Manipulation and Instability: Exploring Machiavellianism and Borderline Personality Similarities and Differences

Area of Science:

• Psychology
• Personality Psychology
• Clinical Psychology

Background:

• Machiavellianism involves calculated manipulation.
• Borderline personality disorder (BPD) involves impulsive, emotionally driven manipulation.
• Both personality constructs impact interpersonal dynamics.

Purpose of the Study:

• To explore the relationships between Machiavellianism and borderline personality traits.
• To examine these relationships in the context of broader personality constructs (Big Five traits).
• To identify distinct subgroups (latent profiles) based on these traits.

Main Methods:

• Survey study with 1011 adult participants.
• Utilized measures for Machiavellianism, borderline personality, and Big Five traits.
• Latent Profile Analysis (LPA) was employed to identify subgroups.

Main Results:

• Machiavellianism negatively correlated with agreeableness and conscientiousness.
• Borderline personality traits positively correlated with neuroticism and negatively with agreeableness and conscientiousness.
• Two distinct latent profiles emerged from the analysis.

Conclusions:

• Machiavellianism can be associated with adaptive or maladaptive functioning.
• A combination of Machiavellianism and borderline personality traits indicates manipulative tendencies alongside emotional instability.
• Future research should investigate specific manipulative behaviors linked to these traits.