Between Darkness and Emotion: The Dark Triad and the Big Five Socioemotional Factors

The Dark Triad (DT), composed of Machiavellianism and subclinical traits of psychopathy and narcissism, has been extensively studied in its specificities, such as the difference between Machiavellianism and psychopathy and the strong associations with antagonism. Additionally, understanding the association between the DT and the five socioemotional skill personality factors is relatively new, specifically the difference between the two dimensions of pathological narcissism: grandiosity and vulnerability. In the present study, through Structural Equation Modeling, we explored the association between DT and the five socioemotional skill personality factors in a sample of 662 Brazilian individuals (80% women, aged 18 to 71 years). Our results indicated a strong association between Machiavellianism and psychopathy with antagonism, and narcissism with antagonism, engagement with others, neuroticism, and openness. This provides important insights into the primary socioemotional deficits of individuals with dark personality traits.