The toxic triad is commonly known as the Dark Triad. The triad consists of three
sets of personality traits representing features of Narcissistic, Psychopathic, and Machiavellian personality clusters.
People with high levels of these traits can cause interpersonal
difficulties but, when several traits are added together, they can be considerably toxic
by which I mean, such people can impact the mental health and well-being of
those within their sphere of influence.
To understand the level of toxicity, we need to examine the key
features of each personality grouping.
Narcissistic
traits were apparently observed by the Greeks in the classic myth. The key
features of narcissism are excessive self-praise and self-admiration, which doesn’t fit
well with those who do not share the same opinions of the narcissist. Some people with narcissistic traits become political, business, and religious leaders. They can be difficult to work for and with. Failure to provide praise and show admiration can be seen as disloyalty by narcissistic leaders.
Psychopathic traits
include antisocial behavior patterns, low emotional empathy, low to no remorse for
harming others, few inhibitions, and sometimes a capacity to charm others upon
initial contact. Leaders with psychopathic traits can wreak havoc in relationships, groups, and nations. In severe cases, psychopaths leave a trail of death and destruction.
Machiavellian traits
were those described by the Italian thinker, Niccoló Machiavelli in his 1532
book, Il Principe (The Prince). In today’s language, Machiavellian traits include
planned acts that are not governed by common moral rules but by self-interest
and personal gain.
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Fortunately, people with such toxic traits are rare.
Unfortunately, people with many of these traits coupled with above average
intelligence and access to power can destroy the lives of millions when they
control nations.
Those with less opportunity and somewhat muted traits, may rise in politics, corporations, and even religious organizations leaving
behind a trail of people who have been hurt physically, emotionally, and/or
spiritually. If they are not removed soon enough, the organization itself may
have suffered greatly or even cease to exist.
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In a meta-analysis, Muris, Merckelback, Otgaar, and Meijer
(2017) reviewed 91 research papers with data on 42,359 research participants. Various
personality questionnaires were used by different investigators. The
relationship among the three groups indicated a closer relationship between the
traits of Machiavellianism and Psychopathy and a related yet more unique set of
traits for Narcissism.
There are gender differences. In the 50 studies that
included data on gender differences, men were higher in the set of three traits
than were women with overall effect sizes as follows: psychopathy (r = .29); Machiavellianism (r = .16), narcissism r = .15).
When the authors considered
the shared variance, the primary difference between men and women was the
presence of psychopathic traits.
Several studies compared the Toxic Triad to other
personality traits. As you might expect, there was a negative relationship
between the presence of the Toxic Triad traits and a group of positive traits known
as Honesty-Humility (HEXACO model: sincerity, fairness, greed avoidance,
modesty).
Comparing the Toxic Triad to Big Five Traits yielded a large
number of comparisons. The findings primarily focus on negative relationships
with the Big Five trait of agreeableness. (Do see the tables if you wish more
details.)
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Summary and Consideration
The authors (Muris et al., 2017) summarized their findings thus: “psychopathy
runs the show.” That is, the negative impact on other people is primarily due
to the traits of psychopathy rather than the other two clusters. Some other
points are worth noting.
When the traits are measured with existing questionnaires
(i.e., scales, tests, or measures), the three concepts overlap.
Some of the shorter questionnaires may not capture
sufficient nuances in behavior patterns.
Some have considered adding sadism, which is the enjoyment
of cruelty (See Buckels, Jones, & Paulhus, 2013).
When researching the topic, look for the term "Dark Triad" or the individual personality clusters of narcissism, psychopathy, and Machiavellianism.
You can find the text to The Prince by Machiavelli at this link: https://www.gutenberg.org/files/1232/1232-h/1232-h.htm
References
Buckels, E. E.,
Jones, D. N., & Paulhus, D. L. (2013). Behavioral confirmation of everyday
sadism. Psychological Science, 24,
2201–2209.
Muris, P., Merckelback, H., Otgaar, H. & Meijer, E.
(2017). The Malevolent Side of Human Nature: A Meta-Analysis and Critical
Review of the Literature on the Dark Triad (Narcissism, Machiavellianism, and
Psychopathy). Perspectives on
Psychological Science, 12 (2), 183-204. https://doi.org/10.1177/1745691616666070
The Wisdom of Psychopaths
Narcissistic Personality Inventory
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