A new study published in Scientific Reports has revealed that a combination of “bright” and “dark” personality traits may help predict criminal behavior, including both first-time offenses and recidivism. Researchers found that higher levels of emotional instability (neuroticism), risk-taking (openness), and harmful tendencies (sadism, deceitfulness) were associated with a higher likelihood of criminal activity, with deceitfulness and neuroticism standing out as strong indicators of reoffending.
Criminal behavior is a serious societal problem, and understanding what drives individuals to commit crimes is essential for prevention and rehabilitation. Previous research has explored how personality traits might predict antisocial behaviors, but much of the focus has been on either the “bright” or “dark” side of personality, rather than a combination of the two. The bright side includes traits like emotional stability and conscientiousness, while the dark side includes traits such as narcissism and psychopathy. This study aimed to bridge that gap by examining both sides simultaneously to see how they influence criminal behavior.
“The research in our Lab (RiddleLab – Research in Individual Differences and Legal Psychology) focuses on the emergence and development of individual differences in socio-cognitive functioning (theory of mind, executive functions) to predict prosocial and problematic behavior. We also explore how the continuum of ‘bright’ and ‘dark’ personality traits can be related to disruptive conduct, including criminal behavior,” said study author Laura Visu-Petra, a professor at Babes-Bolyai University.
“Most studies conducted in prisons to this date have focused either on adaptive (bright) or on maladaptive (dark) personality dimensions, without integrating them in a unitary design to identify the combination of protective and vulnerability factors predicting occasional criminal behavior and even the tendency to persevere in it (recidivism). ”
The study included 578 participants, split into two groups: a general community sample of 282 individuals and a group of 296 inmates from two maximum-security prisons in Romania. The inmate group was further divided into two subgroups: first-time offenders (129 people) and repeat offenders (167 people).
“The two co-author PhD candidates (Lili Hurezan and Andreea Turi) are ideally placed inside the prison system (correctional officers working directly with convicted offenders, including high-risk inmates) and this facilitated our access to this uniquely fascinating population,” Visu-Petra explained.
To measure personality traits, the researchers used two main tools. First, they assessed the Five-Factor Model of personality, which includes the traits neuroticism, extraversion, openness to experience, agreeableness, and conscientiousness. Second, they used the Dark Factor Inventory to assess dark personality traits, such as sadism, deceitfulness, narcissistic entitlement, and callousness. These dark traits are often associated with antisocial behaviors like manipulation, cruelty, and disregard for others’ well-being.
Each participant completed a set of questionnaires to measure their personality traits, with the inmate sample providing additional information from prison records about their criminal history and prison conduct. The researchers controlled for factors like age, gender, and the tendency to present oneself in a socially desirable way, which can sometimes skew results in personality assessments.
One of the most important findings was the association between neuroticism and criminal behavior. Neuroticism, which reflects a tendency to experience negative emotions like anxiety, anger, and sadness, was consistently linked to both first-time offending and recidivism. Individuals who scored higher in neuroticism were more likely to commit crimes and to reoffend. This suggests that emotional instability may be a risk factor for engaging in criminal activities and continuing to do so over time.
Another key finding was the role of openness to experience in predicting first-time offending. Openness is a personality trait associated with curiosity, imagination, and a willingness to try new things. In this study, individuals with higher levels of openness were more likely to be first-time offenders. This might suggest that people who are more open to new experiences may also be more willing to take risks, which could lead to criminal behavior. However, openness did not appear to predict recidivism, indicating that this trait may be more relevant to initial criminal acts rather than repeated offenses.
Interestingly, the study found that extraversion, which is typically associated with sociability and assertiveness, was lower in both first-time offenders and repeat offenders compared to individuals without a criminal history. This suggests that individuals who are more reserved or less outgoing may be more likely to engage in criminal behavior. The researchers hypothesize that this could be related to the prison environment, where being overly sociable or assertive might lead to conflicts or other risks, prompting individuals to adopt more reserved behaviors.
However, agreeableness did not emerge as a significant predictor of either first-time offending or recidivism once the researchers controlled for social desirability (the tendency to present oneself in a favorable light). Conscientiousness also did not show a strong connection to criminal behavior in this study.
“One surprising finding was that positive traits like agreeableness (the tendency to be cooperative, polite, kind, and friendly) and conscientiousness (the tendency to be organized, hard-working and to adhere to norms and rules) did not strongly predict whether someone would commit a crime or reoffend, once we accounted for the individual tendency to present oneself in a more favorable way,” Visu-Petra told PsyPost. “This suggests that earlier studies might have overstated the role these traits play in criminal behavior, and the importance of optimizing them through rehabilitation.”
The researchers also found that sadism, or the tendency to enjoy causing harm to others, was linked to first-time offending but not to recidivism. This indicates that while sadistic tendencies may play a role in the initial decision to break the law, they do not necessarily predict repeated criminal behavior.
Deceitfulness, on the other hand, emerged as a significant predictor of both first-time offenses and recidivism. Individuals who were more likely to lie, manipulate, or engage in other dishonest behaviors were at higher risk for both committing crimes and reoffending. This finding highlights the importance of deceitfulness as a consistent trait in criminal behavior.
But other dark traits like callousness (a lack of empathy), vindictiveness (a desire for revenge), and narcissistic entitlement (a sense of deserving more than others) did not emerge as significant predictors of criminal behavior or recidivism in this study. While these traits have been associated with antisocial behavior in other contexts, they did not seem to play a major role in distinguishing between first-time offenders, repeat offenders, and the general population in this sample.
“We were also surprised that, among the various dark personality dimensions, only deceitfulness stood out as a key factor in both first-time offenses and reoffending,” Visu-Petra said. “This suggests that not all self-serving behaviors lead to crime, but especially those involving dishonesty and breaking rules to achieve personal goals.”
In sum, the study’s findings demonstrate that a complex interplay of bright and dark personality traits contributes to criminal behavior.
“The primary takeaway from our study is that even when we look in a maximum security prison environment, human personality is highly multifaceted, encompassing a wide repertoire of adaptive (bright) and maladaptive (dark) traits,” Visu-Petra told PsyPost. “Each individual combination of these traits relates to criminal behavior and to the likelihood of reoffending in significant ways. Individuals involved in criminal activities report emotional instability (high neuroticism), reduced positive emotions, lower assertiveness, and diminished sensitivity to social feedback (low extraversion).”
“However, first time offenders are also more prone to new experiences and taking risks (high openness) and report higher levels of sadism. They agree to prioritizing their own interests, sometimes at the expense of others (high Dark Factor). Inmates may be more prone to engage in deceitful and illicit behavior (deceitfulness), yet they don’t necessarily differ from others in their motivation to cooperate or form bonds (similar levels of agreeableness).”
The researchers emphasize that dark personality traits, such as deceitfulness and sadism, while associated with criminality, should not be viewed as direct or definitive causes of criminal behavior.
“First of all, when we talk about personality, especially dark personality dimensions, we shouldn’t use such labels as an unequivocal predictor of criminal behavior,” Visu-Petra explained. “These ‘dark’ personality dimensions are universally found in the general population and are not causally linked to offending behavior. Therefore, a high Dark Factor score does not immediately signify that a person will become a criminal, since dark personality traits (such as high psychopathy or Machiavellianism) have been related to functional outcomes such as efficient corporate leadership styles.”
“Secondly, personality traits are not a static set of personal characteristics, and teaching individuals to recognize and challenge their antisocial beliefs and behaviors can foster greater cognitive flexibility, assertive problem-solving skills, and resilience. However, caution should be exercised when designing social skills enhancing programs to reduce reoffending, as these abilities may also enable malevolent tactics and better equip offenders to manipulate and take advantage of their victims’ vulnerabilities.”
Looking ahead, the research team intends to deepen their understanding of how personality traits, both bright and dark, evolve over time and influence behavior. They aim to study how these traits interact with beliefs and social environments to better predict both prosocial and antisocial behavior.
“Our long-term goal is to continue exploring how both bright and dark personality traits affect prosocial and antisocial behavior throughout a person’s life,” Visu-Petra said. “My team and I plan to investigate how these traits interact with personal beliefs, attitudes and with cognitive and emotional propensities which influence whether someone behaves in a communal or agentic, self interested manner.”
“We rely on an arsenal of self-reports and experimental, performance based, often creative methods to study adaptive and antisocial behaviors across the lifespan. By taking this comprehensive approach, we aim to gain a deeper understanding of how these traits evolve from childhood to adulthood, which can generate effective strategies for preventing and managing antisocial behavior and for fostering prosocial tendencies and (even dark) authenticity.”
“In order to develop and implement effective prevention and rehabilitation policies (designing tailored training programs for prison staff, reducing self-serving justifications supporting a criminal lifestyle), it is important to conduct studies with diverse populations, and we rely on their support and active collaboration throughout the (sometimes tedious) research endeavors,” Visu-Petra said. “This will impact not only practitioners working in correctional facilities, but also contribute to a safer and more accepting community for us all – so we would like to express our gratitude and to welcome further involvement from all participants in our studies.”
The study, “Dark and bright personality dimensions as predictors of criminal behavior and recidivism,” was authored by Liliana Hurezan, Andreea Turi, Andrei Ion, and Laura Visu-Petra.
