scholarly journals Pathological Personality Traits and Utilitarian Moral Judgments

2018 ◽  
Vol 37 (3) ◽  
pp. 182-200 ◽  
Author(s):  
Virgil Zeigler-Hill ◽  
Avi Besser ◽  
Sinead Cronin ◽  
Jennifer K. Vrabel

Recent research has highlighted important individual differences in moral judgment. The present study extends these findings by examining the associations between pathological personality traits and utilitarian moral judgments. This was accomplished by asking 2,121 Israeli community members to complete self-report measures concerning their pathological personality traits and evaluate the acceptability of utilitarian moral judgments in various sacrificial dilemmas (is it acceptable to intentionally kill one person in order to save several other people?). The results showed that the pathological personality traits of antagonism and disinhibition were positively associated with the endorsement of personal utilitarian moral judgments (i.e., those decisions requiring the individual to directly inflict harm on the would-be sacrificed individual), whereas negative affectivity was negatively associated with personal utilitarian moral judgments. Antagonism was the only pathological personality trait associated with impersonal utilitarian moral judgments (i.e., those decisions that did not require the individual to directly inflict harm on the would-be sacrificed individual). Discussion focuses on the implications of these findings for understanding the associations between pathological personality traits and moral judgments.

2021 ◽  
Vol 11 (1) ◽  
Author(s):  
Davide Marengo ◽  
Kenneth L. Davis ◽  
Gökçe Özkarar Gradwohl ◽  
Christian Montag

AbstractThe Affective Neuroscience Personality Scales (ANPS) were constructed as a self-report assessment to measure individual differences in Jaak Panksepp’s cross-species primary emotional systems: SEEKING, PLAY, CARE (positive emotions) and FEAR, SADNESS, ANGER (negative emotions). Beginning with the first published work on the ANPS in 2003, individual differences on the ANPS measures of these six primary emotional systems have been consistently linked to Big Five personality traits. From a theoretical perspective, these primary emotional systems arising from subcortical regions, shed light on the nature of the Big Five personality traits from an evolutionary perspective, because each of these primary emotional systems represent a tool for survival endowing mammalian species with inherited behavioral programs to react appropriately to complex environments. The present work revisited 21 available samples where both ANPS and Big Five measures have been administered. Our meta-analytical analysis provides solid evidence that high SEEKING relates to high Openness to Experience, high PLAY to high Extraversion, high CARE/low ANGER to high Agreeableness and high FEAR/SADNESS/ANGER to high Neuroticism. This seems to be true regardless of the ANPS inventory chosen, although much more work is needed in this area. Associations between primary emotional systems and Conscientiousness were in the lower effect size area across all six primary emotions, thereby supporting the idea that Conscientiousness rather seems to be less directly related with the subcortical primary emotions and likely is the most cognitive/cortical personality construct out of the Big Five. In sum, the present work underlines the idea that individual differences in primary emotional systems represent evolutionarily ancient foundations of human personality, given their a) meaningful links to the prominent Big Five model and b) their origins lying in subcortical areas of the human brain.


2020 ◽  
pp. 1-10
Author(s):  
Nadia Bounoua ◽  
Rickie Miglin ◽  
Jeffrey M. Spielberg ◽  
Curtis L. Johnson ◽  
Naomi Sadeh

Abstract Background Research has demonstrated that chronic stress exposure early in development can lead to detrimental alterations in the orbitofrontal cortex (OFC)–amygdala circuit. However, the majority of this research uses functional neuroimaging methods, and thus the extent to which childhood trauma corresponds to morphometric alterations in this limbic-cortical network has not yet been investigated. This study had two primary objectives: (i) to test whether anatomical associations between OFC–amygdala differed between adults as a function of exposure to chronic childhood assaultive trauma and (ii) to test how these environment-by-neurobiological effects relate to pathological personality traits. Methods Participants were 137 ethnically diverse adults (48.1% female) recruited from the community who completed a clinical diagnostic interview, a self-report measure of pathological personality traits, and anatomical MRI scans. Results Findings revealed that childhood trauma moderated bilateral OFC–amygdala volumetric associations. Specifically, adults with childhood trauma exposure showed a positive association between medial OFC volume and amygdalar volume, whereas adults with no childhood exposure showed the negative OFC–amygdala structural association observed in prior research with healthy samples. Examination of the translational relevance of trauma-related alterations in OFC–amygdala volumetric associations for disordered personality traits revealed that trauma exposure moderated the association of OFC volume with antagonistic and disinhibited phenotypes, traits characteristic of Cluster B personality disorders. Conclusions The OFC–amygdala circuit is a potential anatomical pathway through which early traumatic experiences perpetuate emotional dysregulation into adulthood and confer risk for personality pathology. Results provide novel evidence of divergent neuroanatomical pathways to similar personality phenotypes depending on early trauma exposure.


2020 ◽  
Vol 10 (10) ◽  
pp. 145
Author(s):  
Efrat Barel ◽  
Yonathan Mizrachi ◽  
Maayan Nachmani

Background: The present study investigated the role of temperament and attachment security in predicting individual differences in the five factor personality traits among adults. As previous studies suggested the potential moderating role of attachment in the association between temperament and personality traits, the present study sought to examine an interactionist model combining attachment and temperament in explaining individual differences in personality traits. Methods: A sample of 1871 participants (1151 women and 719 men) completed self-report measures of adult attachment style (the Relationships Questionnaire—RQ), temperament dimension (the Fisher Temperament Inventory—FTI), and personality domain (the Five Factor Model—FFM). Results: Partial correlational analyses revealed associations between attachment security and each of the five domains of the FFM, and few associations between some temperament dimensions and several domains of the FFM. Moderated regression analyses showed that attachment security moderated the associations between temperament dimensions and the Agreeableness domain of the FFM. Among secure individuals, those with higher scores on the Curious/Energetic, Cautious/Social Norm Compliant and Prosocial/Empathetic scales exhibited higher Agreeableness scores, whereas among insecure individuals, those with higher scores on the Analytic/Tough-minded scale exhibited lower scores on the Agreeableness scale. Conclusion: Overall, the current study provides evidence in support of the substantive role of social-environmental factors (Adult Attachment) as a moderating element bridging temperament-related personality elements and a number of their FFM manifestations.


2018 ◽  
Author(s):  
Maria Magdalena Kwiatkowska ◽  
Katarzyna Kwiatkowska ◽  
Radosław Rogoza

The aim of the current study is to prepare the Polish adaptation of the Revised Cheek and Buss Shyness Scale and to analyze relations between shyness, loneliness and personality traits. The study was conducted via the Internet, and a total of N = 314 adults participated and completed a set of self-report measures. Via comparisons of several confirmatory factor analysis models we demonstrated that the structure of the Polish adaptation of the scale is unidimensional. Consistent with research hypotheses, shyness was mostly correlated with loneliness and introversion; moreover, shyness was strongly negatively related to the personality metatrait of Plasticity and weakly but also negatively with the metatrait of Stability. In addition, individuals not engaged in romantic relationships scored significantly higher in shyness and loneliness, and lower in extraversion, openness, and Plasticity than individuals engaged in unformalized relationships. The results support the conclusion that shyness is a personality trait that significantly affects behavior by limiting the possibilities for adapting to changing environmental conditions.


2020 ◽  
Vol 14 ◽  
Author(s):  
Liu-Fang Zhou ◽  
Ming Meng

Abstract People tend to see faces from non-face objects or meaningless patterns. Such illusory face perception is called face pareidolia. Previous studies have revealed an interesting fact that there are huge individual differences in face pareidolia experience among the population. Here, we review previous findings on individual differences in face pareidolia experience from four categories: sex differences, developmental factors, personality traits and neurodevelopmental factors. We further discuss underlying cognitive or neural mechanisms to explain why some perceive the objects as faces while others do not. The individual differences in face pareidolia could not only offer scientific insights on how the brain works to process face information, but also suggest potential clinical applications.


2016 ◽  
Vol 12 (3) ◽  
pp. 363-376 ◽  
Author(s):  
Virgil Zeigler-Hill ◽  
Gillian A. McCabe ◽  
Jennifer K. Vrabel

Basic personality traits (e.g., extraversion) have been found to be associated with the humor styles that individuals employ. In the present study, we were interested in determining whether pathological personality traits were also associated with humor styles. We examined the associations between the pathological personality traits captured by the Personality Inventory for the DSM-5 (PID-5) and humor styles in a sample of college students (N = 594). Negative affectivity and detachment were negatively associated with the affiliative and self-enhancing humor styles. Antagonism was positively associated with the aggressive humor style but negatively associated with the affiliative humor style. Disinhibition was positively associated with the aggressive humor style, whereas disinhibition and psychoticism were both positively associated with the self-defeating humor style. Discussion focuses on the implications of these findings and how they can expand our understanding of the connections between the darker aspects of personality and humor.


2017 ◽  
Vol 26 (1) ◽  
pp. 163-178 ◽  
Author(s):  
Gillian A. McCabe ◽  
Jennifer K. Vrabel ◽  
Virgil Zeigler-Hill

An alternative model of pathological personality traits was recently developed in an effort to address the challenges associated with the categorical model of personality disorder classification (e.g., high rates of comorbidity, minimal overlap with modern conceptualizations of personality structure). More specifically, this alternative model provides a dimensional framework through which personality disorders can be understood in terms of their level of impairment in personality functioning. The development of this alternative model led to the construction of the Personality Inventory for the DSM-5 (PID-5; Krueger, Derringer, Markon, Watson, & Skodol, 2012) which assesses the presence and level of the following pathological personality traits: negative affectivity, detachment, antagonism, disinhibition, and psychoticism. These pathological personality traits are considered to be maladaptive variants of the basic personality dimensions described by the Big Five model (i.e., neuroticism, extraversion, agreeableness, conscientiousness, and openness; Thomas et al., 2013). We will focus our review on previous research concerning the interpersonal outcomes associated with the PID-5 pathological personality traits and suggest possible directions for future research.


2018 ◽  
Vol 32 (6) ◽  
pp. 672-689 ◽  
Author(s):  
Jeroen Borghuis ◽  
Jaap J.A. Denissen ◽  
Klaas Sijtsma ◽  
Susan Branje ◽  
Wim H.J. Meeus ◽  
...  

Theory and research have suggested that recurrent daily experiences can affect personality traits. The present study examined the longitudinal relation between individual differences in positive daily experiences and the Big Five personality traits. Data came from Dutch mothers ( N = 483; M age = 44 years at T1) who completed up to six yearly personality questionnaires and 15 between–year assessment bursts, lasting five consecutive days each. Using multilevel structural equation modelling, we found that individual differences in daily experiences of positive affect and perceived relationship support/affection with partners and children were positively associated with subsequent rank–order changes in all Big Five personality traits. In contrast, we found little evidence that personality traits were associated with rank–order changes in daily experiences, which may be due to the very–high rank–order stability of positive affect and relationship support. Furthermore, positive daily experiences demonstrated incremental validity in predicting rank–order changes in trait agreeableness, emotional stability, and openness, over and above daily negative affect and relationship conflict. The results suggest that positive affective and interpersonal daily experiences contribute to positive personality trait changes in middle adulthood. We discuss these results in the context of contemporary theories of personality trait development. © 2018 European Association of Personality Psychology


2018 ◽  
Vol 40 ◽  
pp. 02006 ◽  
Author(s):  
J. Levina ◽  
V. Perejolkina ◽  
K. Martinsone ◽  
S. Mihailova ◽  
J. Kolesnikova

Research of anomia is topical in the period when a society endures social and economic changes. On the other hand, the modern Western society is characterized by a rapid speed of development, by diversity, variability, multicultural life. In such conditions for some individuals it could be difficult to make life choices. Such individuals can get into “an anomic state”. In a situation of rapid social and political changes as well as simply in the modern diverse and rapidly developing society pathological personality traits can serve as a factor that aggravates anomic feelings. Thus, the main purpose of this research is to investigate relations between anomia and pathological personality traits. The sample consisted of 83 Latvian inhabitants aged from 19 to 47 years (16.9 % males, 83.1 % females). The Anomia Questionnaire – AQ [1] and the Latvian Clinical Personality Inventory – LCPI v2.2 [2] were used. It is found that there are multiple relations between all six sub-dimensions of anomia and certain different maladaptive personality traits. Irresponsibility is the only personality trait that predicts deviation from prescribed rules or customs. Negative emotionality is the only significant predictor for social distrust. Suspiciousness that falls within a first-order domain Psychoticism and a second-order domain Schizotypy is the most significant predictor of estrangement to others as a dimension of anomia. Eccentricity that falls within a first-order domain Psychoticism and a second-order domain Schizotypy is the most significant predictor of cultural isolation. Separation insecurity that falls within a first-order domain Dependence and a second-order domain Neuroticism is the most significant predictor of a lack of goal clarity as a dimension of anomia. Depression as a pathological personality trait that falls within a first-order domain Negative emotionality and a second-order domain Neuroticism is the most significant predictor of a lack of goal clarity as a dimension of anomia.


2021 ◽  
Vol 3 ◽  
Author(s):  
T. Suzuki ◽  
K. D. Novak ◽  
B. Ait Oumeziane ◽  
D. Foti ◽  
D. B. Samuel

Abstract Psychophysiological measures have become increasingly accessible to researchers and many have properties that indicate their use as individual difference indicators. For example, the error-related negativity (ERN), an event-related potential (ERP) thought to reflect error-monitoring processes, has been related to individual differences, such as Neuroticism and Conscientiousness traits. Although various tasks have been used to elicit the ERN, only a few studies have investigated its variability across tasks when examining the relations between the ERN and personality traits. In this project, we examined the relations of the ERN elicited from four variants of the Flanker task (Arrow, Social, Unpleasant, and Pleasant) that were created to maximize the differences in their relevance to personality traits. A sample of 93 participants with a history of treatment for psychopathology completed the four tasks as well as self-report measures of the general and maladaptive five-factor model (FFM) traits. Confirmatory factor analyses (CFAs) of ERN amplitudes indicated that three of the four tasks (Arrow, Social, and Unpleasant) were unidimensional. Another set of CFAs indicated that a general factor underlies the ERN elicited from all tasks as well as unique task-specific variances. The correlations of estimated latent ERN scores and personality traits did not reflect the hypothesized correlation patterns. Variability across tasks and the hierarchical model of the ERN may aid in understanding psychopathology dimensions and in informing future endeavors integrating the psychophysiological methods into the study of personality. Recommendations for future research on psychophysiological indicators as individual differences are discussed.


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