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Relationships between age of females and attraction to the Dark Triad personality
Abstract
The current study extended previous literature that had investigated the attractiveness of the Dark Triad (DT) personality to youthful women (Carter, Campbell, & Muncer, 2014), by comparing responses between two age groups. Participants (N = 1001 females) consisted of undergraduate students and women sampled from various North American communities. Participants read descriptions of male personalities and rated their attractiveness. Descriptions of male characters were designed to portray a combination of high scores on the Dark Triad traits (Machiavellianism, narcissism, and sub-clinical psychopathy), and results were compared to ratings on a low-scoring DT personality. Results were generally supportive of the hypotheses, such that younger women were more attracted to the Dark Triad traits than were older women; older women also rated the low-scoring DT personality as significantly more attractive than did younger women. However, inconsistent with previous literature, younger women rated the low-scoring DT personality as significantly more favorable than the high-scoring DT personality. Further, the participants' level of fertility did not significantly influence attractiveness ratings. The current study's findings may deepen understanding of the ways in which mating strategies change with age, as well as the qualities that women desire in a mate, in order to improve mating success.
... Likewise, in other studies, similar patterns for women who preferred a man with high levels of maladaptive (psychopathic) personality traits were found (33,34). Moreover, younger women in particular were found to be more attracted to dark personality traits than older women (35), which might be problematic given the peak of IPV in young adulthood (36,37). Nevertheless, these correlational findings do not provide insight into why women may be attracted to men with dark personalities. ...
... However, other studies have shown that people are generally not attracted to people with maladaptive personality traits (31,43). Likewise, despite the greater attraction to dark personality traits in young women compared to older women, they preferred men with less dark personality traits (35). An explanation for these inconsistent findings could be methodological. ...
... The goal of Study 2 (main study) was to investigate potential differences in predictors for romantic attraction to villains and heroes. We found that women are more romantically attracted to heroes than villains, which is in line with previously mentioned findings from prior research (30,31,35,40,43), but also with the pilot study. These findings occurred even despite our efforts to reduce potentially perceived self-threat by using pictures of fictional characters (44), and attempts to include approximately equally handsome TV characters based on the pilot study. ...
Introduction
Why are women (not) romantically attracted to dark personalities or villains, which might be a risk factor for intimate partner violence (IPV) victimization? In the current study, it is opted to investigate how adult attachment, maladaptive personality traits, and acceptance of couple violence in women predict romantic attraction to heroic/villainous characters using structural equation modeling (SEM).
Method
First, a pilot study was conducted in 122 heterosexual women (aged 16–25) to select male TV characters. This resulted in the selection of six villains and 10 heroes for the main study, in which 194 other heterosexual women (aged 16–25) were asked to rate the pictures of TV characters through an online questionnaire. This was combined with self-report measures of maladaptive personality traits, acceptance of couple violence, and adult attachment. These variables were entered into a SEM model to assess model fit.
Results
Overall, women rated heroes higher on physical appearance (pilot study) and romantic attraction (main study) compared to villains. We found different direct effects of avoidant (negative) and anxious (positive) attachment styles on romantic attraction to heroes. Moreover, maladaptive personality traits fully mediated the positive effect of avoidant attachment style on romantic attraction to villains.
Discussion
Despite the limitations of the study design (e.g., low N, low notoriety of the TV characters), this study emphasizes that women are generally more romantically attracted to heroes (vs. villains). Besides, there are different predictors of romantic attraction to heroes and villains, which requires further investigation, especially in the context of IPV.
... Although previous research did investigate attractiveness of the DT traits when controlling for other personality traits, it included only Big Five traits (e.g. Carter et al., 2014;Jauk et al., 2016;Qureshi et al., 2016;Rauthmann & Kolar, 2013). If Honesty-Humility and DT are indeed just opposite poles of the same continuum, the attractiveness of the high DT men should diminish when Honesty-Humility is controlled for. ...
... Character descriptions of a male persona representative of a high-scoring or a low-scoring DT personality were used from Qureshi et al. (2016) study. The descriptions were translated to Croatian using back-translation and pretested on 10 females. ...
... In all of the remaining contexts, the participants rated the low DT character as more attractive than the high DT character. These results are in line with previous studies (Aitken et al., 2013;Jonason et al., 2015), as well as the finding that the high DT character was rated higher on Extraversion and lower on all other traits than the low DT character (Carter et al., 2014;Qureshi et al., 2016). The difference between the two characters was especially pronounced on the personality factor specific to six-factor models, Honesty-Humility. ...
This study aimed to further investigate the perceived attractiveness of the Dark Triad (DT) personality in different types of relationships (i.e. friendship, short-term and long-term relationship) controlling for basic personality traits from the HEXACO model. The participants were 167 female students (M = 20.82 years, SD = 1.54) who rated personality and attractiveness of a man with highly expressed DT characteristics (n = 91) or a low-scoring DT character (n = 76) presented in a vignette. In line with recent findings, we observed a high negative correlation between the Honesty-Humility factor and DT personality (r = -.88, p < .001). As hypothesized, there was a significant difference in attractiveness ratings for the two characters in the context of different interpersonal relationships, with high DT character rated as significantly more attractive than the low DT character in the context of short-term mating. Furthermore, the hierarchical regression analysis showed that DT personality had a unique contribution in predicting attractiveness in the context of short-term relationship, after controlling for the basic personality traits.
... This Gothic romance exemplifies how popular formats can be used to convey insights into complex psychology. Flygare-Carlén offers an exceptionally precise portrayal of a male personality marked by Dark Triad traits (Carter et al., 2014;Jonason et al., 2015;Paulhus & Williams, 2002;Qureshi et al., 2016). ...
... Dark Triad traits can also offer adaptive advantages to women, but partially in different ways than for men (Honey, 2017). Social dominance, manipulative mastery, and emotional selfishness let men exploit female mate preferences in a manner to which especially young women are vulnerable (Qureshi et al., 2016). Research shows that Dark Triad menwho typically display entitlement, a glib social charm, and impulsivity-are perceived to be more attractive, which results in them having more partners (Carter et al., 2014;Jonason et al., 2015). ...
A common stance is that only reading literary fiction improves theory of mind (ToM). Characters in popular fiction are said to be so predictable that they merely reaffirm readers’ expectations. Emilie Flygare-Carlén was Sweden’s bestselling 19th-century novelist, but literary historians have disregarded her works for being too commercial and her insights into mating for being too conservative. This article analyzes her novel The Magic Goblet (1840–1841) to propose a more complex understanding of the relationship between fiction and ToM. Flygare-Carlén dissects the mating regime of the Romantic Century (1750–1850) with exceptional psychological depth, yet conveys her insights through widely compelling genres. In this Gothic romance, she dramatizes how the transition from parental to individual choice—in combination with a new mating morality—made women more vulnerable to predatorial seducers. The late-Romantic sanctification of erotic and romantic attraction compelled women to obsess with the small number of men who are able immediately to trigger the strongest emotions. The Magic Goblet’s hero–villain, whose personality is marked by Dark Triad traits, successfully stages himself as the ideal man, but his antisocial mating strategies have detrimental consequences for the women who pursue him and for himself. Flygare-Carlén offers readers insights into not only Dark Triad minds, but into weaknesses of their own thinking, and into the impact ideology can have on our minds. Her doing so in a popular genre does not detract from The Magic Goblet’s potential for improving readers’ ToM.
... These analyses are exploratory; thus, we chose not to adjust the significance criterion and instead elect to emphasize a tentative approach to significant findings. Interactions with sex were included in each regression and rater's age included as a covariate since some evidence suggests age may influence judgments of psychopathy (Qureshi, Harris, & Atkinson, 2016). Results showed that individual differences in social intelligence 6 We deleted 17 ratings where raters indicated knowing target participants from the videos. ...
... This interpretation is in line with the idea that psychopathy, particularly in men, involves high mating effort that offloads parenting effort onto one's partner (Jonason et al., 2009;MacMillan & Kofoed, 1984) and it corroborates a sexual exploitation perspective that psychopathy may function to exploit certain women (Brazil & Forth, 2020). Lastly, although some research has found women do not prefer men with dark personality traits such as psychopathy (Lyons & Simeonov, 2016), others show that they do (Qureshi et al., 2016). Perhaps emotionality is another factor that may contribute to which women may find men with psychopathic traits trustworthy and potentially appealing. ...
In this study, we consider concurrently a disorder view and functional design view of psychopathy using different methods of fluctuating asymmetry (FA) and a target and rater paradigm involving filmed interactions. Targets were young men (N = 46) assessed on psychopathic traits and FA who took part in a video recorded deceptive emotion story where they were incentivized to convince others and gain their trust. Raters were young men and women (N = 1060) who rated the target's videos for genuineness and trust, followed by measures of individual differences such as personality traits. Results showed psychopathy was not related to FA. However, psychopathy was related to higher trust ratings over and above target men's attractiveness and appearance. Additionally, men highest in psychopathy scored significantly higher genuineness and trust ratings compared to men lowest in psychopathy. Lastly, interactions between rater's sex and personality predicted preferential ratings for high psychopathy men, with women higher in Emotionality showing more genuineness and trust of high psychopathy men. Findings suggest that in deceptive emotion contexts young men higher in psychopathy may be successful at convincing others and gaining trust, and particularly so from those with certain personality traits, which may indicate selective exploitation.
... Another limitation to consider is the usage of mock profiles to investigate attraction to the Dark Triad. Although vignettes have previously been used successfully to assess attraction to the Dark Triad (Carter et al., 2014;Qureshi et al., 2016;Rauthmann & Kolar, 2013), it is possible that these reported preferences may not replicate on actual choices (Figueredo, Vásquez, et al., 2006;Jauk et al., 2016;Eastwick et al., 2011). Further, the differences among the profiles were subtle. ...
... Specifically, men are higher on emophilia than are women, and among men, emophilia has a higher correlation with anxious attachment (Jones, 2017). Nevertheless, we focused on women's potential attraction to Dark Triad traits in men in Study 2 because that has been the traditional focus of research on Dark Triad and mate attraction (e.g., Brewer et al., 2018;Carter et al., 2014;Marcinkowska et al., 2015;Marcinkowska et al., 2016;Qureshi et al., 2016). Further, Dark Triad traits also mediate the relationship between gender and short-term mating efforts (Jonason et al., 2009). ...
The current research investigated the association between different relationship orientations (e.g., insecure attachment, sociosexuality, emophilia) and attraction to individuals high in different Dark Triad traits (Machiavellianism, psychopathy, narcissism). Although research has focused on general attraction to antisocial partners, less attention has been paid to traits that affect that attraction. One understudied construct in predicting relationship-relevant attraction is emophilia, which is the tendency to fall in love fast and often. Across two studies (N = 452), we found that emophilia had a strong and unique relationship with attraction to individuals high in dark personality traits. In Study 1, participants completed an assessment of the Dark Triad as they would want their “ideal romantic partner” to complete it. Participants in Study 2 rated the attractiveness of different dating profiles generated by people who varied in the Dark Triad. Participants in both studies filled out self-assessments of emophilia, sociosexuality, and attachment styles. Across both studies, people high in emophilia were the most attracted to any target, including targets high in the Dark Triad traits, even when controlling for other relationship-relevant traits. The findings have implications for relationship research, personality research, and potential risk factors for becoming involved with antisocial partners.
... Raised voice pitch is taken to mean higher levels of interest toward men (Fraccaro et al. 2011). Lastly, women's relationship status and age may affect ratings (e.g., Blanchard et al. 2016;Qureshi et al. 2016), so we included these as covariates. ...
... When comparing two men, those higher in psychopathic traits tended to receive higher ratings from women when considering the magnitude difference in psychopathic traits between the two men. Age and relationship status did not affect this association as might have been expected (Blanchard et al. 2016;Qureshi et al. 2016). Romantic relationships involve choosing partners at the expense of other potential partners, which means it is necessary to make relative comparisons between potential partners. ...
Article link: https://rdcu.be/bP94r
The problems psychopathic individuals impose on society and in their interpersonal relationships can be held in stark contrast to reports of their appeal and sexual success in some of those relationships. In the current paper, we seek to contextualize this enigma by focusing on the interpersonal dynamics of psychopathic individuals in romantic encounters. We first formulate a plausible evolutionary function, the sexual exploitation hypothesis, that proposes psychopathy exhibits “special design” features for subverting female mate choice, facilitating the induction of favorable impressions and desire in prospective intimate relationships. We then test the hypothesis in two studies with university samples. Study 1 had young men assessed on psychopathy, social intelligence, and sociosexuality engage in a filmed dating interaction. Study 2 had young women view a subsample of the videos, rate them on desirability, and leave voice messages. Results show psychopathy was related to sociosexuality, specific factors of social intelligence, and generating higher desirability ratings from women after controlling for men’s physical attractiveness. Analyses involving comparisons of two men showed women’s ratings increased in favor of the more psychopathic man. Women’s voice pitch also changed, but only in response to different facets of psychopathy. The results provide preliminary support for the sexual exploitation hypothesis and suggest that more dynamic assessment of putative desirability in psychopathy may be required to capture its plausible special design features in prospective dating encounters.
... Modifying fertility policy aims to increase and maintain female employment participation. Qureshi, Harris, and Atkinson (2016) states that women are more inclined to work for organizations with paid maternity leave and on-site child care, according to research. These activities encourage work-life balance for women. ...
The fertility policy adjustments are occurring against a backdrop of rapid technological advancement, characterized by the integration of big data analytics and artificial intelligence (AI) into human resource management (HRM) practices. In the banking sector, as in many other industries, the adoption of these technologies has become increasingly pervasive. This study explores the intricate relationship between fertility policy adjustments, the integration of big data and AI in HRM practices, and employee satisfaction within China's banking sector. In response to evolving demographic and technological landscapes, the research aims to uncover how fertility policy adjustments influence female employment dynamics, the adoption of big data and AI in HRM, and ultimately, employee satisfaction. Utilizing a quantitative research design, structured surveys were administered to female bank employees. The resulting data were rigorously analyzed using the Statistical Package for the Social Sciences (SPSS). The study underscores the practical significance of optimizing HR technologies, particularly big data analytics and AI, for enhancing both HR functions and employee satisfaction. It also emphasizes the importance of data-driven HR practices and predictive employee retention strategies as crucial tools in creating responsive and supportive work environments. Additionally, this research contributes to HRM theory by recognizing the pivotal role that technology integration plays in shaping modern HR strategies and organizational success. While acknowledging its limitations, this study lays the foundation for future research, including studies that are longitudinal, comparative, and qualitative studies, to offer a more comprehensive understanding of the complex dynamics in the contemporary workplace.
... The Dark Triad also present some relationships with age. Younger women were more attracted to the Dark Triad traits than were older women (Qureshi et al., 2016) and Machiavellianism and Narcissism were associated with good current socioeconomic status even in children (Jonason et al., 2016(Jonason et al., , 2020. ...
This research explores the Dark Triad traits in 18 cultures from Europe, America, Africa, and Asia. We examined the relationships among Dark Triad traits, as measured by the SD3, with gender, age, social status, and two personality models, HEXACO and Zuckerman's alternative five factor model (AFFM). There were 10,298 participants (5,410 women and 4,888 men) with a mean age of 40.31 (SD = 17.32) years old. Between 6% and 16% of the variance in the Dark Triad traits was accounted by culture. Men scored higher than women on all three traits in most cultures, but gender differences were generally larger in European countries. The relationship between the Dark Triad traits dimensions and age is negative, but the largest effect size is small
... We conducted three simultaneous linear regressions where the preference (i.e., choice as the attractive face) for each Dark Triad variable was the outcome variable, and current and childhood danger, and choice for the same face as the more dangerous face were simultaneous predictor variables. Because both age (Qureshi et al. 2016) and relationship status influence mate choice, these were controlled for in the analyses. Relationship status was coded 1 = in a relationship, 2 = not in a relationship. ...
Although the Dark Triad of personality (i.e., narcissism, Machiavellianism, and psychopathy) has been widely investigated in relation to mate choice, research has not yet considered environmental danger and women’s preference for Dark Triad characteristics. Women (N = 357) completed an online two-alternative forced choice (2-AFC) task, choosing between high and low Dark Triad facial morphs for attractiveness, and for perceived danger. They also answered questions assessing danger in their childhood and current environments. Women perceived the high Dark Triad faces as less attractive and more dangerous that the low faces. Childhood and current environmental danger did not have an association with a preference for the Dark Triad faces. The results indicate that the cost associated with pairing up with a high Dark Triad male may outweigh the benefits, irrespective of the environment.
... Although females may express a preference for psychopathic males in principle, such enthusiasm may dwindle or even disappear following either a direct or vicarious negative romantic experience. Moreover, the undergraduate dating culture may possess unique characteristics (e.g., close-knit social networks, Greek life, increased prevalence of alcohol and drug use) that may not generalize to dating outside of college, and as such, attraction to psychopathic males may decrease with time (see Qureshi, Harris, & Atkinson, 2016, for evidence that females' attraction to Dark Triad traits decreases with age). Todd, Penke, Fasolo, and Lenton (2007) called into question the validity of expressed mate preferences in predicting mate choice and demonstrated that undergraduates' mate preferences did not consistently predict their ultimate choices during speed dating. ...
Objective: The goal of the present studies was to investigate whether people are especially attracted to psychopathic traits, and whether there are individual differences characteristics in such attraction.
Method: Female undergraduates (N = 270; Mage = 19; 57% White, 20% Asian, 8% Black) and female and male community members (N = 426, Mage = 37; 56% female; 81% Caucasian, 10% African American, 4% Asian) reported on their own personality and constructed their ideal mate for a dating, short‐term, and long‐term relationship from a list of 70 characteristics drawn from well‐validated criteria for psychopathic personality and diagnostic criteria for DSM‐5 personality disorders (PDs).
Results: Across both studies, absolute romantic preferences for psychopathic traits collapsed across time point were low on average, but higher than those for most all other PDs. In addition, they were higher for Factor 1 (i.e., interpersonal/affective) as opposed to Factor 2 (i.e., impulsive, antisocial) psychopathy traits. Participants with marked PD features, including Factor 2 psychopathy traits, were more inclined than others to endorse a preference for psychopathic males.
Conclusions: Relative attraction to psychopathic males and observed homophily may be avenues through which psychopathic traits persist in the population across time. This article is protected by copyright. All rights reserved.
Men and women reliably differ on the importance of certain criteria when considering romantic relationships. From an evolutionary perspective that explains sex differences in mating effort and parental investment, men should prioritise attractiveness and women, wealth. Personality traits also signal important information about relationship potential with those of the dark triad facilitating short-term relationships. However, how the vulnerable dark triad traits of borderline personality disorder (BPD) and secondary psychopathyfunction in relationships remains relatively unexplored. Even though interpersonally tempestuous, individuals high in these traits might be alluring in that they offer a thrilling relationship for the short-term, so long as they are also physically appealing. Across two studies, we examined sex differences in partner preference judged on attractiveness in relation to BPD and secondary psychopathy across short- and long-term relationship contexts. Men were willing to engage in relationships with attractive women high in BPD traits, while women compensated low attractiveness for wealth in long-term dating, and did not desire secondary psychopathy in any relationship. Results show that women are more astute in mate preference, avoiding troublesome or financially challenged men who are time and economically costly, and men more readily engage in potentially turbulent relationships.
It has been suggested that the Dark Triad (DT) personality constellation is an evolved facilitator of men's short-term mating strategies. However, previous studies have relied on self-report data to consider the sexual success of DT men. To explore the attractiveness of the DT personality to the other sex, 128 women rated created (male) characters designed to capture high DT facets of personality or a control personality. Physicality was held constant. Women rated the high DT character as significantly more attractive. Moreover, this greater attractiveness was not explained by correlated perceptions of Big 5 traits. These findings are considered in light of mating strategies, the evolutionary 'arms race' and individual differences.
The Dark Triad (DT: sub-clinical narcissism, Machiavellianism and psychopathy) is argued to facilitate a male short-term mating strategy. The trait constellation in women and its potential adaptive benefits has received less attention. We examined the prevalence and correlates of DT in a large community sample (N = 899). Despite finding expected sex differences in Sensation-seeking, Competitiveness, strength of sexual motivation, recreational sex behaviors and neuroticism, we found no sex difference in DT scores. Furthermore, within-sex multiple regressions identified the same predictors of DT score with similar weightings. Moderation analysis confirmed regression equations did not differ by sex. We propose that focus on DT as a male adaptation to short-term mating has been overstated and that men's greater preference for casual sexual encounters is not explained by DT traits.
Past research shows that men respond to women differently depending on where women are in their ovulatory cycle. But what leads men to treat ovulating women differently? We propose that the ovulatory cycle alters women's flirting behavior. We tested this hypothesis in an experiment in which women interacted with different types of men at different points in their cycle. Results revealed that women in the ovulatory phase reported more interest in men who had purported markers of genetic fitness as short-term mates, but not as long-term mates. Furthermore, behavioral ratings of the interactions indicated that women displayed more flirting behaviors when they were at high than at low fertility. Importantly, fertile women flirted more only when interacting with men who had genetic-fitness markers, not with other men. In summary, fertility not only alters women's behavior but does so in a context-dependent way that follows adaptive logic.
While previous studies have correlated the Dark Triad traits (i.e., narcissism, psychopathy, and Machiavellianism) with a preference for short-term relationships, little research has addressed possible correlations with short-term relationship sub-types. In this online study using Amazon’s Mechanical Turk system (N = 210) we investigated the manner in which scores on the Dark Triad relate to the selection of different mating environments using a budget-allocation task. Overall, the Dark Triad were positively correlated with preferences for short-term relationships and negatively correlated with preferences for a long-term relationship. Specifically, narcissism was uniquely correlated with preferences for one-night stands and friends-with-benefits and psychopathy was uniquely correlated with preferences for booty-call relationships. Both narcissism and psychopathy were negatively correlated with preferences for serious romantic relationships. In mediation analyses, psychopathy partially mediated the sex difference in preferences for booty-call relationships and narcissism partially mediated the sex difference in preferences for one-night stands. In addition, the sex difference in preference for serious romantic relationships was partially mediated by both narcissism and psychopathy. It appears the Dark Triad traits facilitate the adoption of specific mating environments providing fit with people’s personality traits.
The current work investigated how a fictitious opposite-sex narcissist, Machiavellian, and psychopath are perceived in an experimental between subjects-design with three groups (total N = 184). Participants rated personality traits (Big Five and Agency/Communion) and different domains of interpersonal attraction (likeability, attractiveness, friend value, short-term mate value, long-term mate value) of the target persons. While all three target persons were not perceived particularly favorably by participants, the narcissist was consistently perceived more favorably than the Machiavellian and the psychopath who were perceived quite similarly to each other. It is discussed why narcissists may be judged more favorably and Machiavellians and psychopaths converge in people’s lay perceptions.
This survey (N = 224) found that characteristics collectively known as the Dark Triad (i.e. narcissism, psychopathy and Machiavellianism) were correlated with various dimensions of short-term mating but not long-term mating. The link between the Dark Triad and short-term mating was stronger for men than for women. The Dark Triad partially mediated the sex difference in short-term mating behaviour. Findings are consistent with a view that the Dark Triad facilitates an exploitative, short-term mating strategy in men. Possible implications, including that Dark Triad traits represent a bundle of individual differences that promote a reproductively adaptive strategy are discussed. Findings are discussed in the broad context of how an evolutionary approach to personality psychology can enhance our understanding of individual differences. Copyright © 2008 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.
There has been an exponential increase of interest in the dark side of human nature during the last decade. To better understand this dark side, the authors developed and validated a concise, 12-item measure of the Dark Triad: narcissism, psychopathy, Machiavellianism. In 4 studies involving 1,085 participants, they examined its structural reliability, convergent and discriminant validity (Studies 1, 2, and 4), and test-retest reliability (Study 3). Their measure retained the flexibility needed to measure these 3 independent-yet-related constructs while improving its efficiency by reducing its item count by 87% (from 91 to 12 items). The measure retained its core of disagreeableness, short-term mating, and aggressiveness. They call this measure the Dirty Dozen, but it cleanly measures the Dark Triad.
Relationships between androgens and the size of sexually dimorphic male traits have been demonstrated in several non-human species. It is often assumed that a similar relationship exists for human male faces, but clear evidence of an association between circulating testosterone levels and the size of masculine facial traits in adulthood is absent. Here we demonstrate that, after experimentally determined success in a competitive task, men with more a masculine facial structure show higher levels of circulating testosterone than men with less masculine faces. In participants randomly allocated to a 'winning' condition, testosterone was elevated relative to pre-task levels at 5 and 20 min post-task. In a control group of participants allocated to a 'losing' condition there were no significant differences between pre- and post-task testosterone. An index of facial masculinity based on the measurement of sexually dimorphic facial traits was not associated with pre-task (baseline) testosterone levels, but was associated with testosterone levels 5 and 20 min after success in the competitive task. These findings indicate that a man's facial structure may afford important information about the functioning of his endocrine system.
This research focused on the target effect on a perceiver's judgments of personality when the perceiver and the target are unacquainted. The perceiver was given no opportunity to interact with the target, a condition we refer to as zero acquaintance. We reasoned that in order to make personality judgments, perceivers would use the information available to them (physical appearance). Consensus in personality judgments would result, then, from shared stereotypes about particular physical appearance characteristics. Results from three separate studies with 259 subjects supported this hypothesis. On two of the five dimensions (extraversion and conscientiousness) on which subjects rated each other, a significant proportion of variance was due to the stimulus target. Consensus on judgments of extraversion appears to have been largely mediated by judgments of physical attractiveness. Across the three studies there was also evidence that the consensus in judgments on these two dimensions had some validity, in that they correlated with self-judgments on those two dimensions.
We examined the internal and external validity of the Narcissistic Personality Inventory (NPI). Study 1 explored the internal structure of the NPI responses of 1,018 subjects. Using principal-components analysis, we analyzed the tetrachoric correlations among the NPI item responses and found evidence for a general construct of narcissism as well as seven first-order components, identified as Authority, Exhibitionism, Superiority, Vanity, Exploitativeness, Entitlement, and Self-Sufficiency. Study 2 explored the NPI's construct validity with respect to a variety of indexes derived from observational and self-report data in a sample of 57 subjects. Study 3 investigated the NPI's construct validity with respect to 128 subject's self and ideal self-descriptions, and their congruency, on the Leary Interpersonal Check List. The results from Studies 2 and 3 tend to support the construct validity of the full-scale NPI and its component scales.
Evidence suggests that female sexual preferences change across the menstrual cycle. Women's extra-pair copulations tend to occur in their most fertile period, whereas their intra-pair copulations tend to be more evenly spread out across the cycle. This pattern is consistent with women preferentially seeking men who evidence phenotypic markers of genetic benefits just before and during ovulation. This study examined whether women's olfactory preferences for men's scent would tend to favour the scent of more symmetrical men, most notably during the women's fertile period. College women sniffed and rated the attractiveness of the scent of 41 T-shirts worn over a period of two nights by different men. Results indicated that normally cycling (non-pill using) women near the peak fertility of their cycle tended to prefer the scent of shirts worn by symmetrical men. Normally ovulating women at low fertility within their cycle, and women using a contraceptive pill, showed no significant preference for either symmetrical or asymmetrical men's scent. A separate analysis revealed that, within the set of normally cycling women, individual women's preference for symmetry correlated with their probability of conception, given the actuarial value associated with the day of the cycle they reported at the time they smelled the shirts. Potential sexual selection processes and proximate mechanisms accounting for these findings are discussed.
Stereotypes of an asexual old age remain pervasive, shaping not only popular images of older people, but also research and policy agendas. However, older people's own attitudes towards the role and value of sex in later life remain relatively unexplored. This paper draws on both quantitative and qualitative data to examine how sex is prioritised in middle age and later life. Data collection methods involved completion of two quality of life measures (WHOQOL-100 and WHOQOL Importance Scale), followed by semi-structured interviews. In total the sample comprised 69 individuals recruited from the age/sex register of a general practice in Sheffield in the UK. This paper will focus upon the accounts of 21 men and 23 women aged 50-92 years. Ratings of the importance of sex to participants were gathered from the WHOQOL Importance Scale; the in-depth interviews enabled the basis for this prioritisation to be explored. Analysis identified the following key themes. Participants who did not consider sex to be of any importance to them neither had a current sexual partner, nor felt that they would have another sexual partner in their lifetime. Indeed, all participants who had a current sexual partner attributed at least some importance to sex, with many rating sex as 'very' or 'extremely' important. However, experiencing barriers to being sexually active led them to place less importance on sex; this was particularly apparent when health problems and widowhood were experienced. Age was seen as facilitating coping when sex became less frequent, or stopped altogether. This was explained in terms of sexual desire decreasing with age (for some male participants), the cessation of sex being easier to cope with in a relationship of long duration and the expectation that sex will become less possible with 'normal ageing'. The discussion considers the implications of these findings for this developing field.
Normally ovulating women have been found to report greater sexual attraction to men other than their own partners when near ovulation relative to the luteal phase. One interpretation is that women possess adaptations to be attracted to men possessing (ancestral) markers of genetic fitness when near ovulation, which implies that women's interests should depend on qualities of her partner. In a sample of 54 couples, we found that women whose partners had high developmental instability (high fluctuating asymmetry) had greater attraction to men other than their partners, and less attraction to their own partners, when fertile.
The Psychopathy Checklist (PCL; Hare, 1980) and its revision (PCL-R; Hare, 1985a, in press) are clinical rating scales that provide researchers and clinicians with reliable and valid assessments of psychopathy. Their development was spurred largely by dissatisfactions with the ways in which other assessment procedures defined and measured psychopathy (Hare, 1980, 1985b).
Popular perceptions of the effect of testosterone on "manly" behavior are inaccurate. We need to move away from such simplistic notions by treating testosterone as one component along with other physiological, psychological and sociological variables in interactive and reciprocal models of behavior. Several hormones can now be measured in saliva, removing the need for blood samples. Conceptual shifts have moved research from biological determinism to biosocial models in which the social environment plays a key role in understanding behavior-hormones associations. As a result, more social scientists are incorporating testosterone in their studies. Following a primer on testosterone, we describe testosterone's link to (a) gaining, maintaining and losing social status, (b) aggression and antisocial behavior, (c) peer and family relationships, and (d) gender similarities and differences. Research needed to take us to the next level of understanding is outlined.
Two studies examined the effects of the appearance of specific facial features on attributions of personality. In Study 1, photographs of men and women were computer-manipulated to have larger than average or smaller than average eye size, and wider than average or narrower than average eye spacing. In Study 2, eye size and mouth fullness were similarly altered. Although it was found that neither eye spacing nor mouth fullness had any effect on perceptions of the targets' personality or physical characteristics, eye size had strong effects in both studies. Analyses of covariance revealed that the personality trait ratings that varied with eye size were mediated primarily by perceived differences in the targets’ masculinity-femininity and babyfacedness, and to a lesser extent by attractiveness.
Machiavellianism (MACH) is associated with a variety of traits in normals which, when extreme, may indicate personality dysfunction (e.g. psychoticism, extraversion, neuroticism, psychopathy, narcissism, paranoia, hysteria). Based on a dimensional conceptualization of personality and personality disorders we further examined in a student sample the extent to which MACH is associated with personality dysfunction. We employed the Personality Diagnostic Questionnaire-4+ (PDQ-4+) [Hyler, S. E. (1997). PDQ-4 and PDQ-4+ instructions for use. New York: New York State Psychiatric Institute] as a dimensional measure of the personality disorders included in the DSM-IV. As predicted MACH is positively associated with the PDQ-4+ total score, an index of general personality dysfunction. In addition, MACH is positively associated with most of the specific personality disorder scales, and most strongly with the borderline, paranoid, negativistic (i.e. passive-aggressive) and antisocial scales. Finally, although sex differences were obtained on some of the PDQ-4+ measures, there is no evidence that participant sex moderates relations between MACH and personality dysfunction.
Relationships between androgens and the size of sexually dimorphic male traits have been demonstrated in several non-human species. It is often assumed that a similar relationship exists for human male faces, but clear evidence of an association between circulating testosterone levels and the size of masculine facial traits in adulthood is absent. Here we demonstrate that, after experimentally determined success in a competitive task, men with more a masculine facial structure show higher levels of circulating testosterone than men with less masculine faces. In participants randomly allocated to a 'winning' condition, testosterone was elevated relative to pre-task levels at 5 and 20 min post-task. In a control group of participants allocated to a 'losing' condition there were no significant differences between pre- and post-task testosterone. An index of facial masculinity based on the measurement of sexually dimorphic facial traits was not associated with pre-task (baseline) testosterone levels, but was associated with testosterone levels 5 and 20 min after success in the competitive task. These findings indicate that a man's facial structure may afford important information about the functioning of his endocrine system.
Libido is a comprehensive and yet elusive word that indicates basic human mental states--and their biological counterparts--involved in the beginning of sexual behavior. It has three main roots: biological, motivational-affective and cognitive. All these dimensions may be variably affected in the post menopause, contributing to a progressive decrease of sexual drive that parallels the process of aging. Loss of estrogens and, specifically, of androgens deprives female libido of major biological fuel. The effect of this loss is pervading, affecting the central nervous system, the sensory organs that are the major windows to environmental sexual stimuli and the quality of sexual response, central, peripheral non-genital and genital. Prolactin increase may further inhibit libido. Arousal disorders, dyspareunia, orgasmic difficulties, dissatisfaction, both physical and emotional, may contribute to a secondary loss of libido. Depression, anxiety and chronic stress, may interfere with central and peripheral pathways of the sexual response, reducing the quality of sexual function mostly in its motivational root. Relational conflicts and/or marital delusions and partner-specific problems, erectile deficit first, may contribute to the fading of sexual drive in the post-menopausal years. Well tailored HRT, including androgens in selected cases, may reduce the biological causes of loss of libido. A comprehensive treatment requires a balanced evaluation between biological and psychodynamic factors.
Women prefer both the scent of symmetrical men and masculine male faces more during the fertile (late follicular and ovulatory) phases of their menstrual cycles than during their infertile (e.g., luteal) phases. Men's behavioral displays in social settings may convey signals that affect women's attraction to men even more strongly. This study examined shifts in women's preferences for these behavioral displays. A sample of 237 normally ovulating women viewed 36 or 40 videotaped men who were competing for a potential lunch date and then rated each man's attractiveness as a short-term and a long-term mate. As predicted, women's preference for men who displayed social presence and direct intrasexual competitiveness increased on high-fertility days relative to low-fertility days, but only in a short-term, not a long-term, mating context. These findings add to the growing literature indicating that women's mate preferences systematically vary across the reproductive cycle.
The psychopathy checklist — revised manual Toronto: Multi-Health Systems
- R D Hare
Hare, R. D. (2003). The psychopathy checklist — revised manual (2nd ed.). Toronto:
Multi-Health Systems.