Abstract
Social cognition is the ability to identify, understand, and interpret mental states and emotions. Psychopathic traits are typically described in two ways; Primary: shallow affect, emotional detachment, and relationship difficulties, and Secondary Psychopathic Traits: antisocial traits, impulsiveness, and emotional dysregulation. People with high psychopathic traits tend to perform lower on measures of social cognition. This study investigated the relationship of social cognition (mentalising) to primary and secondary psychopathic traits in a non-clinical sample, and investigated the psychometric properties of the Reading the Mind in the Eyes Test (RMET) Short Forms (A and B). A community-based male sample (N = 1,000; age range 18–78) was recruited through an online platform. Psychopathic traits were measured using Levenson, Kiehl, and Fitzpatrick's Self-Report Psychopathy Scale, and stratified into Primary and Secondary Psychopathic traits. Secondary validation of the RMET Short Forms was completed investigating scale reliability, and validity. Findings suggest excellent psychometrics in a large community cohort for the RMET Short Forms (A and B), with significant negative correlations on social cognitive performance and high self-report psychopathy. The item valence within the social cognitive measure (positive, negative, and neutral affect stimuli) was also examined, and correlated significantly with both Primary and Secondary Psychopathic traits. This study provides further validation of the RMET Short Forms (A and B), and adds to the literature on the scale by investigating performance on short-form specific valence. This study further suggests that in a non-clinical community sample of males, that higher psychopathic traits correlated significantly, and negatively, with social cognitive performance.
Highlights
Social Cognition is a broad concept which incorporates understanding the intentions, beliefs, emotions, and mental states of others i.e., affective theory of mind, while considering social interaction, social context, and social decision-making i.e., cognitive theory of mind (Alcalá-López et al, 2019)
While some authors have found a negative association between psychopathic traits and Reading the Mind in the Eyes Test (RMET) scores (e.g., Ali and Chamorro-Premuzic, 2010; Sandvik et al, 2014), others have found no such association (e.g., Richell et al, 2003)
Based on the literature in relation to social cognition and psychopathy in a community sample, we hypothesise that participants with higher levels of self-reported psychopathy will perform lower on the RMET
Summary
Social Cognition is a broad concept which incorporates understanding the intentions, beliefs, emotions, and mental states of others i.e., affective theory of mind, while considering social interaction, social context, and social decision-making i.e., cognitive theory of mind (Alcalá-López et al, 2019). While some authors have found a negative association between psychopathic traits and RMET scores (e.g., Ali and Chamorro-Premuzic, 2010; Sandvik et al, 2014), others have found no such association (e.g., Richell et al, 2003) These mixed findings may be due to variation in the population under examination (e.g., forensic, student or community sample), the gender breakdown of the participants (e.g., all male, all female, mostly female), the type of test administered (self-report or clinical assessment), and the way in which psychopathy was conceptualised (e.g., single construct, two-factor or three-factor). Based on the literature in relation to social cognition and psychopathy in a community sample, we hypothesise that participants with higher levels of self-reported psychopathy will perform lower on the RMET. We further hypothesise that this pattern of scoring should be similar across the short-forms of the RMET, inclusive of the direction of the association
Sign-in/Register to view highlights & summary Sign-in/Register to access full text options 
Free) 
Talk to us
Join us for a 30 min session where you can share your feedback and ask us any queries you have
Schedule a call
