Our mind has a dark side that can make us psychopathic: who is most at risk!

A research team made up of Danish and German scholars has shown that the human personality has a real dark side, to which all evil traits such as selfishness, narcissism,psychopathy, and sadism are linked.

This connection between the various dark traits determines that whoever presents one is more likely to manifest the others.

The dark traits of the human personality such as sadism, narcissism, selfishness and psychopathy are all closely related to each other, so much so that those who present one of them are more likely to manifest one or more of the other malevolent traits.

In simple words, there is a real dark side of the human personality, which underlies the lack of empathy, morality and all those characteristics that make the human being wicked, even to the point of feeling pleasure before the suffering of others.

To demonstrate the existence of this "dark core" a research team made up of three Danish and German scholars, has been born; Professor Ingo Zettler, professor of psychology at the University of Copenhagen, Benjamin E. Hilbig of the University of Koblenz-Landau and Morten Moshagen of the University of Ulm.

The three scientists came to this conclusion after conducting a series of experiments with over 2,500 participants, evaluating the dark traits of the human personality both with statistical methods, and through behavior analysis capable of bringing out a common thread between an egoist, a liar and a sadist.

The common denominator of the evil traits has been called by Mosaghen and colleagues "Factor D" (Dark Factor of Personality), which represents the general tendency to maximize individual utility to the detriment of that of others, neglecting the fate until knowingly causing damage and with pleasure.

All justifying their actions on the basis of beliefs, useful to prevent the development of feelings of guilt or shame while behaving with malice and absence of morality.It may seem absurd that there is a link in the personality of a psychopath, a narcissist and an egoist, yet it is precisely what has emerged.

Factor D has been highlighted in at least nine dark traits of our personality.

To prove its existence, the scholars verified how well the participants agreed with various statements (such as "I know I'm special because others keep telling me" or "It's difficult to go on without smoothing corners here and there") and assessed behavioral trends such as: aggression, impulsivity, selfishness and lack of ethics.

Statistically analyzing all the data obtained; the presence of this dark nucleus emerged which underlies all the malevolent traits. It is precisely because of it that a liar is more likely to be sadistic than someone who is not.

Knowing the existence of this factor can lead to benefits both in the field of research and, in evaluating the possibilities that a person may engage again in harmful and criminal activities.