How Alluring Are Dark Personalities? the Dark Triad and Attractiveness in Speed Dating

Abstract

Dark Triad traits (narcissism, psychopathy, and Machiavellianism) are linked to the pursuit of short-term mating strategies, but they may have differential effects on actual mating success in naturalistic scenarios: Narcissism may be a facilitator for men's short-term mating success, while Machiavellianism and psychopathy may be detrimental. To date, little is known about the attractiveness of Dark Triad traits in women. In a speed-dating study, we assessed participants' Dark Triad traits, Big Five personality traits, and physical attractiveness in N = 90 heterosexual individuals (46 women and 44 men). Each participant rated each partner's mate appeal for short-and long-term relationships. Across both sexes, narcissism was positively associated with mate appeal for short-and long-term relationships. Further analyses indicated that these associations were due to the shared variance among narcissism and extraversion in men and narcissism and physical attractiveness in women, respectively. In women, psychopathy was also positively associated with mate appeal for short-term relationships. Regarding mating preferences, narcissism was found to involve greater choosiness in the rating of others' mate appeal (but not actual choices) in men, while psychopathy was associated with greater openness towards short-term relationships in women.

Тhe Dark Triad, Amorality, and Impulsivity

“…In contrast, Narcissism is associated with functional impulsivity that entails dare and boldness under precarious circumstances, best described as Venturesome Impulsivity (Brunas-Wagstaff et al, 1995;Eysenck & Eysenck, 1977). Machiavellianism implies composed calculation which, by definition, discounts impulsivity (Jauk et al, 2016;Rauthmann & Will, 2011).…”

The Higher the Score, the Darker the Core: The Nonlinear Association Between Grandiose and Vulnerable Narcissism

“…Grandiose and vulnerable narcissism build on distinct nomological networks and are either weakly related or even uncorrelated in the general population (depending on the measures used; Miller et al, 2011 , 2013 , 2017 ; see also Jauk et al, 2017b ). Thus, these constellations of traits result in seemingly very different personality phenotypes: while those scoring high in grandiose narcissism tend to be extraverted, socially bold, and charming ( Back et al, 2010 ; Dufner et al, 2013 ; Jauk et al, 2016 ), those scoring higher in vulnerable narcissism tend to be introverted, anxious, and avoidant ( Miller et al, 2012 ; Hart et al, 2017 ). Taken together, grandiose and vulnerable narcissism are more related to approach- and avoidance-related behavior, respectively ( Spencer et al, 2017 ).…”

The Relationship between Grandiose and Vulnerable (Hypersensitive) Narcissism

“…Vulnerable narcissism also entails pronounced self-absorbedness, but apart from that, goes along with self-consciousness, social insecurity, and defensiveness. Though both constructs share the central concept of self-centeredness (e.g., Brown et al, 2016 ), they phenomenologically manifest in very different personality types 1 , which Wink (1991) originally referred to as the “two faces” (p. 590) of narcissism: subclinical grandiose narcissists are extraverted, socially bold, and even charming (e.g., Back et al, 2010 ; Dufner et al, 2013 ; Jauk et al, 2016b ). Vulnerable narcissists, on the contrary, are introverted, defensive, and avoidant ( Miller et al, 2011 , 2012 ; Hart et al, 2017 ).…”