A study of dark triad personality traits on behavioural, organisational, and performance outcomes

Abstract

This study investigated how Dark Triad (DT) personality traits predict behaviours and how two DT scales – the 12-item Dirty Dozen (DD) and 27-item Short Dark Triad (SD3) – apply in Singapore. Three hundred and twenty-four participants were recruited through convenience sampling and did an online self-report questionnaire. Results revealed that DD and SD3 were psychometrically comparable with acceptable test-retest reliability (r = .64 - .87, p < .001) and moderate intercorrelations (r = .34 - .52, p < .001). DT was greater in males than females and predicted higher university grades and having more external commitments. Also, DT was hypothesised to be associated with a fast life history strategy (LHS), more impulsive behaviours, and more interpersonal counterproductive work behaviours (CWB). Despite a small to moderate effect size, all hypotheses were supported by either DD, SD3, or both, suggesting that DT influenced behaviours the same way it did with Western samples. Findings further established that the two DT scales predicted outcomes differently. Notably, regression results found DD [F(1, 322) = 8.70, p = .003, R2 = .03] but not SD3 [F(1,322) = .92, p = .340, R2 = .003] linked a fast LHS. Furthermore, only SD3 significantly supported both relationships between narcissism and functional impulsivity and between psychopathy and dysfunctional impulsivity. This study proposed DD as a viable DT scale, and SD3 can be considered if the researcher’s interest is on DT and impulsivity. This study holds practical implications in organisational settings as the findings highlighted positivity among the dark personalities.