The Dark Triad Traits of Firefighters and Risk-Taking at Work. The Mediating Role of Altruism, Honesty, and Courage

Abstract

Firefighting is considered a dangerous profession that imposes unique safety hazards. In this research, we investigated the relationship between the Dark Triad traits of firefighters (N = 1434, Mage = 39.03, SD = 6.9) and their risk-taking at work, considering the mediation role of altruism, honesty, and courage. We showed that firefighters high on Machiavellianism and psychopathy reported high risk-taking. Altruism, honesty, and courage mediated the relationship between Machiavellianism and risk-taking in firefighters. Honesty and courage mediated the association between psychopathy and risk-taking. Theoretical and practical implications are discussed.

The Effect of Craniosacral Therapy on Blood Levels of Stress Hormones in Male Firefighter Cadets: A Randomized Clinical Trial

“…Rosca et al showed that these Dark Triad traits predicted risk-taking at work in firefighters, while altruism, honesty, and courage mediated the relationship between Machiavellianism and risk-taking. Honesty and courage mediated the relationship between psychopathy and risk-taking at work [68].…”

Linking dark triad traits, psychological entitlement, and knowledge hiding behavior

“…As hypothesized, the results demonstrate that dark traits tend to predict employees’ entitled outlooks which may bring numerous negative outcomes for the organizations. Individuals high on dark personality traits display a lack of empathy and caring about others, show a greater sense of selfishness and deservingness, and are less inclined to altruistic activities ( Roșca et al., 2021 ). Generally, individuals low on altruism are likely to engage more in unhelpful and non-cooperative behavior including knowledge hiding at the workplace.…”