Scientists Discover 'Dark Factor D,' the Driving Force Behind Our Worst Impulses

A decade of research has revealed a common core to humanity's darkest traits, which psychologists have named the "Dark Factor of Personality," or D factor. This unifying force underlies a range of malevolent tendencies, including psychopathy, narcissism, and Machiavellianism.

In a 2018 study, German and Danish psychologists mapped this driving force behind our worst impulses. Their theoretical framework builds on Charles Spearman's "g factor" concept of general intelligence, suggesting that just as intelligence can be measured by a general factor, so too can the darker aspects of personality share a common denominator.

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In the same way, the dark aspects of human personality also have a common denominator, meaning that – similar to intelligence – it can be said that they are all expressions of the same dispositional tendency.

"In the same way, the dark aspects of human personality also have a common denominator, meaning that – similar to intelligence – it can be said that they are all expressions of the same dispositional tendency," explained psychologist Ingo Zettler from the University of Copenhagen in 2018. To test this, researchers conducted four studies with over 2,500 participants. They asked individuals to rate their agreement with statements designed to measure nine dark personality traits: egoism, Machiavellianism, moral disengagement, narcissism, psychological entitlement, psychopathy, sadism, selfishness, and spitefulness.

Participants responded to statements like "I know I am special because everyone tells me so," "I will say anything to get what I want," and "Hurting people would be exciting." Statistical analysis of the responses revealed that while these dark traits are distinct, they overlap due to the central D factor. This factor manifests differently in each person, appearing as narcissism, psychopathy, or a combination of traits. "But thanks to our mapping of the common denominator of different dark personality traits, it can be simply determined that a person has a high D factor," Zettler stated, as reported by Sciencealert. "This is because the D factor indicates how likely a person is to engage in behavior associated with one or more of these dark traits."

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But thanks to our mapping of the common denominator of different dark personality traits, it can be simply determined that a person has a high D factor. This is because the D factor indicates how likely a person is to engage in behavior associated with one or more of these dark traits.