ORCID

https://orcid.org/0009-0000-6113-9557

Date of Award

2026

Document Type

Thesis

Degree Name

MA in Clinical Psychology

Department

Psychology

First Advisor

Ester Navarro

Abstract

The relationship between theory of mind (ToM) and maladaptive personality traits is a poorly understood but critical intersection between cognitive and clinical psychology. While some research has suggested certain personality characteristics may elevate ToM ability, others may contribute to deficits that lead to negative health outcomes and poor social functioning. Understanding how variability in the population’s ideological disposition affects our capacity to comprehend others’ perspectives and emotions is key to grasping the intricacies of social interactions. As the fields of clinical psychology and psychiatry begin to reclassify their diagnostic systems, it is critical to evaluate how novel conceptualizations of personality are associated with heightened and decreased ToM ability. This study aims to test whether the five maladaptive personality traits outlined in the Alternative Model of Personality Disorders (AMPD) found within the Diagnostic and Statistical Manual of Mental Disorders, fifth edition (DSM-5) are significantly associated with performance on two measures of ToM: Reading the Mind in the Eyes Test (RMET) and the Director Task (DT). The sample was composed of 60 English-speaking undergraduate and graduate students in a mid-sized university (80% women; mean age = 21.48). Three multiple regressions were conducted, and the unstandardized regression coefficients, overall model fit (R²), and variance uniquely explained by each personality domain (partial R²) were reported. Several maladaptive personality traits, as measured by the Personality Inventory for DSM-5 (PID-5-BF), showed significant associations with both measures of ToM, supporting the importance of studying the relationship between dimensional models of pathological personality traits and their relationship with cognitive and affective ToM.

Download

Share

COinS