Differential associations between mentalizing dimensions and psychopathy subtypes: the moderating role of borderline...

Psychopathy comprises primary and secondary subtypes with distinct affective-interpersonal profiles. Mentalizing, i.e., the capacity to understand one's own and others' mental states, may help explain this heterogeneity. This study tested how three mentalizing dimensions (Self-Related, Other-Related, and Motivation to Mentalize) relate to psychopathy subtypes and whether borderline personality traits (BPTs) moderate these associations.

Adults from a community sample (N = 953) completed validated measures of psychopathy, mentalizing, and BPTs. BPTs were modeled as a continuous variable. Multivariable linear regressions predicted primary and secondary psychopathy from the three mentalizing facets while adjusting for age, gender, socioeconomic status, and psychiatric diagnosis. Moderation was examined via interaction terms between each mentalizing facet and BPTs; significant interactions were probed at -1/0/+1 SD of BPT scores.

Higher Motivation to Mentalize and greater Self-Related Mentalizing were uniquely associated with lower primary psychopathy; Other-Related Mentalizing was not a unique predictor. For secondary psychopathy, Self-Related Mentalizing and, to a lesser extent, Motivation to Mentalize were inversely associated; Other-Related Mentalizing was not significant. BPTs significantly moderated only the association between Motivation to Mentalize and primary psychopathy (stronger inverse association at higher BPTs); no moderation effects emerged for secondary psychopathy.

Findings indicate that motivation and self-related aspects of mentalizing are protective correlates of psychopathic traits, with moderation by BPTs limited to primary psychopathy. Targeting motivation to consider mental states and strengthening self-reflective capacity may enhance psychological intervention strategies, particularly for individuals high in primary psychopathy with elevated borderline features.