Examining the relations of self-conscious affect, religious orientation, and levels of psychopathy in non-clinical samples

The purpose of this present study was to examine the relations of guilt, shame, religious orientation, and levels of psychopathy in non-clinical samples. The economic, social, and emotional costs of psychopathy on society are high, in light of the violent acts committed by psychopaths. Moreover, the antisocial behavior of such individuals has both societal and personal consequences. A better understanding of psychopathy will provide a means of reducing these costs.;Perhaps the most disturbing attribute of the psychopath is his deficiency in moral emotions. Psychopaths appear to be unable to go through the self-referential process required for emotions such as shame or guilt. Additionally, psychopaths lack the internal locus of control, purpose in life, and depth of emotions associated with religious orientation. It is for these reasons that the present research explored the relationship between self-conscious affect, religious orientation, and the interpersonal and behavioral features associated with psychopathy. Understanding the relational constructs of psychopathy will open clinicians to greater insights into character structure of the psychopath.;Undergraduates from two universities (Biola University and the University of Denver) completed a set of group-administered questionnaires related to self-conscious affect and religious orientation. Additionally, the participants were interviewed about their behaviors and feelings, and their responses were coded on a 12-item rating scale that estimated the degree to which they matched the prototypical conception of a psychopath. Our results indicated that those in religious university settings (i.e., Biola University) have significantly higher intrinsic faith orientations than do those in non-religious undergraduate universities (i.e., University of Denver). Moreover, in the Biola sample, an individual's intrinsic faith, global shame (i.e., both self-report and projective), and self-report guilt all significantly predict the interpersonal features associated with psychopathy. The negative relations we found between intrinsic faith, guilt and psychopathy lends support to Hare's conceptualization of psychopathy and broadens the understanding of the psychopathy construct in non-clinical samples.