Relationship of Tetrad Dark Personality Traits and Delinquent Behavior among Adolescents: Moderating Role of Social Support

Abstract

The current research studies the relationship between Dark Tetrad personality dimensions: Machiavellianism, narcissism, psychopathy, sadism, and delinquency in adolescence while considering the role of social support as the moderator. For this study the cross-sectional research design was used and the sample included 300 adolescents comprising 150 males and 150 females in the age group of 10 to 19 years randomly selected from twin cities of Islamabad and Rawalpindi. The data were collected using the Short Dark Tetrad (SD4) self-reported delinquency – Problem Behavior Frequency Scale and Child and Adolescent Social Support Scale (CASSS). The analyses conducted found positive and significant correlations between the dark personality traits and the delinquent behaviors with each of the dark personality traits being positively correlated with the manifests of delinquent behaviour. Furthermore, the study revealed that social support acted as a moderator that could help decrease the delinquency rate among the adolescents who possess a high level of dark personality traits. These imply that dark personality facets and insufficient social support should be targeted to reduce delinquency among adolescents. The results imply that any prevention or treatment programs targeted at decreasing delinquency must take into account the presence of dark personality features in adolescents, especially through modulating the perceived usefulness of social support. The insights from the research can be quite useful for schools, families, and community-oriented programs to design effective interventions not only to address behavior management but also to address the potentially detrimental effects associated with these personality traits.