Skip to main content

Advertisement

SpringerLink
Log in

Exploring the differential contribution of boldness, meanness, and disinhibition to explain externalising and internalising behaviours across genders

  • Published:
Current Psychology Aims and scope Submit manuscript

Abstract

Psychopathic personality traits are positively associated with externalising behaviours, and negatively associated with internalising behaviours. However, the contribution of different facets of psychopathy (boldness, meanness, disinhibition) in explaining externalising and internalising behaviours across genders are inconsistent. In this study, we explored gender differences in the assessment of, and relationships between, psychopathic personality traits, trait anxiety, social anxiety, depression, mental health, and aggressive behaviour in 822 students from a German University (586 women, 236 men; Mage = 22.27). Using a structural equation model, we found a positive relationship between aggressive behaviour and all three facets of psychopathy, a positive relationship between internalising behaviours and disinhibition, and a significant negative relationship between internalising behaviours and boldness. Despite gender differences in absolute levels of these variables, the overall pattern of the relationships between variables was consistent across genders. This indicates that symptom level differences across gender cannot be accounted for by variation in early developing personality traits like psychopathy.

This is a preview of subscription content, log in via an institution to check access.

Access this article

Log in via an institution

Price excludes VAT (USA)
Tax calculation will be finalised during checkout.

Instant access to the full article PDF.

Institutional subscriptions

Fig. 1
Fig. 2
Fig. 3

Similar content being viewed by others

Notes

  1. This study was not pre-registered. A part of the data has been used in a study investigating psychopathy, aggression and traumatic life events (Eisenbarth & Garofalo, 2021).

References

  • Achenbach, T. M. (1989). Internalizing disorders: Subtyping based on parental questionnaires. In M. H. Schmidt & H. Remschmidt (Eds.), Needs and prospects of child and adolescent psychiatry; needs and prospects of child and adolescent psychiatry (pp. 83–92). Hogrefe & Huber Publishers.

    Google Scholar 

  • Anderson, K. G., Tapert, S. F., Moadab, I., Crowley, T. J., & Brown, S. (2007). Personality risk profile for conduct disorder and substance use disorders in youth. Addictive Behaviors, 32(10), 2377–2382. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.addbeh.2007.02.006.

    Article  PubMed  Google Scholar 

  • Beaujean, A. A. (2014). Latent variable modeling using R. In A Step-by-Step-Guide. Routledge.

  • Blagov, P. S., Patrick, C. J., Oost, K. M., Goodman, J. A., & Pugh, A. T. (2016). Triarchic psychopathy measure: Validity in relation to normal-range traits, personality pathology, and psychological adjustment. Journal of Personality Disorders, 30(1), 71–81. https://doi.org/10.1521/pedi201529182.

  • Blonigen, D. M., Hicks, B. M., Krueger, R. F., Patrick, C. J., & Iacono, W. G. (2005). Psychopathic personality traits: Heritability and genetic overlap with internalizing and externalizing psychopathology. Psychological Medicine, 35(5), 637–648. https://doi.org/10.1017/S0033291704004180.

    Article  PubMed  PubMed Central  Google Scholar 

  • Bongers, I. L., Koot, H. M., Van Der Ende, J., & Verhulst, F. C. (2004). Developmental trajectories of externalizing behaviors in childhood and adolescence. Child Development, 75(5), 1523–1537. https://doi.org/10.1111/j.1467-8624.2004.00755.x.

    Article  PubMed  Google Scholar 

  • Brennan, G. M., Stuppy-Sullivan, A. M., Brazil, I. A., & Baskin-Sommers, A. R. (2017). Differentiating patterns of substance misuse by subtypes of antisocial traits in male offenders. Journal of Forensic Psychiatry & Psychology, 28(3), 341–356. https://doi.org/10.1080/14789949.2017.1280072.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Brown, G. L., Goodwin, F. K., Ballenger, J. C., Goyer, P. F., & Major, L. F. (1979). Aggression in humans correlates with cerebrospinal fluid amine metabolites. Psychiatry Research, 1(2), 131–139. https://doi.org/10.1016/0165-1781(79)90053-2.

    Article  PubMed  Google Scholar 

  • Bulla, B. A., Smith, N. S., Preston, O., Capron, D., & Anestis, J. (2021). The indirect effects of psychopathy on trait aggression through anxiety sensitivity across genders. Journal of Aggression, Maltreatment & Trauma, 30(2), 207–225. https://doi.org/10.1080/10926771.2020.1866134.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Cleckley, H. M. (1941). The mask of sanity. Mosby.

    Google Scholar 

  • Colins, O. F., Fanti, K. A., Salekin, R. T., & Andershed, H. (2017). Psychopathic personality in the general population: Differences and similarities across gender. Journal of Personality Disorders, 31(1), 49–74. https://doi.org/10.1521/pedi_2016_30_237.

    Article  PubMed  Google Scholar 

  • Cosgrove, V. E. E., Rhee, S. H. H., Gelhorn, H. L. L., Boeldt, D., Corley, R. C. C., Ehringer, M. A. A., Young, S. E. E., & Hewitt, J. K. K. (2011). Structure and etiology of co-occurring internalizing and externalizing disorders in adolescents. Journal of Abnormal Child Psychology, 39(1), 109–123. https://doi.org/10.1007/s10802-010-9444-8.

  • Donnellan, B. M., & Burt, A. S. (2016). A further evaluation of the Triarchic conceptualization of psychopathy in college students. Journal of Psychopathology and Behavioral Assessment, 38(2), 172–182. https://doi.org/10.1007/s10862-015-9512-z.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Drislane, L. E., Patrick, C. J., Sourander, A., Sillanmaki, L., Aggen, S. H., Elonheimo, H., Parkkola, K., Multimaki, P., & Kendler, K. S. (2014). Distinct variants of extreme psychopathic individuals in society at large: Evidence from a population-based sample. Personality Disorders, 5(2), 154–163. https://doi.org/10.1037/per0000060.

    Article  PubMed  PubMed Central  Google Scholar 

  • Durand, G., & Plata, E. M. (2017). The effects of psychopathic traits on fear of pain, anxiety, and stress. Personality and Individual Differences, 119, 198–203. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.paid.2017.07.024.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Eagly, A. H., & Steffen, V. J. (1986). Gender and aggressive behavior: A meta-analytic review of the social psychological literature. Psychological Bulletin, 100(3), 309–330. https://doi.org/10.1037/0033-2909.100.3.309.

    Article  PubMed  Google Scholar 

  • Eisenbarth, H., & Garofalo, C. (2021). The role of psychopathic traits in explaining associations between childhood traumatic experiences and aggression. Journal of Personality Disorders, 1–18. https://doi.org/10.1521/pedi_2021_35_507.

  • Falkenbach, D. M., Reinhard, E. E., & Larson, F. R. R. (2017). Theory based gender differences in psychopathy subtypes. Personality and Individual Differences, 105, 1–6. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.paid.2016.09.023.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Fanti, K. A., & Kimonis, E. (2017). Heterogeneity in externalizing problems at age 3: Association with age 15 biological and environmental outcomes. Developmental Psychology, 53(7), 1230–1241. https://doi.org/10.1037/dev0000317.

    Article  PubMed  Google Scholar 

  • Frick, P. J., Ray, J. V, Thornton, L. C., & Kahn, R. E. (2014). Can callous-unemotional traits enhance the understanding, diagnosis, and treatment of serious conduct problems in children and adolescents? A comprehensive review. Psychological Bulletin, 140(1), 1–57. https://doi.org/10.1037/a0033076.

  • Garnefski, N., Kraaij, V., & van Etten, M. (2005). Specificity of relations between adolescents’ cognitive emotion regulation strategies and internalizing and externalizing psychopathology. Journal of Adolescence, 28(5), 619–631. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.adolescence.2004.12.009.

    Article  PubMed  Google Scholar 

  • Garofalo, C., Neumann, C. S., & Velotti, P. (2020). Psychopathy and aggression: The role of emotion dysregulation. Journal of Interpersonal Violence, 088626051990094, 088626051990094. https://doi.org/10.1177/0886260519900946.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Hecht, L. K., Berg, J. M., Lilienfeld, S. O., & Latzman, R. D. (2016). Parsing the heterogeneity of psychopathy and aggression: Differential associations across dimensions and gender. Personality Disorders: Theory, Research, and Treatment, 7(1), 2–14. https://doi.org/10.1037/per0000128.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Hicks, B. M., Blonigen, D. M., Kramer, M. D., Krueger, R. F., Patrick, C. J., Iacono, W. G., & McGue, M. (2007). Gender differences and developmental change in externalizing disorders from late adolescence to early adulthood: A longitudinal twin study. Journal of Abnormal Psychology, 116(3), 433–447. https://doi.org/10.1037/0021-843X.116.3.433.

    Article  PubMed  PubMed Central  Google Scholar 

  • IBM Corp. Released 2017. IBM SPSS Statistics for Windows, Version 25.0. Armonk, NY: IBM Corp

  • Javdani, S., Sadeh, N., & Verona, E. (2011). Expanding our lens: Female pathways to antisocial behavior in adolescence and adulthood. Clinical Psychology Review, 31(8), 1324–1348. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.cpr.2011.09.002.

    Article  PubMed  PubMed Central  Google Scholar 

  • Jenkinson, C., Layte, R., Jenkinson, D., Lawrence, K., Petersen, S., Paice, C., & Stradling, J. (1997). A shorter form health survey: Can the SF-12 replicate results from the SF-36 in longitudinal studies? Journal of Public Health, 19(2), 179–186. https://doi.org/10.1093/oxfordjournals.pubmed.a024606.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Kavish, N., Boisvert, D., Cooke, E. M., Lewis, R. H., Woeckener, M., Wells, J., & Armstrong, T. A. (2021). Further evaluation of the associations between psychopathic traits and symptoms of PTSD and depression in a nonclinical sample. Journal of Personality Disorders, 35(3), 469–480. https://doi.org/10.1521/pedi_2020_34_467.

    Article  PubMed  Google Scholar 

  • Kendler, K. S., Prescott, C. A., Myers, J., & Neale, M. C. (2003). The structure of genetic and environmental risk factors for common psychiatric and substance use disorders in men and women. Archives of General Psychiatry, 60(9), 929–937. https://doi.org/10.1001/archpsyc.60.9.929.

    Article  PubMed  Google Scholar 

  • Kim, K. J., Conger, R. D., Elder, G. H., & Lorenz, F. O. (2003). Reciprocal influences between stressful life events and adolescent internalizing and externalizing problems. Child Development, 74(1), 127–143. https://doi.org/10.1111/1467-8624.00525.

    Article  PubMed  Google Scholar 

  • Kotov, R., Krueger, R. F., Watson, D., Achenbach, T. M., Althoff, R. R., Bagby, R. M., Brown, T. A., Carpenter, W. T., Caspi, A., Clark, L. A., Eaton, N. R., Forbes, M. K., Forbush, K. T., Goldberg, D., Hasin, D., Hyman, S. E., Ivanova, M. Y., Lynam, D. R., Markon, K., Miller, J. D., Moffitt, T. E., Morey, L. C., Mullins-Sweatt, S. N., Ormel, J., Patrick, C. J., Regier, D. A., Rescorla, L., Ruggero, C. J., Samuel, D. B., Sellbom, M., Simms, L. J., Skodol, A. E., Slade, T., South, S. C., Tackett, J. L., Waldman, I. D., Waszczuk, M. A., Widiger, T. A., Wright, A. G. C., & Zimmerman, M. (2017). The hierarchical taxonomy of psychopathology (HiTOP): A dimensional alternative to traditional nosologies. Journal of Abnormal Psychology, 126(4), 454–477. https://doi.org/10.1037/abn0000258.

    Article  PubMed  Google Scholar 

  • Kyranides, M. N., Fanti, K. A., Sikki, M., & Patrick, C. J. (2017). Triarchic dimensions of psychopathy in young adulthood: Associations with clinical and physiological measures after accounting for adolescent psychopathic traits. Personality Disorders, 8(2), 140–149. https://doi.org/10.1037/per0000193.

    Article  PubMed  Google Scholar 

  • Latzman, R. D., Palumbo, I. M., Sauvigne, K. C., Hecht, L. K., Lilienfeld, S. O., & Patrick, C. J. (2018). Psychopathy and internalizing psychopathology: A Triarchic model perspective. Journal of Personality Disorders, 33, 1–26. https://doi.org/10.1521/pedi_2018_32_347.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Lilienfeld, S. O. (2018). The multidimensional nature of psychopathy: Five recommendations for research. Journal of Psychopathology and Behavioral Assessment, 40, 79–85. https://doi.org/10.1007/s10862-018-9657-7.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Lykken, D. T. (1957). A study of anxiety in the sociopathic personality. Journal of Abnormal Psychology, 55(1), 6–10. https://doi.org/10.1037/h0047232.

    Article  PubMed  Google Scholar 

  • Marcus, D. K., Robinson, S. L., & Eichenbaum, A. E. (2018). Externalizing behavior and psychopathy: A social relations analysis. Journal of Personality Disorders, 32, 1–16. https://doi.org/10.1521/pedi_2018_32_343.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Murray-Close, D., Ostrov, J. M., Nelson, D. A., Crick, N. R., & Coccaro, E. F. (2010). Proactive, reactive, and romantic relational aggression in adulthood: Measurement, predictive validity, gender differences, and association with intermittent explosive disorder. Journal of Psychiatric Research, 44(6), 393–404. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.jpsychires.2009.09.005.

    Article  PubMed  Google Scholar 

  • Murray, A. L., Eisner, M., & Ribeaud, D. (2020). Within-person analysis of developmental cascades between externalising and internalising problems. Journal of Child Psychology and Psychiatry and Allied Disciplines, 61(6), 681–688. https://doi.org/10.1111/jcpp.13150.

    Article  PubMed  Google Scholar 

  • Pardini, D. A., & Fite, P. J. (2010). Symptoms of conduct disorder, oppositional defiant disorder, attention-deficit/hyperactivity disorder, and callous-unemotional traits as unique predictors of psychosocial maladjustment in boys: Advancing an evidence base for DSM-V. Journal of the American Academy of Child & Adolescent Psychiatry, 49(11), 1134–1144. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.jaac.2010.07.010.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Patrick, C. J. (2010). Operationalizing the Triarchic conceptualization of psychopathy: Preliminary description of brief scales for assessment of boldness, meanness and disinhibition. Department of Psychology, Florida State University.

  • Patrick, C. J., Curtin, J. J., & Krueger, R. F. (2010). The externalizing spectrum: Structure and mechanisms. In D. Barch (Ed.), Cognitive and affective neuroscience of psychopathology. Y. Oxford University Press.

    Google Scholar 

  • Patrick, C. J., & Drislane, L. E. (2015). Triarchic model of psychopathy: Origins, operationalizations, and observed linkages with personality and general psychopathology. Journal of Personality, 83(6), 627–643. https://doi.org/10.1111/jopy.12119.

    Article  PubMed  Google Scholar 

  • Patrick, C. J., Fowles, D. C., & Krueger, R. F. (2009). Triarchic conceptualization of psychopathy: Developmental origins of disinhibition, boldness, and meanness. Development and Psychopathology, 21(3), 913–938. https://doi.org/10.1017/S0954579409000492.

    Article  PubMed  Google Scholar 

  • Poy, R., Segarra, P., Esteller, A., Lopez, R., & Molto, J. (2014). FFM description of the Triarchic conceptualization of psychopathy in men and women. Psychological Assessment, 26(1), 69–76. https://doi.org/10.1037/a0034642.

    Article  PubMed  Google Scholar 

  • Sellbom, M., & Phillips, T. R. (2013). An examination of the triarchic conceptualization of psychopathy in incarcerated and nonincarcerated samples. Journal of Abnormal Psychology, 122(1), 208–214. https://doi.org/10.1037/a0029306.

    Article  PubMed  Google Scholar 

  • Sevecke, K., Kosson, D. S., & Krischer, M. K. (2009). The relationship between attention deficit hyperactivity disorder, conduct disorder, and psychopathy in adolescent male and female detainees. Behavioral Sciences & the Law, 27(4), 577–598. https://doi.org/10.1002/bsl.870.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Sosic, Z., Gieler, U., & Stangier, U. (2008). Screening for social phobia in medical in- and outpatients with the German version of the social phobia inventory (SPIN). Journal of Anxiety Disorders, 22(5), 849–859. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.janxdis.2007.08.011.

    Article  PubMed  Google Scholar 

  • Spielberger, C. D., Gorsuch, R. L., Lushene, R., Vagg, P. R., & Jacobs, G. A. (1983). Manual for the state-trait anxiety inventory. Consulting Psychologists Press.

    Google Scholar 

  • Tylicki, J. L., Sellbom, M., & Ben-Porath, Y. S. (2019). Examining the association between the MMPI-2-RF Triarchic psychopathy scales and suicidality in a criminal defendant sample. Journal of Personality Disorders, 35, 1–19. https://doi.org/10.1521/pedi_2019_33_452.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Venables, N. C., Sellbom, M., Sourander, A., Kendler, K. S., Joiner, T. E., Drislane, L. E., Sillanmäki, L., Elonheimo, H., Parkkola, K., Multimaki, P., & Patrick, C. J. (2015). Separate and interactive contributions of weak inhibitory control and threat sensitivity to prediction of suicide risk. Psychiatry Research, 226(2–3), 461–466. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.psychres.2015.01.018.

    Article  PubMed  PubMed Central  Google Scholar 

  • Weidacker, K., O’Farrell, K. R., Gray, N. S., Johnston, S. J., & Snowden, R. J. (2017). Psychopathy and impulsivity: The relationship of the triarchic model of psychopathy to different forms of impulsivity in offenders and community participants. Personality and Individual Differences, 114, 134–139. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.paid.2017.03.069.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • West, S. G., Taylor, A. B., & Wu, W. (2012). Model fit and model selection in structural equation modeling. In handbook of structural equation modeling (pp. 209–231). Guilford press.

  • WHO. (1998). Wellbeing measures in primary health care/the Depcare project. WHO Regional Office for Europe.

  • Wiltink, J., Kliem, S., Michal, M., Subic-Wrana, C., Reiner, I., Beutel, M. E., Brahler, E., & Zwerenz, R. (2017). Mini - social phobia inventory (mini-SPIN): Psychometric properties and population based norms of the German version. BMC Psychiatry, 17(1), 377. https://doi.org/10.1186/s12888-017-1545-2.

    Article  PubMed  PubMed Central  Google Scholar 

Download references

Data Availability and Code Availability

both available on osf: https://osf.io/c86rn/?view_only=50be3cb20f4743188b3fb6ad995f3d5c

Author information

Authors and Affiliations

  1. School of Psychology, Victoria University of Wellington, Wellington, New Zealand

    Hedwig Eisenbarth

  2. School of Psychology, University of Southampton, Southampton, UK

    Hedwig Eisenbarth & Claire M. Hart

  3. University of Regensburg, Institute of Psychology, Regensburg, Germany

    Johanna Zechmeister, Brigitte M. Kudielka & Stefan Wüst

Authors
  1. Hedwig Eisenbarth
    View author publications

    You can also search for this author in PubMed Google Scholar

  2. Claire M. Hart
    View author publications

    You can also search for this author in PubMed Google Scholar

  3. Johanna Zechmeister
    View author publications

    You can also search for this author in PubMed Google Scholar

  4. Brigitte M. Kudielka
    View author publications

    You can also search for this author in PubMed Google Scholar

  5. Stefan Wüst
    View author publications

    You can also search for this author in PubMed Google Scholar

Contributions

Study conceptualization (HE, BK, SW, JZ), data collection (JZ), data preparation (JZ, HE), data analysis (HE, CH), report writing (HE, BK, SW, CH).

Corresponding author

Correspondence to Hedwig Eisenbarth.

Ethics declarations

Ethics Approval

ethical approval by the University of Regensburg Ethics board.

Consent to Participate

all participants included in the study provided informed consent.

Conflict of Interest

The authors declare that they have no conflict of interest.

Additional information

Publisher’s Note

Springer Nature remains neutral with regard to jurisdictional claims in published maps and institutional affiliations.

Rights and permissions

Reprints and permissions

About this article

Check for updates. Verify currency and authenticity via CrossMark

Cite this article

Eisenbarth, H., Hart, C.M., Zechmeister, J. et al. Exploring the differential contribution of boldness, meanness, and disinhibition to explain externalising and internalising behaviours across genders. Curr Psychol 42, 8010–8018 (2023). https://doi.org/10.1007/s12144-021-02134-3

Download citation

  • Accepted:

  • Published:

  • Issue Date:

  • DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/s12144-021-02134-3

Keywords

Search

Navigation