Citation

Lima-Costa AR, Bonfá-Araujo B, Pechorro P, Marcus DK. Psychol. Assess. 2022; 34(7): e65-e71.

Copyright

(Copyright © 2022, American Psychological Association)

DOI

10.1037/pas0001135

PMID

35467907

Abstract

Spitefulness is a personality trait characterized by an inclination to cause harm to others in a manner that also results in self-harm. Studies considering this trait have mostly been performed in individualistic cultures. Our aim was to adapt and accumulate statistical evidence for the Brazilian Portuguese version of the Spitefulness Scale (SS-BP), examining the functioning of the instrument in a collectivist culture. Study 1 adapted the instrument, investigated dimensionality, and examined item functioning and gender invariance in a sample of 766 participants (53.4% male) aged between 18 and 63 years old (M = 23.71; SD = 7.92). Study 2 examined the association of spitefulness with aversive and healthy personality traits (i.e., the dark triad, honesty-humility, emotionality, extroversion, agreeableness, conscientiousness, and openness [HEXACO], antagonism, and disinhibition) in a sample of 288 individuals (mostly women 84.7%) between 18 and 71 years old (M = 41.82; SD = 13.04). Similar to the original instrument, the SS-BP was unidimensional and there was measurement invariance with respect to gender. Men were more spiteful than women. Spitefulness yielded large correlations with psychopathy, deceitfulness, and irresponsibility. The SS-BP appears to present adequate psychometric properties for Brazilian samples. (PsycInfo Database Record (c) 2022 APA, all rights reserved).

Language: en

Keywords

Humans; Adult; Aged; Female; Male; Middle Aged; Adolescent; Brazil; Young Adult; Ethnicity; Psychometrics; Personality; Antisocial Personality Disorder; Extraversion, Psychological