The female partners tended to underreport the levels of psychopathic traits in their male partner

When the Partner’s Reality Bites: Associations Between Self- and Partner Ratings of Psychopathic Traits, Relationship Quality and Conflict Tactics. Kasia Uzieblo et al. International Journal of Offender Therapy and Comparative Criminology, April 21, 2022. https://doi.org/10.1177/0306624X221086560

Abstract: The present study examined associations of self- and partner-reported psychopathic traits, as well as the level of agreement between these reports (perceptual accuracy), with relationship quality, and the moderating role of violent and non-violent conflict tactics. Participants were 259 heterosexual couples from the community. Results indicated that, despite moderate convergence between self- and partner-reports, the female partners tended to underreport the levels of psychopathic traits in their male partner. Relationship quality was negatively associated with partner-reported and, albeit to a lesser extent, self-reported psychopathic traits. Contrary to expectations, perceptual accuracy was barely associated with relationship quality. Whereas no evidence was found for the moderating role of aggressive conflict tactics, non-violent negotiation seemed to buffer the effect of psychopathic traits on relationship quality. The study highlights the importance of considering the partner’s perceptions as well as constructive conflict tactics when examining psychopathic traits in intimate relationships.

Keywords: psychopathy, relationship quality, intimate partner violence, negotiation, conflict tactics

Exposure to The Ultimate Fighter, with fighters competing on violent mixed martial arts, significantly reduced crime; these effects are particularly evident for assault, began in the month the show premiered, and persisted for many years

Effects of Violent Media Content: Evidence from the Rise of the UFC. Jason M. Lindo, Isaac D.Swensen, Glen R. Waddell. Journal of Health Economics, April 22 2022, 102623. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.jhealeco.2022.102623

Abstract: We document the effect of violent media on crime. Specifically, we evaluate the effects of The Ultimate Fighter, a hit TV show that features fighters competing in violent mixed martial arts and which brought Ultimate Fighting Championship into the mainstream. We estimate the effect of exposure to the show’s earliest episodes using panel data from police agencies across the United States and a strategy that uses network ratings prior to the show’s premier as an instrumental variable. We show that this exposure significantly reduced crime: these effects are particularly evident for assault, began in the month the show premiered, and persisted for many years. These estimates do not reflect systematic differences across geographic areas in their trends in crime rates prior to 2005. To complement our main results, we also investigate the effects of “UFC Main Events,” which air in bars and on Pay-Per-View. This analysis additionally suggests reductions in violence caused by viewership.

JEL: K42 L82 L83

Unsociable emerging adults reported significantly greater happiness, satisfaction with their lives, social support, and self-worth than both shy and avoidant emerging adults

Is there an Upside to Social Withdrawal? Considering Well-Being among Socially Withdrawn Emerging Adults. Leanna M. Closson, Alicia M. McVarnock & Laura E. Cook. Applied Research in Quality of Life, Apr 25 2022. https://link.springer.com/article/10.1007/s11482-022-10056-w

Abstract: Removing oneself from social interactions, referred to as social withdrawal, has primarily been shown to predict maladjustment. Previous research distinguishing between social withdrawal subtypes based on individual differences in underlying social motivations, indicates that shyness and avoidance are more problematic than unsociability, particularly during the emerging adulthood years. Nevertheless, little research has examined the potential upside to social withdrawal. The aim of this study was to consider differences in well-being between sociable, shy, avoidant, and unsociable emerging adults. Participants included 813 Canadian university students between the ages of 18 to 25. Participants completed a series of self-report surveys assessing social withdrawal and indices of well-being. Results showed that unsociable emerging adults reported significantly greater happiness, satisfaction with their lives, social support, and self-worth than both shy and avoidant emerging adults. Social withdrawal is largely viewed as detrimental to psychosocial functioning; however, these findings show that unsociability might not pose the same risk to emerging adults’ well-being as shyness or avoidance. Indicators of well-being among unsociable emerging adults did not significantly differ from their more sociable counterparts, suggesting there may be an upside to social withdrawal for unsociable individuals.

Happy people tend to be more similar to each other than unhappy people

Iliev, Rumen, and Will Bennis. 2022. “The Convergence of Positivity: Are Happy People All Alike?” PsyArXiv. April 25. doi:10.31234/osf.io/5zdp2a

Abstract: More than a century ago Leo Tolstoy noted that happy families tend to be more similar to each other than unhappy families. Was this just a cognitive illusion, driven by his mind’s predisposition to see positive entities as more similar to each other, or did he make a profound observation about the world? If it is true, is the phenomenon limited to happiness, or is it a characteristic of positive traits more generally? This question has received attention in multiple fields, but not in psychology. We ran five studies, testing the more general hypothesis that people who share some positive individual-difference trait are more alike than those who do not (The Convergence of Positivity Hypothesis), and we consistently found empirical support for it. Happier, healthier and richer people were more alike in their personality, values, and in various other domains. The research approach we followed here departs from traditional behavioral science methods and proposes a different level of analysis, where valence and directionality play a central role. We speculate about why this pattern might exist and about the boundary conditions, including whether it extends beyond individual differences to a broader set of complex systems where positivity can be defined.

Brazilian jeitinho, an informal problem-solving strategy that is central to Brazilian culture: We found no practically meaningful mean differences: jeitinho was endorsed equally across all regions of the country

An Exploration of Within-Cultural Differences of a Culture-specific Syndrome: The Case of Brazilian jeitinho. Ronaldo Pilati, Ronald Fischer. Cross-Cultural Research, April 21, 2022. https://doi.org/10.1177/10693971221086818

Abstract: To what extent are cultural syndromes invariant within nations or can we identify within-cultural variability in structure and endorsement of cultural syndromes? These questions are central to a) recent discussions around the relevance of nation-states in cultural vs. geographical psychology and b) explorations of how cultural syndromes described in anthropological research are endorsed by individuals within and across regions within the country. We report data on Brazilian jeitinho, an informal problem-solving strategy that is central to Brazilian culture but may show within-cultural variability as suggested in previous anthropological and sociological research. Using a large online sample (N = 1259) we found evidence of full score equivalence for two multi-dimensional jeitinho measures across the most populous Brazilian regions, suggesting that respondents interpret the instruments similarly. Second, we found no practically meaningful mean differences: jeitinho was endorsed equally across all regions of the country. Finally, we found some small but consistent associations with demographic variables, notably gender, age, and education differences. We need to pay greater attention to behavioral functionality at individual level—the social position of individuals within the system rather than geographical boundaries.

Keywords: jeitinho, cultural syndrome, informal problem-solving strategy, simpatia, culture-specific behavior

Wealth inherited in silence, with not much agitation and propaganda

Ruchir Sharma @Financial Times:

Macron had promised to reduce state spending — then a record at more than 56 per cent of gross domestic product — by about 5 percentage points. Instead, under pressure from protests and the pandemic, state spending rose to a staggering 60 per cent of GDP. France’s government spending is 15 points above the average for developed economies.

Moreover, that gap is explained less by heavy spending on education, health or housing than on welfare programmes, which at 18 per cent of GDP is nearly double the average for developed economies. France is stuck in a welfare trap, spending generously on income transfers but pushed by voters to spend even more, given discontent with the rising cost of living and with inequality.

On inheritance outside the US, which is the Grrreat Wooorry these days:

Total billionaire wealth doubled under Macron to 17 per cent of GDP, and nearly 80 per cent of French billionaires’ wealth is inherited — among the highest in the world.

 

h/t Tyler Cowen. Link to Sharma's article in his post https://marginalrevolution.com/marginalrevolution/2022/04/france-analysis-of-the-day.html