Abstract
Machiavellianism is a personality trait characterized by interpersonal manipulation and associated with specific patterns of emotional and social cognition skills. The aim of this study was to investigate its socio-cognitive characteristics by determining its association and predictors on the basis of a multidimensional approach to Machiavellianism. We used Mach IV scale to assess “Machiavellian Intelligence” skill of participants (Christie and Geis, 1970). It includes three subscales that are (1) the use of deceit in interpersonal relationships, (2) a cynical view of human nature and (3) the lack of morality. Associations were found between Machiavellianism and low levels of empathy and affective ToM, and high levels of alexithymia, anhedonia, depression, and anxiety. These associations were observed in varying proportions depending on the three subscales of Machiavellianism. The addition of anhedonia and trait-anxiety to the concepts of empathy and alexithymia made it possible to gain a better understanding of the emotional core of Machiavellianism. These findings are discussed in the light of developmental and adaptive perspectives.
Highlights
Machiavellianism is a concept that has been accorded a growing level of interest, especially in the field of personality studies (Rauthmann, 2012)
Machiavellianism was significantly correlated with most of the variables, including negative correlations with empathy and affective Theory of mind (ToM), and positive correlations with alexithymia, anhedonia, depression, and anxiety
A regression analysis permits to highlight the relative importance of each predictor (i.e., Snaith–Hamilton Pleasure Scale (SHAPS), TAS-difficulties in identifying feelings (DIF),. . .) and to determine the specific effect of each one because it takes into account the relations between the various predictors entered in the regression (Howell, 1998)
Summary
Machiavellianism is a concept that has been accorded a growing level of interest, especially in the field of personality studies (Rauthmann, 2012). People exhibiting high levels of Machiavellianism (Christie and Geis, 1970) are characterized by interpersonal manipulation, such as the use of flattery and deceit, as well as by aloof, cynical, and traditionally amoral viewpoints adopted in order to promote their own goals/interests (Christie and Geis, 1970; Fehr et al, 1992; McHoskey, 1995; McHoskey et al, 1998; Wilson et al, 1998; Bereczkei et al, 2010). The Mach-IV scale assesses “Machiavellian Intelligence” competence of participants (Christie and Geis, 1970) This is a self-report Likert type scale which evaluates three dimensions: (1) the use of deceit in interpersonal relationships (nine items), (2) a cynical view of human nature (nine items), and (3) the lack of morality (two items). It has been suggested that this is due to the specificity of the processes involved in Machiavellianism rather than to general skills (i.e., such as total IQ) (Wilson et al, 1996; Paulhus and Williams, 2002; Jones and Paulhus, 2009)
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