The Dark Factor of Personality and Risk-Taking

Shambhavi Tiwari, Morten Moshagen, Benjamin E. Hilbig and Ingo Zettler
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Shambhavi Tiwari: Department of Psychology, University of Copenhagen, 1353 Copenhagen, Denmark
Morten Moshagen: Institute of Psychology and Education, Ulm University, 89081 Ulm, Germany
Benjamin E. Hilbig: Department of Psychology, University of Koblenz Landau, 76829 Landau, Germany
Ingo Zettler: Department of Psychology, University of Copenhagen, 1353 Copenhagen, Denmark

IJERPH, 2021, vol. 18, issue 16, 1-18

Abstract: Aversive personality traits have been linked to risk-taking across various domains. Herein, we investigated whether the common core of aversive traits, the Dark Factor of Personality (D), is related to risk-taking. Whereas the conceptualizations of D (common core of aversive traits) and risk-taking (not inherently socially and/or ethically aversive) do not necessarily imply an association, several theoretical considerations do suggest a positive relation between the constructs. In three studies (overall n = 689), we linked D to various self-report measures of risk-taking (Studies 1 and 2), as well as to a behavioral risk-taking task (Study 3). Overall, D was positively (although not always statistically significantly) related to self-reported risk-taking in terms of financial, health-related, and recreational risk-taking, fearlessness, novelty sensation seeking, intensity sensation seeking, and drug use. However, we did not find an association between D and behavioral risk-taking. Our findings provide insights into the relation between aversive personality and risk-taking, but also point to inconsistencies depending on the specific nature of risk-taking studied.

Keywords: dark factor of personality; dark traits; risk-taking; DOSPERT; behavioral risk-taking (search for similar items in EconPapers)
JEL-codes: I I1 I3 Q Q5 (search for similar items in EconPapers)
Date: 2021
References: View references in EconPapers View complete reference list from CitEc
Citations: View citations in EconPapers (1)

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