Abstract: This study investigates a novel method for assessing Dark Tetrad personality traits (Machiavellianism, Narcissism, Psychopathy, Everyday Sadism) through humor evaluation. Traditional self-report measures are limited by response biases, creating a need for indirect behavioral assessment. We hypothesized that individual differences in these traits would correlate with distinct patterns in evaluating visual humor (funniness, perceived kindness/cruelty, and target direction) and that machine learning (ML) could classify individuals based on these patterns. A sample of 200 participants rated 71 funny pictures and completed the Short Dark Tetrad (SD4) questionnaire. Correlation analyses revealed that Psychopathy and Sadism were associated with higher funniness and lower kindness ratings. Narcissism correlated only with higher funniness, while Machiavellianism showed no significant correlations. ML models confirmed these patterns: Psychopathy was classified with good accuracy (AUC up to .819), followed by Sadism. Narcissism was moderately predictable, while Machiavellianism was not predicted above chance level. The findings demonstrate that computational analysis of humor evaluation can serve as a valid behavioral predictor for specific Dark Tetrad traits, particularly Psychopathy and Sadism. This approach offers a promising indirect assessment method, although its efficacy varies across traits and requires careful ethical consideration for any potential application.
Abstract: Building on an ability-motivation perspective, this study examines whether Dark Triad traits (Machiavellianism, psychopathy, and narcissism) condition how social-emotional competence (SEC) translates into prosocial tendencies. A sample of 549 Chinese undergraduates completed measures of the Dark Triad, SEC, and prosocial subtypes. While Machiavellianism and psychopathy generally correlated negatively with SEC, dark traits were not uniformly antisocial: all three correlated negatively with anonymous helping, yet Machiavellianism and narcissism correlated positively with public helping. Theory-guided focal moderation tests with false discovery rate (FDR) control revealed distinct “translation” effects. Higher Machiavellianism attenuated the link between responsible decision-making and compliant helping but amplified the association between self-awareness and altruistic tendencies. Psychopathy also strengthened the translation of self-management and responsible decision-making into anonymous helping, while narcissism weakened links between responsible decision-making and other-oriented helping. These findings suggest that Dark Triad traits are not “always dark” but function as motivational filters that shape when and how socioemotional capacities are enacted, highlighting the critical distinction between ability and motive in personality–behavior models.
Abstract: While psychopathic traits are known to influence general quality of life, there is a scarcity of research examining their specific effects within the prison context. To address this gap, the present study posited a negative relationship between psychopathic traits and quality of prison life, with institutional misconduct as a mediating factor. Structural modeling was conducted on a sample of 280 offenders ( M age = 40.17, SD = 10.46; 73% male). The results indicate a negative association between the affective trait of Emotional Coldness and quality of prison life. Furthermore, the behavioral trait of Recklessness was indirectly associated with quality of prison life through its impact on institutional misconduct. In contrast, the interpersonal trait of Deceitfulness did not exhibit a significant relationship with the quality of prison life. These findings underscore the differential impact of psychopathic traits on prison life and highlight the importance of targeted interventions to mitigate both individual and institutional challenges.
Abstract: The Detection and Dual Control (DDC) model and others have proposed attentional biases toward threat and high sensitivity as mediating factors, and cognitive control as a moderating factor, in the relationship between behavioral inhibition (BI) and social anxiety. However, few studies have elucidated the models by using all the factors simultaneously. The purpose of the present study was to confirm the DDC model using self-reported scales. Five hundred and thirty-seven Japanese participants completed the scale in an online survey. The findings indicated that BI, social anxiety, attentional bias, high sensitivity, and effortful control were significantly correlated. Moderated mediation analysis revealed that even after controlling for age, attentional bias and high sensitivity partially mediated the pathway from BI to social anxiety. In addition, the indirect effect of high sensitivity was moderated by effortful control. The indirect path was not significant when effortful control was high. These results partially support the DDC model and others. Attentional bias and high sensitivity contribute to the development of social anxiety symptoms in individuals with BI. However, effortful control has the potential to suppress this process by reducing the effects of high sensitivity on social anxiety.
Abstract: Empathy plays a key role in moral reasoning, yet its neural correlates during real-life moral decision-making remain unclear. This study examined how individual differences in trait empathy relate to EEG oscillatory activity (delta, theta, alpha, beta, and gamma bands) during a dyadic moral verbal exchange. Twenty-eight adults (14 same-gender dyads) completed the Interpersonal Reactivity Index (IRI) and the Balanced Emotional Empathy Scale (BEES) before engaging in a three-minute moral exchange. Correlation analyses revealed that affective empathy (BEES) was positively associated with temporo-central gamma power, cognitive empathy (IRI-PT) with frontal gamma and temporo-central alpha power, and fantasy (IRI-FS) with posterior alpha activity. In contrast, personal distress (IRI-PD) correlated negatively with temporo-central beta power. These findings indicate that individual differences in empathy dimension are associated with differentiated frequency-specific neural dynamics during moral exchanges, emphasizing the role of both affective and cognitive processes in socially embedded moral reasoning.
