Abstract
ABSTRACT The Dark Triad composed of psychopathy, Machiavellianism, and narcissism, and also self-control are consistently related to antisocial and criminal externalizing outcomes. In the present study, we examined whether self-control mediates the relationships between the Dark Triad and delinquency, conduct disorder, and crime seriousness outcomes. The sample consisted of 567 adolescents (M = 15.91 years, SD = 0.99 years, range = 14–18 years) from Portugal. Self-control mediated the association between psychopathy and Machiavellianism (but not narcissism) and self-reported juvenile delinquency, conduct disorder symptoms, and crime seriousness. One reason antisocial/criminal behaviors are common in those characterized by psychopathy and Machiavellianism relates to their deficits in self-control as suggested by general theories. Within the nomological network of dark traits, narcissism appears to have enduring and unmediated associations with externalizing features and conduct problems. Our findings add to the literature modeling the Dark Triad along with self-control to elucidate its contributions to antisocial/criminal outcomes in youth.
Highlights
Research in developmental psychopathology, personality psychology, and criminology consistently points to the salience of dark personality features and their association with diverse conduct problems
16.92% (.11/.65 = .1692) of the total effect of psychopathy on self-reported delinquency was explained by the tendency of youth with higher psychopathic dark traits to report higher levels of self-control deficits
The dark features inherent to the Dark Triad and low selfcontrol are consistently linked to conduct problems
Summary
Personality psychology, and criminology consistently points to the salience of dark personality features and their association with diverse conduct problems. Within this nomological network, two of the most studied constructs are self-control (e.g., Gottfredson & Hirschi, 1990) and the Dark Triad that includes narcissism, Machiavellianism, and psychopathy (e.g., Paulhus & Williams, 2002). Narcissism is characterized by selfishness, self-centeredness, entitlement, low empathy, and need for admiration from others. Machiavellianism is defined as a person who is cunning, scheming, and unscrupulous in their behavior and who exploits others toward self-serving goals. Psychopathy is consistent with Antisocial Personality Disorder and describes a person who has self-regulation.
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