The environment people grow up in may leave a deeper psychological imprint than previously thought.
New large-scale research indicates that social conditions can influence how strongly individuals prioritise themselves over others later in life.
A study published in PNAS analysed responses from nearly two million people across 183 countries and 50 U.S. states.
Researchers linked personality data to social indicators collected roughly two decades earlier. The pattern was striking: individuals raised in societies marked by corruption, inequality, poverty and violence were more likely to display darker personality tendencies as adults.
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The deeper explanation
To understand why, researchers point to what psychologist Ingo Zettler of the University of Copenhagen calls the D-factor, short for “dark factor.”
First introduced in 2018, the concept proposes that several troubling traits share a common core.
Rather than viewing narcissism, psychopathy and extreme egoism as separate categories, the D-factor frames them as expressions of the same basic inclination: advancing one’s own interests even when it harms others, while internally justifying that behaviour. This approach shifts the focus from labels to underlying motivation.
Beyond single acts
The research stresses that isolated selfish behaviour does not define a person. What matters is repetition.
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A consistent pattern of putting personal gain above collective responsibility is what signals a stronger presence of dark traits.
Such patterns can appear in workplaces, relationships or public life. According to the researchers, understanding this shared core may help societies design systems that reduce incentives for harmful behaviour in the first place.
Sources: Illustreret Videnskab and PNAS
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