Skip to Main Content
 

Global Search Box

 
 
 

ETD Abstract Container

Abstract Header

A Comparison of Primary and Secondary Psychopathy in the Prediction of Explicit and Implicit Measures of Empathy

Glaser, Margaret Kane

Abstract Details

2013, Master of Arts (M.A.), University of Dayton, Psychology, Clinical.
A lack of empathy is considered a key component in the construct of psychopathy (Cleckley, 1964). This study examined the moderating effects of gender on the psychopathy-empathy relationship. Previous studies investigating gender as a moderator have largely relied on self-report measures of empathy, which can be affected by social desirability. This study aimed to examine moderation using both explicit and implicit measures of empathy. Participants (N= 173) completed two measures of psychopathy, implicit and explicit empathy measures, as well as a social desirability measure and a measure of anxiety. While no significant Gender x Secondary Psychopathy interaction was found in regards to explicit empathy, women did score higher than men in explicit empathy overall. Furthermore, the results indicated that individuals with primary psychopathy did not score significantly lower on measures of explicit empathy or implicit empathy in comparison to their non-psychopathic counterparts. The results also indicated that individuals with secondary psychopathy scored significantly lower than their primary psychopathic and non-psychopathic counterparts in both explicit and implicit empathy which suggests that these individuals lack empathy as previous researchers have found (Mullins-Nelson, Salekin, & Leistico, 2006; Vidal, Skeem, & Camp, 2010).
Catherine Zois (Committee Chair)
Roger Reeb (Committee Member)
Lee Dixon (Committee Member)

Recommended Citations

Citations

  • Glaser, M. K. (2013). A Comparison of Primary and Secondary Psychopathy in the Prediction of Explicit and Implicit Measures of Empathy [Master's thesis, University of Dayton]. OhioLINK Electronic Theses and Dissertations Center. http://rave.ohiolink.edu/etdc/view?acc_num=dayton1375127938

    APA Style (7th edition)

  • Glaser, Margaret. A Comparison of Primary and Secondary Psychopathy in the Prediction of Explicit and Implicit Measures of Empathy. 2013. University of Dayton, Master's thesis. OhioLINK Electronic Theses and Dissertations Center, http://rave.ohiolink.edu/etdc/view?acc_num=dayton1375127938.

    MLA Style (8th edition)

  • Glaser, Margaret. "A Comparison of Primary and Secondary Psychopathy in the Prediction of Explicit and Implicit Measures of Empathy." Master's thesis, University of Dayton, 2013. http://rave.ohiolink.edu/etdc/view?acc_num=dayton1375127938

    Chicago Manual of Style (17th edition)