Cognitive empathy and dehumanization co-vary with dark triad traits and agency detection sensitivity

Authors: K Rudnicki, O Borowiecki, K Poels, B Beersma

Published: 2026

Publication: Evolution and Human …, 2026 - Elsevier

In a preregistered study, psychopathy (more than the other Dark Triad traits) is linked to worse cognitive empathy and greater dehumanization, and this empathy–psychopathy link is especially strong among people who are less sensitive at detecting agency in others.

Institution: University of Antwerp, University of Bialystok, VU University, Emory University

Research Area: Personality psychology, Social cognition, Cognitive neuroscience

Discipline: Evolutionary psychology, human behavioral ecology