Differential Eating Behavior Patterns among the Dark Triad

Replicability of the five-factor structure of DSM-5 and ICD-11 trait systems and their associations with binge eating and bipolar spectrum psychopathology

Since the research on contemporary personality models-and psychopathology-mainly originate from the Western world, we aimed to test the factorial structure of two trait systems assessed with the Personality Inventory for DSM-5 (PID-5) in a non-Western sample and to compare the extracted models' relative associations with binge eating disorder (BED) and bipolar spectrum disorder (BSD) symptoms. A community sample (N = 516; 72% female) was administered the PID-5, which can operationalize both the DSM-5 and ICD-11 systems. The factor structures of both systems were tested using exploratory structural equation modeling (ESEM). The congruence coefficients of all factor loadings with international studies were calculated. The Binge Eating Scale (BES), Bipolar Spectrum Diagnostic Scale (BSDS), and Hypomania Checklist-32-Revised (HCL-32) were used to measure the criterion variables. Linear regression models were used for comparing the DSM-5 and ICD-11 systems in predicting the BED and BSD. The findings supported five-factor solutions for both trait systems. Both systems significantly predicted dimensional measures of both BED and BSD (all p < 0.001). The present findings support an acceptable five-factor structure for both personality systems in the non-Western sample. Different algorithms of maladaptive domains on both systems are related to binge eating and bipolar spectrum psychopathology.

Meaning in life as a mediator of dark triad with confidence in treatment and subjective evaluation of treatment outcome among male drug abstainers

BACKGROUND

Although the roles of personality in predicting substance abuse have been widely documented, few studies have investigated the relationships the dark triad (DT) personalities had with confidence in treatment (CIT) and subjective evaluation of treatment outcome (SETO) in drug abstainers.

OBJECTIVE

This study examined the relationship between DT and treatment-relevant variables, and the potential effect of meaning in life (MIL) in these links.

METHODS

Participants were male inpatients who started substance abuse treatment between June and December 2018 in Henan Province, China. The inclusion criteria were the diagnosis of substance use disorders. The exclusion criteria were illiteracy, comorbidity with psychopathology disorders, intellectual disability, and refusal of consent. A total of 236 men (aged 21-62 years, M = 45.30, SD = 7.72) were randomly selected and reported their DT, MIL, CIT, and SETO.

RESULTS

Results showed that DT was negatively correlated with MIL, CIT, and SETO. MIL was positively correlated with CIT and SETO. The dark triad is associated with CIT both directly and indirectly via MIL. DT is indirectly correlated with SETO via MIL. Higher levels of DT in drug abstainers can reduce CIT and SETO by decreasing individual's MIL.

CONCLUSION

This study provides insights into the links between the DT and treatment-relevant variables, which can potentially impact the effectiveness of current substance abuse treatment programs.