Psychopathy and Machiavellianism: A Distinction Without a Difference?

Area of Science:

• Psychology
• Personality Science
• Social Psychology

Background:

• The Dark Triad (DT) of personality includes Machiavellianism (MACH), psychopathy, and narcissism.
• Existing research has explored the DT, but questions remain about the distinctiveness of MACH and psychopathy.
• Consistency between empirical findings and theoretical conceptualizations of MACH is also debated.

Purpose of the Study:

• To investigate the empirical distinguishability of MACH and psychopathy within the DT.
• To assess the consistency of MACH's empirical network with its theoretical profile.
• To examine the relationship between MACH, psychopathy, and external criteria.

Main Methods:

• Factor analyses were conducted to compare two-factor and three-factor models of the DT.
• DT scores were correlated with self- and informant ratings of personality, developmental experiences, and psychopathology.
• Expert ratings of Five-Factor Model traits prototypical of MACH were compared with empirically derived profiles.

Main Results:

• Both two-factor and three-factor DT models demonstrated adequate fit to the data.
• MACH and psychopathy exhibited nearly identical empirical profiles across studies.
• Both MACH and psychopathy were significantly associated with disinhibitory traits, contrary to theoretical expectations for MACH.

Conclusions:

• Empirical evidence suggests MACH and psychopathy may represent the same underlying personality construct.
• Current measures of MACH do not accurately capture its theoretically defined characteristics.
• The findings highlight the need for refinement in understanding and measuring Machiavellianism.