Exploring callous and unemotional traits in youth via general personality traits

Abstract

The current study aimed at better understanding callous-unemotional (CU) traits in youth within a traditional personality trait/temperament framework as well as in relation to current proposals for the Diagnostic and Statistical Manual of Mental Disorders, Fifth Edition (DSM-5). Participants were 174 mothers and their sons age 11–16 years. Mothers and youth reported on youth CU traits and general personality trait/ temperament dimensions. Overall, analyses revealed significant unique associations of personality trait/temperament dimensions with CU total and subscale scores. Personality trait/temperament dimensions explained 36% to 58% of the variance in CU subscales and total score. Furthermore, specific personality dimensions differentially and uniquely predicted various CU subscales, indicating marked specificity in association such that these traits should be considered separately rather than as a single unit. Taken together, these results confirm the importance of considering traditional personality trait models to understand 'callous and unemotional' traits and risk for psychopathy more fully. Additionally, our findings bear implications for the conceptualization and operationalization of these traits in DSM-5. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2016 APA, all rights reserved)