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|title=Couple dominance, dark personality traits, and power motivation - Top Italian Scientists Journal
|description=In romantic couples, there is usually an asymmetry in decisional power such that one partner is dominant and the other is subordinate.
|keywords=Couple dominance; explicit power; implicit power; psychopathy; borderline; narcissism; autistic-like trait
|citation_author=Borráz-León, Javier I.;Scrivner, Coltan; Schultheiss, Oliver C.; Lee, Royce; Maestripieri, Dario
|citation_journal_title=Top Italian Scientists Journal 
|citation_publication_date=2024/01/05 
|citation_title=Couple dominance, dark personality traits, and power motivation 
|citation_keywords=Couple dominance; explicit power; implicit power; psychopathy; borderline; narcissism; autistic-like trait
|citation_publisher=Top Italian Scientists
|citation_volume=1
|citation_issue=1
|citation_doi=10.62684/JAZJ6280
|citation_issn=3033-5132
|citation_pdf_url=
|citation_abstract_html_url=
|}}
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| '''Published'''
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| January 5, 2024
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| '''Title''' 
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| style="width:200px;" | Couple dominance, dark personality traits, and power motivation
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| '''Authors'''
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| Javier I. Borráz-León, Coltan Scrivner, Oliver C. Schultheiss, Royce Lee, Dario Maestripieri
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| '''DOI'''
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| [https://doi.org/10.62684/JAZJ6280 10.62684/JAZJ6280]
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| '''Keywords'''
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| Couple dominance; explicit power; implicit power; psychopathy; borderline; narcissism; autistic-like trait
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<b>Javier I. Borráz-León</b><sup>(a)</sup>, <b>Coltan Scrivner</b><sup>(a,d)</sup>, <b>Oliver C. Schultheiss</b><sup>(b)</sup>, <b>Royce Lee</b><sup>(c)</sup>, <b>[https://topitalianscientists.org/tis/2284/Dario_Maestripieri_-_Top_Italian_Scientist_in_Neurosciences_&_Psychology Dario Maestripieri]</b><sup>(a,d)</sup>

<sup>(a)</sup> Institute for Mind and Biology, The University of Chicago, Chicago, IL, USA

<sup>(b)</sup> Institute of Psychology, Friedrich-Alexander University of Erlangen-Nürnberg, Erlangen, Germany

<sup>(c)</sup> Department of Psychiatry and Behavioral Neuroscience, The University of Chicago, Chicago, IL, USA

<sup>(d)</sup> Department of Comparative Human Development, The University of Chicago, Chicago, IL, USA

''Correspondence: [https://primate.uchicago.edu/dario-maestripieri.html Dario Maestripieri], dario@uchicago.edu''

== Abstract ==
In romantic couples, there is usually an asymmetry in decisional power such that one partner is dominant and the other is subordinate. This study investigated the role of sex, ethnicity, self-assessed social status, personality traits, and power motivation (both explicit and implicit) as potential determinants or correlates of couple dominance in a mixed-sex sample of 50 college students. Through a previously validated questionnaire, participants indicated whether they were dominant or subordinate in their romantic relationship, or whether the latter was egalitarian. Major personality domains, narcissism, psychopathy, borderline, autistic-like traits, and explicit power were assessed through questionnaires. Participants also underwent a Picture Story Exercise to evaluate their implicit motives. Being dominant and having high explicit, but not implicit, power motivation were associated with some psychopathic, narcissistic, and/or borderline traits, while autistic-like traits were associated with being subordinate. Traits such as extraversion, conscientiousness, and honesty-humility had weak associations with couple dominance and/or explicit or implicit power motivation. Our findings have implications for the understanding of dominance dynamics within couples and the relationship between personality traits and power motivation.

==Declarations==
===Acknowledgments===
The authors are grateful to the late Scott O. Lilienfeld for helpful discussions of conceptual and methodological aspects of this research. 

===Conflict of Interest===
The Authors declare that there is no conflict of interest.

===Funding===
The authors have no funding sources to report.

===Author Contributions===
JIB-L: Data Analysis, Investigation, Writing - Review & Editing. CS: Data collection, Methodology, Writing – Review & Editing. OCS: Conceptualization, Investigation, Methodology, Data Analysis, Writing – Review & Editing. RL: Conceptualization, Investigation, Methodology, Writing – Review & Editing. DM: Conceptualization, Investigation, Methodology, Resources, Writing – Review & Editing.

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[[Category:Neurosciences & Psychology]]