Is your coworker secretly a psychopath?
If you are a mechanic, the answer may be yes.
Scientists from the University of Illinois at Urbana–Champaign discovered the professions that attract the most psychopaths.
For their study, the team interviewed more than 600 participants, who were asked about their dark personality traits, as well as their interest in eight career fields.
The results showed a "clear pattern."
People with psychopathic traits were more attracted to practical, skill-based jobs.
In terms of specific careers, this includes mechanics and engineers.
Yan Yi Lance Du, the lead author of the study, said: “The need for power and status may be a fundamental driver behind the careers people pursue.”
Dark personality traits are known by psychologists as the "Dark Triad."
Each of the three traits – narcissism, Machiavellianism, and psychopathy – consists of undesirable attributes.
Machiavellianism is characterized by manipulation and exploitation of others, cynical disregard for morality, and a focus on self-interest and deception.
Narcissism is characterized by grandiosity, pride, egocentrism, and a lack of empathy.
While psychopathy is characterized by antisocial behavior, impulsivity, selfishness, harshness, and lack of remorse.
Previous studies have linked the Dark Triad to traits such as dislike for animals, demeaning others, and being single.
In the new study, the team aimed to understand whether there is a link between these traits and career choice.
"Although there is longstanding research on the relationship between personality and interests, researchers have only just begun to examine how dark traits relate to professional interests," they explained in the study published in Personality and Individual Differences.
For this, 609 university students, aged 17 to 32, were surveyed. Participants first completed questionnaires measuring their dark traits.
Psychopathy was measured through responses to statements such as "I can convince people to do what I want," while Machiavellianism was assessed with statements such as "I think it's right to be unethical for the greater good."
Narcissism was measured by agreement with statements such as "I am great" and "I want my rivals to fail."
Next, participants rated their interest in eight career areas – Health Science, Creativity, Technology, People, Organization, Influence, Nature, and Things.
The analysis showed that those who rated "Things" as the most important professional field had more psychopathic tendencies.
This includes jobs as a mechanic and engineer.
"Individuals with high psychopathic traits prefer solitary and hands-on work environments, perhaps due to low motivation for social interaction," the team explained.
Those who had more interest in the “People” category – such as social scientists and psychologists – had more Machiavellian views.
While those more attracted to "Creativity" and "Influence" displayed more narcissism.
The "Creativity" category includes designers and directors, while "Influence" includes politicians and lawyers.
"We found that self-confidence-based traits, such as courage and desire for admiration, are more strongly associated with leadership interests, especially in business, politics and law," Du said.
The most toxic people at work are those who combine psychopathic courage or self-enhancement from narcissism with other malignant traits.
“These are the so-called 'successful psychopaths' and 'successful narcissists,'” the team explained.
"Although they appear attractive on the surface, organizations should avoid promoting them to senior management positions, otherwise it becomes almost impossible to control them." /GazetaExpress/
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