A comprehensive new study indicates that growing up in environments characterized by corruption, inequality, poverty, and violence may significantly affect individuals’ willingness to act selfishly, even at the expense of others. Published in the Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences, the research reveals that unfavorable societal conditions correlate with the emergence of personality traits typically associated with callousness and moral disregard.
Analyzing over 1.7 million participants across 183 countries, along with data from more than 140,000 individuals from all 50 U.S. states, researchers found a consistent but modest link between adverse societal conditions and elevated levels of what psychologists call the “Dark Factor of Personality.” This factor represents a tendency to prioritize one’s own interests while ignoring or harming others, often coupled with justifications for such behaviors.
Dark personality traits encompass persistent patterns of thoughts and behaviors that are ethically troubling, including narcissism, psychopathy, Machiavellianism, sadism, and spitefulness. Although each trait has unique characteristics—like the manipulative nature of Machiavellianism or the callousness associated with psychopathy—they are believed to share a foundational core.
The shared phenomenon, known as the Dark Factor of Personality, or “D,” reflects a general proclivity to seek personal advantage at the cost of others, supported by beliefs that validate such actions. For instance, an individual scoring high on D might assert that “everyone looks out for themselves” or believe that “most people deserve what they get.”
Just as intelligence researchers have identified a common “g” factor that underlies cognitive abilities, personality experts argue that D serves as a foundational element for all dark traits. Those who score high on D are more inclined to engage in dishonest behavior, seek revenge, exploit others, and rationalize unethical actions. But what factors contribute to the development of this psychological tendency?
The study’s authors proposed that certain detrimental social environments may encourage the growth of darker personality traits, referring to these as “aversive societal conditions” (ASC). They assessed this concept through four specific metrics: corruption, economic inequality, poverty, and violence.
In environments where exploitation and injustice are prevalent, self-serving behaviors may be normalized as necessary for survival. Individuals may come to believe that trust is misplaced, that cheating is rewarded, and that harming others is a viable strategy for advancement. Such beliefs can gradually become internalized, solidifying into stable personality characteristics.
Ingo Zettler, the lead author from the University of Copenhagen, noted that the study was driven by both theoretical and practical motivations. “Theoretically, there have always been ideas that societal conditions contribute to the proliferation of certain personality traits in a society, but research has not looked too much into very aversive (or antisocial) personality characteristics so far,” he explained. “Pragmatically, we were able to collect survey responses from close to two million people from more than 180 countries, which, we believe, is a good data set to explore whether aversive societal conditions also relate to the proliferation of aversive personality characteristics across societies.”
To build their ASC index, researchers used publicly available data to evaluate societal conditions from approximately 20 years prior to the collection of personality data, allowing them to examine the long-term effects of exposure to such conditions during formative years.
Participants voluntarily completed the Dark Factor of Personality questionnaire through an online platform, providing insights into their personality traits. The final dataset comprised 1,791,542 individuals from 183 countries and 144,576 respondents from all 50 U.S. states. Each participant answered a validated short version of the D questionnaire, which included statements like “My own pleasure is all that matters” and “People who mess with me always regret it.”
The researchers calculated an ASC index for each country and state based on corruption, income inequality, poverty rates, and homicide rates from 2000 to 2004, consolidating these metrics into a singular score through principal component analysis.
The analysis indicated that individuals living in regions with higher ASC scores exhibited higher levels of the Dark Factor of Personality. Though the effect sizes were small, these findings were statistically significant across both the global sample and U.S. states.
Notably, the research uncovered systematic variations in average levels of dark personality traits among U.S. states. States such as Nevada, New York, Texas, Louisiana, California, Mississippi, Alabama, Georgia, North Carolina, and Tennessee recorded the highest average D scores, coinciding with their elevated ASC ratings. Conversely, states including Vermont, Utah, New Hampshire, Oregon, Maine, Alaska, Minnesota, Idaho, Montana, and Colorado reported the lowest average D scores, typically reflecting more favorable socioecological conditions in the early 2000s.
“We did expect to find a link between aversive societal conditions and the proliferation of aversive personality characteristics, but it was nice to see this replicating within the same country,” Zettler mentioned.
The results imply that personality traits linked to selfishness and interpersonal harm are influenced not only by genetic factors but also by the broader social environment. This underscores the notion that personality formation is sensitive to socioecological factors, particularly during the critical periods of adolescence and early adulthood.
In contexts plagued by corruption and violence, individuals may come to view the exploitation of others as a norm or even a necessity. Prolonged exposure to such environments can lead to the entrenchment of beliefs and behaviors aligning with the Dark Factor of Personality.
Interestingly, researchers noted that the association was particularly pronounced among younger individuals and in cultures emphasizing individualism. This indicates that cultural norms and developmental stages may play a role in moderating the impact of adverse societal conditions.
The correlation remained significant when employing alternative measures of societal aversiveness, such as an index of rule violations, reinforcing the connection between harsh social conditions and the development of dark traits.
“I would say there are two main take-aways,” Zettler concluded. “First, the average levels of aversive personality characteristics differ across societies. While there are also many differences between people within the same society, there are also differences between societies. Second, reducing aversive conditions in one’s society does not only facilitate the life for several people in the society, but might also reduce the likelihood of very aversive (or selfish) individuals in this society in the future.”
While the study boasts an impressive scale, there are limitations to consider. The researchers utilized online convenience samples, meaning participants were not randomly selected and may not accurately reflect the general population. Additionally, although the analysis accounts for time lags to mitigate reverse causality risks, the findings remain correlational and do not establish a definitive causal relationship between adverse environments and dark personality traits.
Variability in the societal data quality used to create the ASC index raises another concern. For instance, some nations may underreport violence or corruption, potentially skewing the accuracy of the index. Researchers acknowledge that the lack of information on how long participants resided in their stated country or state complicates assessments of exposure duration to aversive conditions.
This study paves the way for further research into the interplay between environment and personality development. “We are continuing in trying to better understand the development of the D factor, as well as how it expresses in certain behavior in certain situations,” Zettler noted.
The study, titled “Aversive societal conditions explain differences in ‘dark’ personality across countries and US states,” was co-authored by Ingo Zettler, Lau Lilleholt, Martina Bader, Benjamin E. Hilbig, and Morten Moshagen.
