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✓ 10 QUESTIONS ⏱ ~2 MINUTES

Which Jobs Attract "Dark" Personalities

Our career choices are influenced in large part by our personality traits—and the Dark Tetrad traits of psychopathy, narcissism, Machiavellianism, and sadism are no exception. Do you know which jobs are most likely to appeal to dark personalities? Test yourself here.

1. Careers that require empathy and promote prosocial goals, like being a therapist or schoolteacher, may not seem appealing to dark personalities—yet one type of “dark” individual is especially drawn to them. Which one?

Psychopaths Narcissists Machiavellians Sadists

2. Practical jobs, like being a mechanic or engineer, may be most appealing to which type of dark personality?

Psychopaths Narcissists Machiavellians Sadists

3. Doctors are often perceived as narcissistic, but the trait isn’t equally distributed across medical disciplines. Which medical field tends to attract the most narcissistic individuals?

Psychiatry Nursing Cardiology Surgery

4. Though many people assume that celebrities are highly narcissistic, research on famous entertainers’ actual personalities is limited. However, one study of 200 celebrities found that one group tended to be the most narcissistic. Which one?

Musicians Actors Reality TV stars Comedians

5. The same study had some other surprising findings, including which of the below?

Even though men are, on average, more narcissistic than women, female celebrities were more narcissistic than male celebrities. Celebrities who had been in the industry for years were just as narcissistic as newcomers. Both Neither

6. The career someone chooses is often closely related to their academic major. Which two majors appeal most to the highly Machiavellian?

Behavioral science and education Politics and law Chemistry and biology Computer science and economics

7. Surprisingly, students who major in business are not, as a group, highly Machiavellian. Yet certain sub-disciplines within the major are more likely to attract Machiavellians. Which area of business do they find most appealing?

Accounting Management Finance Human Resources

8. People high in “boldness,” a trait closely linked to both psychopathy and narcissism, may be most motivated to pursue jobs that promise which two outcomes?

Profit and security Hedonism and a social lifestyle Self-expression and autonomy Recognition and power

9. On which psychopathic trait do firefighters and police officers, on average, tend to score higher than the general population?

Fearless dominance Coldheartedness Self-centered impulsivity All of the above

10. People high in psychopathic traits are especially likely to attain leadership or management positions. Which component of psychopathy is thought to be the strongest predictor of leadership?

Self-centered impulsivity Fearless dominance Coldheartedness All of the above