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While psychopathy has been a topic of interest in the psychological field for a long time, it is still unclear which developmental factors are related to its onset. Theories have suggested that experiencing trauma in childhood may contribute to the development of psychopathic traits. Experiencing trauma may also contribute to the development of an insecure attachment style, which in turn might cause the emergence of psychopathic traits. The current study investigated links between experiencing childhood trauma and the three psychopathy domains of the Extended Levenson Self-Report Psychopathy scale (E-LSRP; Egocentricity, Callousness, and Antisocial), and whether these links were mediated by the four insecure attachment dimensions of the Attachment Style Questionnaire (ASQ; Need for Approval, Preoccupation with Relationships, Relationships as Secondary, and Discomfort with Closeness), in a large sample of non-clinical participants (N = 2023, Mage = 32.7, 70.0% female). The results suggested that Relationships as Secondary, but not Discomfort with Closeness, positively mediated the relationship between childhood trauma and the three domains of psychopathy, while Need for Approval negatively mediated this relationship. Preoccupation with Relationships was a significant mediator in the links between childhood trauma and both the Egocentricity and Antisocial domains, but not the Callousness domain. The current findings suggested that there might be both shared and differential mechanisms linking childhood trauma and psychopathic traits through insecure attachment styles. These findings can guide further investigations in longitudinal research. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Objective: Research so far has investigated the bivariate relationships between psychopathic traits, romantic attachment, and emotion dysregulation. However, no research thus far has examined these concepts in their interrelatedness. The aim of the present study was therefore to shed light on the possible linking mechanisms among these concepts, examining the mediating role of emotion dysregulation in the psychopathic traits-romantic attachment link. Method: The present study was based on an undergraduate (N = 238, M age = 20.36 years) and a community sample (N = 521, M age = 35.27 years) from the Dutch population. Participants were administered self-report measures of psychopathic traits (measured with both the Self-Report Psychopathy Short-Form and the Triarchic Psychopathy Measure), emotion dysregulation (Difficulties in Emotion Regulation Scale - Brief Version) and romantic attachment (Experiences in Close Relationships-Revised). Correlation analyses and mediation analyses using a bootstrapping approach were conducted. Results: Results showed that all the dimensions of psychopathic traits were related to both romantic attachment avoidance and anxiety, and that emotion dysregulation mediated all these associations (with only few exceptions). Except for boldness, all other dimensions of psychopathic traits were related to greater emotion dysregulation and, in turn, to insecure romantic attachment. Conclusions: It is argued that the role of emotion regulation processes deserves more attention for the theoretical and clinical understanding of psychopathic traits and their correlates in the interpersonal domain, such as romantic attachment (in)security. When their interrelationships will be better understood, emotion regulation and attachment could represent relevant targets for intervention with individuals presenting psychopathic traits. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

To assess the relationships between environmental agency, prosocial moral reasoning, and civic moral disengagement, 544 community-dwelling adults were administered the image-based Environmental Agency Scale (EAS), the Prosocial Moral Reasoning Objective Measure (PROM), and the Civic Moral Disengagement Scale (CMDS). The EAS Agentic Self and Agentic Other dimensions proved to be reliable measures and showed adequate factor validity. Mean/median score comparisons between EAS Agentic Self Scale and Agentic Other Scale scores indicated that participants viewed society-level actions as more relevant than individual-level actions when environment defense is at issue. Partial correlation analysis results showed that environmental agentic self was grounded in individual differences in prosocial moral reasoning. Civic moral disengagement yielded negative associations with EAS Agentic Other Scale scores, providing further support to the relevance of moral disengagement process in environmental sensitivity. These results may improve our understanding of environmental agency and its connections with prosocial moral reasoning and moral disengagement. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Sluggish Cognitive Tempo (SCT) is a neuropsychiatric construct including lethargy, behavioral sluggishness, and confusion. A growing number of studies in the literature suggest that this set of symptoms refers to neuropsychological constructs such as sustained attention. However, studies focusing on SCT and its neuropsychological correlates in developmental age are scarce. The present study aims to fill this gap. The Child and Adolescent Behavior Inventory (CABI – Teacher and Parent versions, also including the school functioning scale, and the Child Concentration Inventory (CCI-2) were administered to a sample of 128 Italian primary-school children (57.6% F, mean age 8.81, SD 1.07); the neuropsychological constructs involved in the study were sustained attention and reaction times to two computerized tasks. Bivariate non-parametric correlation analyses yielded significant negative associations between teacher-referred SCT and measures of sustained attention (e.g., the Attentional Network Test and the Hearts and Flowers task) as well as CABI-T school-functioning scale; a small-to-moderate positive correlation was found between CABI-T SCT scores and mean reaction times, as a measure of the slowness of behavioral responses on the Attentional Network Test: this result would appear to represent a fine operationalization of the SCT-characteristic of behavioral sluggishness. Implications of these results for operationalizing the SCT construct in developmental age are discussed. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Cyberbullying is a highly relevant phenomenon in adolescence. Making available sound cyberbullying scales in different countries represents an important research issue. The present study aimed at extending previous findings on the Cyberbullying Experience Scale (CES), assessing its psychometric properties in a sample of community-dwelling Italian adolescents (N = 2,112). Results showed that a bifactor model was the best fitting model for both CES Perpetration and Victimisation scale items being provided also with measurement invariance across male and female adolescents. Joint CFA results demonstrated the dissociability of the CES Perpetration and Victimisation scales. Both CES dimensions were provided with adequate internal consistency reliability. Both CES Perpetration and Victimisation scales yielded meaningful relationships with theoretically relevant external variables (e.g. school/behaviour grades, online activities, general aggression measures, and dysfunctional personality dimensions), suggesting also possible gender differences concerning the negative psychological and behavioural outcomes of cyberbullying. This study provides further support for the reliability and validity of CES Perpetration and Victimisation scales, extending its applicability to a different time period (i.e. adolescents) and a different cultural context (i.e. Italy). [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Autonomous vehicles (AVs) have the potential to transform mobility. Exploring factors influencing driver' acceptance of AVs has become crucial. We aimed at developing a short measure assessing: (a) positive dispositions towards technology (Technology Optimism Scale; TOS); (b) positive dispositions towards automated vehicles (Perception of Automated Vehicles; PAV); and (c) sustainable mobility attitudes (Sustainable Mobility Attitudes; SMA) in Italy. A sample of 730 Italian community-dwelling adult participants (mean age = 36.39 years; 61.1% female), was administered the TOS, PAV, and SMA items. Bivariate and multivariate item analyses were carried out; moreover, exploratory graph analysis was conducted to examine the structure of the measure. Internal consistency estimates of the TOS, PAV and SMA total scores were computed; associations between TOS, PAV, and SMA total scores, and demographic variables and personality traits, respectively, were assessed. The TOS, PAV, and SMA total scores were provided with adequate reliability and showed meaningful relationships with selected demographic variable and personality traits. Our findings may represent a useful contribution to the available literature on AVs providing researchers a short measure to assess different aspects contributing to the perception of AVs, at least among Italian community-dwelling participants. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

To examine the hierarchical structure of psychopathology and dysfunctional personality domains, 2416 Italian community‐dwelling adult volunteers were administered a set of psychometrically sound psychopathology measures and the Personality Inventory for DSM‐5 Brief Form+ (PID‐5‐BF+). Parallel analysis, minimum average partial, and very simple structure results suggested that 1–6 principal components (PCs) should be retained. Goldberg's bass‐ackwards model of the joint psychopathology measure and PID‐5‐BF+ ipsatized domain scale correlation matrix evidenced a hierarchical structure that was consistent with the working model proposed by the Hierarchical Taxonomy of Psychopathology (HiTOP) consortium. Hierarchical agglomerative cluster analysis around latent variables of the psychopathology indicators and PID‐5‐BF+ domain scales recovered four latent dimensions, which were akin to the corresponding bass‐ackwards components and nicely reproduced the HiTOP Internalizing, Externalizing, Thought Disorder, and Eating Pathology dimensions. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Sluggish Cognitive Tempo (SCT) has been less frequently studied in adolescents compared with school-aged youth, few studies have examined youth self-report of SCT, and no study has examined SCT in Italy. The present study examined the reliability and validity of the Child Concentration Inventory–Version 2 (CCI-2), a youth self-report measure of SCT, in 452 Italian adolescent high school students (37.8% female; mean age = 15.92 years). Adolescents were administered Italian translations of the CCI-2 and the attention deficit hyperactivity disorder (ADHD) Self-Report Scale (ASRS). School performance variables (i.e., teacher-rated grades and teachers' disciplinary ratings) were also collected. A random subsample (n = 88) of participants was also administered the Mackworth Clock Test, a short version of the Attention Network Test, and the Stop-Signal Task. In our study, all CCI-2 items showed adequate convergent–discriminant validity, and the CCI-2 scale score showed adequate internal consistency reliability. Confirmatory factor analysis results suggested the adequacy of a one-factor model of the CCI-2 items, which showed to be invariant across sex. Confirmatory factor analyses supported the dissociability of SCT from ADHD-Inattention and ADHD-Impulsivity. SCT was significantly and negatively associated with adolescents' average school grades, whereas ADHD was also significantly and negatively associated with adolescents' disciplinary ratings. In the random subsample, the CCI-2 total score was positively, significantly, and uniquely associated with overall reaction time on the Attention Network Task, but not other neurocognitive variables. This study provides further support for the reliability and validity of self-reported SCT in adolescence. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Background. In the field of adolescent sleep research, different sleep surveys have been implemented; however, psychometric properties of these instruments have been investigated only minimally. Methods. In order to assess the psychometric properties of the Sleep-Wake Problems Behaviour Scale (SWP), the Sleepiness Scale (SLS), and the Morningness/Eveningness Questionnaire (ME), a moderately large sample of community-dwelling Italian adolescents (N = 778; 59.8% female; mean age = 15.77 years) was administered the Italian translation of the School Sleep Habits Survey. Results. Internal consistency estimates values were satisfactory for all measures; dimensionality analyses suggested a unidimensional structure for SWP, SLS and ME, respectively. Goodness-of-fit statistics for the one-factor model of the SLS, SWP, and ME scale items were adequate for all measures. Nonredundant taxometric analysis results consistently suggested a dimensional latent structure for the SLS, SWP, and ME, respectively. Conclusion. Our findings supported the use of the SLS, SWP, and ME total scores as measures of sleepiness, sleep-wake problem, and morningness/eveningness, at least among Italian communitydwelling adolescents, and encourage practitioners to rely on the conventional percentiles in order to interpret the SLS, SWP, and ME total scores. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

In an online sample of 1054 Italian community-dwelling adults, we assessed the relationships between the frequency of implementation of practices intended to prevent COVID-19 infection, degree of agreement with theories about the origin of the infections, and the frequency of use of different sources of information concerning the COVID-19 pandemic. The results showed that participants' COVID-19-related preventive behaviors and causal beliefs were significantly associated with selected demographic variables and frequency of use of specific sources of information (e.g. scientific journals vs social media). [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

To assess the relationships between post‐traumatic stress disorder (PTSD) components, Hierarchical Taxonomy of Psychopathology (HiTOP) spectra, and dysfunctional personality domains, the Post‐Traumatic Checklist for DSM‐5 (PCL‐5); the Personality Inventory for DSM‐5‐Brief Form+ (PID‐5BF+); and self‐report measures of HiTOP Internalizing, Thought Disorders, and Externalizing spectra were administered to 387 trauma‐exposed Italian community‐dwelling women. Before structural equation modeling (SEM), measurement components of models were assessed using confirmatory factor analyses. Both taxometric and Gaussian mixture analysis results were consistent with a dimensional representation of the PCL‐5 scores. SEM results showed that PTSD components, at least as they were operationalized by the PCL‐5 scores, were positively, significantly, and substantially associated with HiTOP Internalizing and Thought Disorder Spectra latent dimensions, as well as with Negative Affectivity, Detachment, and Psychoticism personality domains. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Objectives: Short, self-report screening measures for adolescent and adult attention-deficit/hyperactivity disorder (ADHD) would greatly enhance the likelihood of ADHD subjects to be correctly diagnosed and treated. This study aimed at testing the reliability, factor structure, convergent validity, external validity, and diagnostic accuracy of the official Italian translation of the ADHD Self-Report Screening Scale for DSM-5 (ASRS-5) in a sample of community-dwelling adolescents, extending previous data on adult participants to adolescent participants. Methods: Five hundred sixty-four community-dwelling male adolescents (mean age ≅15) were administered the ASRS-5, the Adult ADHD Self-Report Scale 18-item and 6-item versions (ASRS-18 and ASRS-6), the Wender Utah Rating Scale (WURS), and the Structured Clinician Interview for DSM-5-Clinician Version ADHD Module (SCID-5-CV-ADHD). School performance variables were also collected. Results: The item response theory (IRT) reliability of ASRS-5 was adequate. Dimensionality analyses strongly supported the unidimensional structure of ASRS-5 items; confirmatory factor analysis fit indices supported the adequacy of the one-factor model of ASRS-5. In terms of convergent validity, the ASRS-5 total score was significantly and positively associated with self-report and interview-based ADHD dimensional scores, as well as with school performance variables. Roughly 8.0% of our male adolescents met SCID-5-CV-ADHD criteria for categorical ADHD diagnosis. Ten-fold cross-validated receiver operating curve value was 0.843; precision-recall curve analysis suggests that an ASRS-5 total score >12 may be preferred for screening purposes in adolescence. Conclusions: Our data showed that the ASRS-5 may represent a psychometrically sound self-report instrument to reliably screen for DSM-5 ADHD, extending the range of application of ASRS-5 from adulthood to adolescence, suggesting that the ASRS-5 could be safely used for screening purposes also in community-dwelling adolescents, at least in its official Italian translation. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

To evaluate the psychometric properties of the Italian translation of the Schedule for Nonadaptive and Adaptive Personality-2 (SNAP-2) diagnostic scales, 837 Italian community-dwelling adults and 429 consecutively admitted Italian psychiatric adults were administered the SNAP-2. The 12 SNAP-2 diagnostic scales yielded reliable scores in both community (median ω value =.90) and psychiatric (median ω value =.92) samples. The 6-month temporal stability was adequate for all SNAP-2 diagnostic scales (median test–retest r-value =.84) in a subsample of the community-dwelling adults (n = 97). When we examined the correlations between the SNAP-2 diagnostic scales and the Five-Factor Model Rating Form trait scales among the community-dwelling adults, the double-entry intraclass correlation values (median ICCDE =.94) indicated a marked similarity between our correlation profiles and the correlation profiles that were reported in Samuel and Widiger (2008) meta-analysis. In our psychiatric-adult sample, the SNAP-2 diagnostic scales showed adequate convergent-validity coefficients (median r-value =.61) with criterion measures of DSM-IV axis II/DSM-5 Section II personality disorders (PDs). Finally, relative-weight analysis results showed that selected Personality Inventory for DSM-5 trait-scale scores explained a substantial amount of variance in SNAP-2 antisocial, avoidant, borderline, narcissistic, obsessive–compulsive, and schizotypal PD scale scores (median R2 value =.55). As a whole, our data suggest that the Italian SNAP-2 diagnostic scales have adequate reliability and construct validity in the Italian culture. Public Significance Statement: To our knowledge, our study provided the first published cross-linguistic replication of the Schedule for Nonadaptive and Adaptive Personality-2 (SNAP-2) diagnostic scales' psychometric properties in non-U.S. participants. According to our findings, the Italian translation of the SNAP-2 diagnostic scales provide reliable and valid measures of personality pathology. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

To evaluate the usefulness of the DSM‐5 maladaptive personality domains in explaining the similarities and differences among four disorders included in the obsessive–compulsive spectrum, 428 Italian community‐dwelling women (mean age = 31.96 years, SD = 12.30 years) were administered the Obsessive–Compulsive Spectrum Disorder Scales and the Personality Inventory for DSM‐5‐Short Form as part of an ongoing online survey on women's health. Multiple Indicators Multiple Causes (MIMIC) confirmatory bifactor analysis results showed that the OCSD general factor (i.e., obsessive–compulsive spectrum factor) was positively associated with Negative Affectivity, whereas Body Dysmorphic Disorder (BDD), Hoarding Disorder (HD), and Skin‐Picking Disorder (SPD) specific factors showed significant and substantial differential relationships with dysfunctional personality domains. Specifically, BDD was positively associated with Negative Affectivity, Detachment and Psychoticism domains; HD was associated with high Negative Affectivity and Psychoticism; and SPD was associated with Detachment. © 2020 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]