Personality disorder traits and impression formation: Individuals higher in detachment and antagonistic traits are perceived as less likable and trustworthy

The first impression a person makes can substantially influence whether and how they areapproached and treated by others. Prior research on this process suggests that individualsexhibiting higher levels of maladaptive personality traits tend to elicit more negative firstimpressions in others, with presumably detrimental consequences for their social lives. Thispreregistered study1 employed a digital meeting format to examine how target individuals’(n=119) maladaptive personality traits (i.e., detachment, antagonistic traits, agentic traits) shapetrustworthiness and likability ratings made by perceivers (n=120). All participants weretreatment-seeking individuals with varying maladaptive trait levels. Each perceiver rated fourtargets based on a photograph and three video sequences. Targets were the four individuals thathad participated in the study prior to the perceiver. As hypothesized, higher detachment andhigher antagonistic trait facets (hostility, callousness, deceitfulness) of the target were linked tolower ratings of trustworthiness and likability. In contrast, targets’ agentic trait facets(grandiosity and attention-seeking) did not show the hypothesized positive associations withthe outcomes, nor did higher negative affectivity show the hypothesized negative associationwith these ratings. Additionally, we tested whether positive and negative facial expressionsmediated the associations between targets’ maladaptive trait levels and perceivers’trustworthiness and likeability ratings. Mediation models did not support facial expressions asmediators, even though positive expressions were related to more favorable impressions inexploratory models. We discuss how eliciting unfavorable first impressions could impede theforming of social bonds in individuals high in detachment and antagonistic trait facets.