The dark triad and dark tetrad personality traits

Reviewed by Brooks Baer, LCPC, CMHP

Written by

therapist.com team

Last updated: 03/12/2025

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What is the dark triad?

The dark triad refers to a group of three personality traits: Machiavellianism, narcissism, and psychopathy. Though these traits are seen in normal behavior, they’re generally considered negative and socially undesirable.

Machiavellianism is marked by manipulation, deception, and emotional detachment. People high in Machiavellianism, known as “High Machs,” are skilled at exploiting others for personal gain and tend to have a cynical worldview.

Narcissism is an inflated sense of self-importance, but it’s more complex than normal arrogance. While “grandiose” narcissists openly demand attention and admiration, “covert” narcissists might appear shy or self-deprecating while still harboring deep feelings of superiority. Both types share a common thread: They see others as sources of validation.

Psychopathy is marked by manipulative and harmful behaviors, and a lack of concern or guilt. Primary psychopaths act with calculated precision while secondary psychopaths behave impulsively and show emotional instability. Both types can cause harm to others, whether through deliberate planning or emotional reactivity.

All of the traits are associated with a lack of empathy.¹ People high in these traits may be able to recognize others’ emotions, but struggle to share or connect with those emotions on a deeper level.

The contrasting “light” triad

In contrast to the dark triad, the light triad encompasses a set of positive personality traits that foster well-being and personal growth. While the dark triad is associated with traits that often prove detrimental to relationships, the light triad is characterized by benevolence, compassion, and a genuine concern for others.

The light triad is measured using the Light Triad Scale (LTS), a validated 12-item assessment that consists of three core aspects:²

1. Kantianism: Committing to live authentically and morally
2. Humanism: Valuing the dignity and worth of each person
3. Faith in humanity: Believing in the fundamental goodness of people

The dark tetrad vs. dark triad

The dark triad became the dark tetrad when a fourth trait—subclinical sadism—was added. Sadism is closely related to the dark triad personality traits but is a separate construct.³

What is sadism?

Sadism is a personality trait that involves taking pleasure in seeing others suffer or feel pain. We know sadism leads to cruel acts, but researchers still disagree on exactly how to define and measure it.⁴ This makes it hard to tell which harmful behaviors count as truly sadistic.

Many people think sadists can’t feel empathy at all, but research shows it’s more complicated than that.⁵ Sadists might be able to understand how others feel (cognitive empathy) while not sharing those feelings themselves (emotional empathy). This combination can be dangerous because they can recognize when they’re hurting someone, but don’t feel bad about it.

There’s a specific type of sadism, called sexual sadism, where people gain sexual pleasure from causing physical or mental pain. While sadism shows up in many areas of life, most studies have focused on sexual sadism. Research suggests about 2% to 5% of people experience sexual pleasure from hurting others.⁶

If you or someone you know have experienced uncomfortable or unsafe sexual behavior, help is available. You can contact the National Sexual Assault Hotline for free at 1-800-656-HOPE (4673), available 24/7 for support.

Why some people have dark personality traits

Dark personality traits stem from a combination of biological, psychological, and social factors. At their core, these traits are strongly linked to low levels of certain personality traits.⁷ These traits are:

• Honesty-humility: The tendency to be sincere, fair, and modest versus manipulative, entitled, and greedy
• Emotionality: How deeply someone experiences and expresses feelings, particularly empathy and attachment to others
• Agreeableness: The tendency to be forgiving, less judgemental, cooperative, and considerate of others versus antagonistic and hostile
• Conscientiousness: The degree of self-discipline, organization, and concern for following rules and obligations

Of these traits, honesty-humility appears to be most significant in predicting dark personality traits. People who score low on honesty-humility and agreeableness consistently show higher levels of dark triad and dark tetrad personality traits.

Dark personality traits exist on a spectrum. People can display these traits to varying degrees, with differences observed across:⁸

• Gender: Men typically score higher on dark traits compared to women.⁹ Traits like psychopathy and Machiavellianism are associated more strongly with masculine than feminine gender roles.
• Culture: The expression of dark personality traits varies across different global regions and cultural contexts.¹⁰
• Social environments: One evolutionary theory suggests that dark triad traits developed as adaptive strategies to provided advantages in certain social competitions.¹¹ Certain characters in popular culture show that dark triad traits may actually be respected and desired in certain environments today.¹²

The impact of dark personality traits

Research comparing the dark triad and light triad traits revealed distinct patterns in life outcomes.¹³

The dark triad was linked to:

• Lower life satisfaction
• Less personal growth
• More aggressive and selfish behaviors

In contrast, the light triad was associated with:

• Greater life satisfaction
• More personal growth
• Concern for others

Unsurprisingly, these findings suggest that cultivating light triad traits are more likely to create well-being and personal development than dark triad characteristics.

How dark personality traits are assessed

The dark triad and tetrad traits aren’t formal mental health diagnoses. However, they can be associated with several personality disorders, which are diagnosable conditions. These include:¹⁴

• Narcissistic personality disorder (NPD)
• Antisocial personality disorder (ASPD)
• Borderline personality disorder (BPD)
• Histrionic personality disorder (HPD)

Dark personality traits can be assessed using self-report questionnaires. These might include:

• The Short Dark Triad (SD3)¹⁵
• The Short Dark Tetrad (SD4)¹⁶
• The Dark Triad Dirty Dozen (DTDD)¹⁷
• The Comprehensive Assessment of Sadistic Tendencies (CAST)¹⁸

Additional tests for sadism include the Short Sadistic Impulse Scale (SSIS), Varieties of Sadistic Tendencies (VAST), and the Assessment of Sadistic Personality (ASP).¹⁹

While high scores on these tests may indicate that the traits are present or strong, they can’t confirm or diagnose personality disorders. If you’ve noticed patterns in yourself that you’re concerned about, consult a mental health professional. They can help you address harmful patterns and determine if a mental health disorder may be making things harder.

Treatment options for dark personality traits

Dark personality traits can be challenging to treat because people with these traits may be less motivated to change. But there’s always hope for overcoming them. A 16-week study with 467 participants revealed two important findings:²⁰

1. When people did want to change their dark triad traits, they were able to make measurable progress.
2. Interventions focused on increasing agreeableness (being more kind, cooperative, and considerate of others) led to reductions in all three dark triad traits.

This suggests that treatment approaches focused on developing positive traits like agreeableness may be successful. Types of therapy that may help include:

• Cognitive behavioral therapy (CBT), which helps people identify and change harmful thought patterns and behaviors. It may be particularly useful for addressing narcissistic tendencies.²¹
• Dialectical behavior therapy (DBT), which teaches emotional regulation and interpersonal effectiveness skills that can help reduce impulsive or harmful behaviors.
• Schema therapy, which targets deep-rooted emotional patterns and beliefs that may contribute to manipulative or exploitative behaviors.
• Mentalization-based treatment (MBT), which improves your ability to understand others’ mental states and develop empathy.

Mental health professionals can use these approaches to help clients gradually develop healthier patterns of thinking and relating to others. This focus on building positive traits, rather than targeting dark ones, may lead to sustainable change. Visit our directory to find qualified therapists near you who specialize in personality disorders and trait-based therapy. Remember that change is possible with commitment and professional support.