The interplay between investment traits and cognitive abilities: Investigating reciprocal effects in elementary school age.

Based on investment theories and guided by Mussel's (2013) intellect model, the present study investigated reciprocal relations over 1 year (2021-2022) between investment traits (need for cognition, achievement motives, epistemic curiosity) and fluid and crystallized cognitive abilities in 565 German elementary school children (298 girls; Mage = 8.40, SD = 0.59; 59.5% with immigration background). Children's fluid and crystallized abilities increased over time, whereas fear of failure and curiosity decreased. Investment traits barely predicted change in cognitive abilities. However, mathematical ability predicted change in most investment traits (.14 ≤ |ß| ≤ .20), even after accounting for control variables. Results largely contradict investment theories but support the role of crystallized abilities for the development of investment traits in elementary school age.

The Machiavellian bully revisited: A closer look at differences and processes of Machiavellian bullying and cyberbullying perpetration.

Numerous studies on personality traits conducive to traditional bullying and cyberbullying mentioned Machiavellianism as an influential predictor of these behaviors. Machiavellianism comprises manipulative, egotistic orientations that help acquire desired outcomes. However, it is questionable whether bullying and cyberbullying reflect unidimensional constructs since they are frequently categorized into verbal, relational, and physical aspects (with the latter being applicable only in traditional bullying). Similarly, evidence suggests that Machiavellianism is not a uniform trait. In this research, using a sample of 634 students (339 girls; 54%) from 40 classes from eighth to tenth grades, a five-dimensional measure of bullying and cyberbullying was devised and suggested that aspects of (cyber)bullying are related but still separable. Subsequently, differential relations between the five forms of (cyber)bullying and two facets of Machiavellianism were modeled. Those facets were Machiavellian approach (i.e., manipulative aspects of Machiavellianism) and Machiavellian avoidance (i.e., distrustful aspects of Machiavellianism). Multilevel models revealed that Machiavellian approach predicted relational bullying (but not relational cyberbullying) and Machiavellian avoidance predicted verbal (cyber)bullying and physical bullying. All links were mediated by overt dehumanization, that is, the tendency to cognitively deprive a person of typically human characteristics.

Does intelligence predict development of investment traits from mid to late adolescence? Evidence from a 3-year longitudinal study.

INTRODUCTION: Investment theories have claimed reciprocal relations between intelligence and investment traits (i.e., personality traits related to seeking out, and dealing with, cognitive challenges). However, previous research has primarily addressed the effects of investment traits on intellectual development (environmental enrichment hypothesis) and often focused on either childhood or later adulthood. The present study investigated the effects of intelligence on investment traits (environmental success hypothesis) from mid to late adolescence. METHOD: In a 3-year longitudinal survey (2008-2011) covering four measurement occasions, the predictive effects of both fluid and crystallized intelligence on intraindividual change in both the achievement motive (i.e., hope for success and fear of failure) and need for cognition were examined. Overall, 476 adolescents (t1 : Mage = 16.43, SD = 0.55; 51.3% girls) from Germany participated. RESULTS: Second-order latent growth models indicated that fluid intelligence predicted a steeper growth in hope for success (ß = .40), but was unrelated to change in the other investment traits. Crystallized intelligence had no effects on the investment traits under study. CONCLUSIONS: The results contribute to the research on the bidirectionality of intelligence and investment traits and add to our understanding of personality development from mid to late adolescence. Specifically, they underline the importance of nurturing hope for success especially in individuals with lower intelligence, but also show that support for the environmental success hypothesis seems to be limited to certain investment traits.

Interrater agreement and discrepancy when assessing problem behaviors, social-emotional skills, and developmental status of kindergarten children.

OBJECTIVE: The present study examined parent-teacher agreement and discrepancy when assessing kindergarten children's behavioral and emotional problems, social-emotional skills, and developmental status. METHOD: Parents and teachers of overall n = 922 kindergarten children (M age = 3.99; 449 girls) rated the children using the Conners Early Childhood, the Strengths and Difficulties Questionnaire, and the Questionnaire for Assessing Preschool Children's Behavior. RESULTS: Agreement was moderate for problem behaviors and social-emotional skills and substantial for developmental status. Agreement was stronger for externalizing than for internalizing problems. Agreement on the clinical relevance of problem behaviors and of social-emotional skills was stronger for children with a clinical diagnosis than for those without. Parents tended to report more problems, but also greater social-emotional skills and developmental status, than teachers. CONCLUSIONS: The findings corroborate the importance of situational specificity for understanding interrater agreement and discrepancy. Future teacher questionnaires should more specifically assess children's functioning in kindergarten.

It is double pleasure to deceive the deceiver: Machiavellianism is associated with producing but not necessarily with falling for bullshit.

Machiavellianism is a personality trait emphasizing fraud at others' expense. It is yet unclear whether Machiavellianism is also predictive of less obvious deception, for example inaccurate or meaningless information supposed to gain advantages and to avoid disadvantages (i.e., bullshit). Similarly, it is unclear whether those high in Machiavellianism can recognize bullshit claims and valuable information as such (i.e., bullshit sensitivity). In this study, we investigated whether different facets of Machiavellianism are prone to the production of different sorts of bullshit and how these facets of Machiavellianism relate to bullshit sensitivity. In a sample of 525 participants (72% women), we found that the manipulative side of Machiavellianism (Machiavellian approach) was linked to persuasive bullshitting, that is, the production of bullshit intended to gain desired resources. Likewise, the distrustful side of Machiavellianism (Machiavellian avoidance) went along with higher evasive bullshitting, which means spreading information that ought to prevent individual disadvantages. Next, we found that those high in Machiavellian avoidance, but not Machiavellian approach, were better at differentiating information from bullshit. These links were robust irrespective of different levels of cognitive ability. Ultimately, we discussed future directions for research on bullshitting and disseminating deceptive information in general.

To be fooled or not to be fooled: Approach and avoidance facets of Machiavellianism.

The antagonistic personality trait Machiavellianism (Mach) should be characterized by duplicity, proclivity to manipulation, cynical disregard of others, long-term planning, and low aggression. Opposed to theoretical descriptions, recent studies revealed links between Mach and neuroticism, impulsivity, and aggression. The advantages of a multidimensional assessment of Mach are well known but were seldom implemented. Hence, differential effects within Mach have often been neglected. Based on previous research on basic motivational orientations, we derived two facets-Machiavellian approach and Machiavellian avoidance. These facets account for exploitative, strategic striving for resources and for misanthropic, distrustful loss prevention, respectively. In two studies (total N = 1,000, 21% men), we found support for the two-factor structure, for measurement invariance across sexes, and the nomological network of the eight-item Machiavellian Approach and Avoidance Questionnaire (MaaQ). As expected, Machiavellian approach was primarily associated with hope for power, whereas Machiavellian avoidance was linked to affective criteria and aggression. Both approach and avoidance shared links with disagreeableness, dishonesty, and cynicism. Furthermore, they correlated with other Mach scales. The findings explain counterintuitive links with other constructs found in earlier studies and thereby further the understanding of Mach. (PsycInfo Database Record (c) 2022 APA, all rights reserved).

Do German Children Differ? A Validation of Conners Early Childhood™.

Objective: The present study aimed to validate the German version of the Conners Early Childhood (EC)™ among German-speaking children. Method: A total of 720 parental and 599 childcare provider ratings of 2- to 6-year-old children were surveyed throughout Germany. Validity was assessed by calculating exploratory factor analyses (EFAs) and confirmatory factor analyses (CFAs), and a series of multivariate analyses of variance (MANOVAs) to analyze associations between Conners EC™ symptom ratings and sociodemographic variables. In addition, parent and childcare provider ratings of Conners EC™ scales were correlated with a number of other well-validated German measures assessing preschoolers' behaviors. Results: Although the EFA yielded different factors than the original scales, CFA revealed acceptable to good model fits. Conclusion: Overall, we confirmed the factor structure of the Conners EC's™ American original within the German validation. The use of the American factor structure is justified and can be recommended to facilitate international research on psychopathology in early childhood.

Personality and Intelligence Interact in the Prediction of Academic Achievement.

Personality predicts academic achievement above and beyond intelligence. However, studies investigating the possible interaction effects between personality and intelligence when predicting academic achievement are scarce, as is the separate investigation of broad personality factors versus narrow personality facets in this context. Two studies with 11th grade students (Study 1: N = 421; Study 2: N = 243) were conducted to close this research gap. The students completed the Intelligence-Structure-Test 2000 R measuring general reasoning ability, and a well-established personality inventory based on the Five Factor Model. Academic achievement was operationalized via Grade Point Average. Using hierarchical regression and moderation analyses, Study 1 revealed that Conscientiousness interacted with intelligence when predicting academic achievement: there was a stronger association between intelligence and academic achievement when students scored higher on the Conscientiousness scale. Study 2 confirmed the findings from Study 1 and also found a moderation effect of Neuroticism (stronger association between intelligence and academic achievement with lower values on the Neuroticism scale). Analyses at the facet level revealed much more differentiated results than did analyses at the domain level, suggesting that investigating personality facets should be preferred over investigating personality domains when predicting academic achievement.

Are gifted adolescents more satisfied with their lives than their non-gifted peers?

Studies investigating the life satisfaction of intellectually gifted and non-gifted students are scarce and often suffer from methodological shortcomings. We examined the life satisfaction of gifted and non-gifted adolescents using a rather unselected sample of N = 655 German high-school students (n = 75 gifted), adequate comparison groups of non-gifted students, and a clear definition of giftedness (general intelligence g > 2 SD above the mean). There was no difference in life satisfaction between gifted and non-gifted adolescents (d < |0.1|). Girls reported somewhat lower life satisfaction scores than boys (d = 0.24). However, this result was not specific to giftedness but was instead found across the entire sample. Thus, gifted girls were not found to be especially unsatisfied with their lives. Our findings support previous research showing that giftedness is not a risk factor for impaired psycho-social well-being of boys or girls.