Dark Triad Traits and 5 Signs
In
psychology, the dark triad represents three personality traits: Narcissism,
Psychopathy and Machiavellianism. People with dark triad personalities are more
likely to commit crimes, and create severe social problems in society,
families and organizations. This is why the research on the dark triad
is used widely in law enforcement, psychology, and business. An overview about
dark triad.
Narcissism
The
Narcissist displays grandiosity, entitlement, and superiority and wants nothing
more than admiration. Once he gets what he wants, the narcissist is rarely
interested in other people. When he does care, it’s to enhance his
status, which is why he likes to mingle with successful others. They seem
as though they're completely in love with themselves, but at the root of their
inflated egos are often deeply-held feelings of inferiority. To protect their
constructed self, they can never admit to being wrong, which is why they
lie or blame others.
Machiavellianism
Machiavellians
are unprincipled, cold, and have a cynical view of other human beings. They
like money, power, and winning, and they use manipulation to get what they
want or exploit others. If manipulation doesn’t work, they steal or betray.
Those high on the spectrum believe it’s better to be feared than being
liked and offend others as a strategy to control them.
Psychopathy
Psychopath, are
cold hearted and are scary. They also show little to no fear, act impulsively
and enjoy mental thrills. Those high on the spectrum don’t form any
emotional bonds. The result is a complete lack of compassion. That
means they have no problem being mean. If something terrible happens, they
later often don’t feel any remorse or guilt.
The research
tells us that men score significantly higher on all three compared to women. And
while these three personalities are empirically distinct, they do overlap.
Clinically, both narcissism and psychopathy are regarded as mental disorders,
while Machiavellianism isn’t.
Whether
nature or nurture is responsible for these traits has been somewhat answered by
twin studies that show that narcissism and psychopathy have substantial genetic
components. Machiavellianism
seems to be less prevalent in pairs of twins. However, the environment also matters.
A psychopath
may not only pass down his genes but influence a child by being a role
model. A Machiavellian father shares with his son not only genetic
material but might also show him all his tricks. The son of a narcissist, not
only gets his dad’s chromosomes, but maybe also experiences his
perfectionism.
There are
big five personality traits, also known as OCEAN,
The Big Five
Personality Traits
|
Openness to experience. Sometimes called intellect or
imagination, this represents the willingness to try new things and think
outside the box. Traits include insightfulness, originality and curiosity. |
|
Conscientiousness. The desire to be careful, diligent and to
regulate immediate gratification with self-discipline. Traits include
ambition, discipline, consistency and reliability. |
|
Extroversion. A state where an individual draws energy from
others and seeks social connections or interaction, as opposed to being alone
(introversion). Traits include being outgoing, energetic and confident. |
|
Agreeableness The measure of how an individual interacts
with others, characterised by degree of compassion and co-operation. Traits
include tactfulness, kindness and loyalty. |
|
Neuroticism. A tendency towards negative personality
traits, emotional instability and self-destructive thinking. Traits include
pessimism, anxiety, insecurity and fearfulness. |
The three correlates either positively or negatively. Narcissists and psychopaths are often open to new ideas and extroverted. Psychopath and Machiavellians have low conscientiousness. All three personality types score low on agreeableness. And Psychopaths are hardly neurotic - whatever happens, leaves them cold.
 |
| OCEAN |
An
evolutionary explanation for these traits could be sexual strategy. Many of us
pursue a "slow life” invest in long-term relationships, have a few
children, and spend time on parenting.
Dark triad
traits may have survived because they looked to optimize a "fast
life". Their ancestors lived in an unpredictable and dangerous world.
Because of a shorter life, they sought many sexual partners, spent no time
on parenting, and did not invest in human relationships. This may also explain
why they strive in competitive environments, such as corporations. Here a Machiavellian
may use charm and insults to manipulate others. The narcissist, his physical
appearance and a psychopath, physical threats. And since they all lack
compassion, they often elbow their way to the top; which is maybe
why all 3 dark traits are well-represented in upper-level management.
There are
also downsides of dark triad traits. If your mind was programmed to be
impulsive, aggressive, and selfish, you are also more likely to abuse
drugs, feel excluded, suffer from depression, or end up in jail.
5 signs of
dark triad traits.
- Their kindness often feels fake.
- They manipulate you.
- They guilt trip you.
- They love malicious humor.
- They spread rumors.
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