Vulnerable dark traits mediate the association between childhood adversity and suicidal ideation

Abstract

Adverse Childhood Experiences (ACEs) have been associated with both Risk of Suicide (RoS) and the Vulnerable Dark Triad (VDT), the latter comprises Factor Two Psychopathy (FTP), Borderline Personality Disorder (BPD), and Vulnerable Narcissism (VN). In the current study, we investigated whether the relationship between ACEs and RoS was mediated by the VDT. One-thousand and sixty-four individuals completed online versions of the Self-Report Psychopathy Scale III, the McLean Screening Instrument for Borderline Personality Disorder, the Hypersensitive Narcissism Scale, the Childhood Experience Survey 17, and the Ask Suicide Screening Questionnaire. We found a strong positive association between ACEs and RoS. Further, we found that BPD and VN mediated the relationship between ACEs and RoS. These results highlight the importance of ACEs in the development of personality and RoS.