Ricerc@Sapienza

Homophobic bullying is bullying related to sexual orientation and gender identity. This study investigated the moderating role of the dark triad traits (i.e., psychopathy, narcissism, and Machiavellianism) in the relationship between being a victim of homophobic bullying and being in turn a perpetrator of homophobic bullying. Participants were 285 adolescents from 16 to 20 years old. Victimization and perpetration of homophobic bullying and the Dark Triad Traits were measured. The moderation effects of dark triad traits were tested using a hierarchical regression analysis.

We comment on a recent attempt to justify the coercive moral bioenhancement (MB) of psychopaths as an extensionof the idea that psychopaths’ cognitive-affective system would justify MB of other psychopaths. Firstly, we state that this account is flawed. Specifically, psychopaths follow what we may call a Dark Rule - an antithetic version of the Golden Rule – according to which they believe and feel that one can treat others, in ways that one would not like to be treated. This means their reasons cannot be made universal on this basis.