in coercion or coaxing of hypothetical targets. Study 1 provided three hypothetical scenarios that result in sexual rejection: (a) an expensive date, (b) a stranger, and (c) a relationship partner, and Study 2 provided the same scenarios, and three additional scenarios: (d) a rival's partner, (e) a bet, and (f) a powerful person. A Structural Equations Model indicated that a common antagonistic factor, indicated by Social Dominance and the Dark Triad traits of psychopathy, narcissism, and Machiavellianism, predicted coaxing across all situations, whereas only psychopathy predicted coercion across all situations. In addition, narcissism accounted for additional variance in coaxing when rejected by an expensive date. These findings suggest that across the different scenarios, psychopathy is primarily associated with coercive tactics and the common malevolent core among the traits is associated with coaxing tactics.

Behavioral confirmation of everyday sadism.

Past research on socially aversive personalities has focused on subclinical psychopathy, subclinical narcissism, and Machiavellianism-the "Dark Triad" of personality. In the research reported here, we evaluated whether an everyday form of sadism should be added to that list. Acts of apparent cruelty were captured using two laboratory procedures, and we showed that such behavior could be predicted with two measures of sadistic personality. Study 1 featured a bug-killing paradigm. As expected, sadists volunteered to kill bugs at greater rates than did nonsadists. Study 2 examined willingness to harm an innocent victim. When aggression was easy, sadism and Dark Triad measures predicted unprovoked aggression. However, only sadists were willing to work for the opportunity to hurt an innocent person. In both studies, sadism emerged as an independent predictor of behavior reflecting an appetite for cruelty. Together, these findings support the construct validity of everyday sadism and its incorporation into a new "Dark Tetrad" of personality.

Factor structure of the B-Scan 360: a measure of corporate psychopathy.

Psychopathy is a clinical construct defined by a cluster of personality traits and behaviors, including grandiosity, egocentricity, deceptiveness, shallow emotions, lack of empathy or remorse, irresponsibility, impulsivity, and a tendency to ignore or violate social norms. The majority of empirical research on psychopathy involves forensic populations most commonly assessed with the Psychopathy Checklist-Revised (PCL-R), a 20-item rating scale that measures 4 related factors or dimensions (Interpersonal, Affective, Lifestyle, and Antisocial) that underpin the superordinate construct of psychopathy. Recently, researchers have turned their attention to the nature and implications of psychopathic features in the workplace. This research has been hampered by the lack of an assessment tool geared to the corporate/organizational world. Here we describe the B-Scan 360, an instrument that uses ratings of others to measure psychopathic features in workplace settings. In this study, large samples of participants used an online survey system to rate their supervisors on the B-Scan 360. Exploratory and confirmatory factor analyses supported a reliable 20-item, 4-factor model that is consistent with the PCL-R 4-factor model of psychopathy. Although more research is needed before the B-Scan 360 can be used in organizational settings, we believe that these results represent an important step forward in the study of corporate psychopathy.