Manipulation, Ego, and Mean Streaks by Personality Type: A Study

What the Dark Side of Personality Survey Revealed

Everyone has a dark side, and personality shapes what it looks like. Maybe it's a talent for manipulation you don't advertise, or a mean streak that only your siblings have seen. Psychologists group tendencies like these under the Dark Triad, a term that covers Machiavellianism (using other people strategically to get ahead), narcissism (an inflated sense of your own importance and a hunger for admiration), and psychopathy (impulsiveness paired with a thin regard for how others feel). In everyday life, these show up as shades rather than diagnoses. Most of us carry a little of each.

To find out how those shades vary across the 16 personality types, we created the "Dark Side of Personality" survey – 15 blunt questions about self-interest, attention, impulse, and secrecy. Over 75,000 people responded, and they were more candid than we expected. A few traits, it turns out, predict who will own up to what.

Where Dark Tendencies Divide and Unite the Types

The sharpest line in the data runs between the Thinking trait – a preference for logic over emotion when deciding – and the Feeling trait, which weighs emotions and the effect on other people first. On every question that involved using someone else for personal gain, Thinking personalities said yes far more often. Two of those questions, the mean streak and the reluctance to enter a deal that favors someone else, produced perfectly clean splits, with every Thinking type agreeing at a higher rate than every Feeling type. The same three types sat at or near the top of nearly every list – ENTJ personalities (Commanders), ENTP personalities (Debaters), and ESTP personalities (Entrepreneurs) – while ISFJ personalities (Defenders) sat at or near the bottom of almost all of them.

A second line runs between the Extraverted trait, which draws people toward social energy and attention, and the Introverted trait, whose owners recharge in solitude and tend to keep a lower profile. Wherever the survey touched ego – enjoying being talked about, believing the fun leaves the room with you, making sure achievements get noticed – Extraverted personalities outscored Introverted ones almost without exception. Introverted types claimed one dark habit for themselves instead. They keep far more secrets.

Impulse followed a third pattern. Types with the Prospecting trait, a preference for flexibility over fixed plans, were the most likely to admit to a reckless or hot-tempered reputation, the least likely to avoid risky situations, and the most likely to report brushes with the law. Judging personalities, who prefer plans to improvisation, generally kept their heads down and their records clean.

One tendency crossed every line. Nearly all respondents admitted to taking the lead because they doubted others would do a good job. At the opposite extreme, run-ins with the law drew the lowest agreement of any question for every personality type. Whatever else respondents admitted to, actual lawbreaking was rare.

Getting Ahead, Taking Charge, and Resisting Authority

The first three questions asked how far respondents will go to get their way. Would they manipulate someone to get ahead, take the lead because they doubt anyone else will do the job well, and struggle to get along with authority figures? Thinking types dominate all three lists, with the same few types at the top each time. The exceptions are just as telling. Taking charge turned out to be nearly universal, and ENTJs, who lead almost everywhere else, slipped to the middle on authority figures, apparently content with a hierarchy as long as they expect to run it.

Manipulation as a Means of Getting Ahead

Manipulating some people to get ahead in life sounded acceptable to most Thinking personalities. ENTJs were the most willing to manipulate others to get ahead, with 80% agreeing. ENTPs followed at 79%, and ESTPs came in at 75%. INTJ personalities (Architects) and INTP personalities (Logicians) weren't far behind, at 69% and 64%. For these types, manipulation may simply register as one more tool that happens to be lying around.

Feeling personalities recoiled. Only 17% of ISFJs said they would manipulate people to get ahead, the lowest rate of any type. INFJ personalities (Advocates) and INFP personalities (Mediators) both landed at 26%. The gap between ENTJs and ISFJs stretches past 60 points, the widest divide in the entire survey. The phrasing deserves a second look, though. The question asked about "some people," and the ENTJ who says yes is probably picturing a rival.

Taking Over When Others Might Fall Short

Stepping into the leading role because you don't trust others to do a good job was the one habit nearly everyone confessed to. A striking 93% of ENTJs said they often take the lead because they doubt others will do a good job, the highest agreement rate in the survey. ENTPs followed at 88%, ESTJ personalities (Executives) at 87%, and INTJs at 85%. ESTPs weren't far off at 83%. If you've ever watched one of these types quietly take over a group project in the first five minutes, this number will not surprise you.

Even the types least likely to take over still admitted to it about half the time. Around half of INFPs (51%) said they often take the lead because they doubt others will do a good job, along with 52% of ISFP personalities (Adventurers) and 54% of ISFJs. That floor tells you something. Wanting things done right is a broadly human wish. What varies by personality is how quickly that wish turns into grabbing the wheel.

Butting Heads with Authority Figures

Getting along with authority figures comes hardest to INTPs. A full 69% of INTPs said they find it difficult to get along with authority figures, followed by 67% of ENTPs and 64% of INTJs. ESTPs at 61% and ISTP personalities (Virtuosos) at 59% round out the top five. The common thread is a low tolerance for being told what to do by someone who hasn't earned the right.

Here's where it gets interesting. ENTJs, who topped nearly every other question in this survey, dropped to the middle of the pack on this one. Only 51% of ENTJs said they struggle with authority figures. ENTJs tend to get along with the hierarchy because they plan to run it. At the calm end, just 22% of ESFJ personalities (Consuls) reported difficulty getting along with authority figures, the lowest of any type, with ISFJs at 29% and ENFJ personalities (Protagonists) and ESTJs both at 33%.

How Personality Types Work Their Social World

The next four questions turned to the people around our respondents and how they handle them. Do they keep friends for their connections, enjoy being talked about, avoid situations they can't predict, and keep tabs on other people's business in case it comes in handy? Two different traits drive this group. The Thinking trait predicts who treats friends and information as resources, while the Extraverted trait predicts who enjoys being the subject of conversation. The question about risk stands slightly apart, since here the cautious answer is the tame one, and it flips the usual ranking.

Friendships Kept for Their Connections

Keeping a friend only because their connections might come in handy struck most respondents as a step too far, which is reassuring. ENTJs were the lone exception. In all, 58% of ENTJs admitted to keeping certain friends only because their connections come in handy, making ENTJs the only type to cross the 50% mark. ENTPs followed at 48%, ESTPs at 44%, and INTJs at 39%. For these types, a network is a resource, and there's a certain honesty in saying so out loud.

Feeling personalities found the idea close to unthinkable. Just 13% of ISFJs said they keep friends for their connections, with INFPs at 14% and INFJs at 17%. ISFPs came in at 19%. These are the personalities most likely to feel a little sick at the thought of a transactional friendship. It's also possible that some of them keep a useful friend or two and simply don't file the relationship under "useful."

The Pleasure of Being Talked About

Enjoying the sound of other people talking about you is where the Extraverted trait did almost all the work. ENTPs and ENTJs tied for the top, with 80% of each type saying they enjoy hearing people talk about them. ESTPs followed at 74%, ESFP personalities (Entertainers) at 73%, and ENFP personalities (Campaigners) at 71%. Every Extraverted type scored higher than every Introverted type, and Introverted personalities were noticeably more ambivalent about being the topic of conversation.

ISFJs were the least enthusiastic. Only 38% of ISFJs said they enjoy hearing people talk about them, and ISTJ personalities (Logisticians) weren't much higher at 43%. Even the most attention-friendly Introverted type, INTJs at 49%, fell short of the least attention-friendly Extraverted type, ESFJs at 57%. There's a small tell in the phrasing here too. The question didn't specify whether the talk was flattering. The Extraverted types said yes anyway.

Steering Clear of Risk and Unpredictability

Avoiding situations that feel risky or unpredictable is the one habit in the survey where a "yes" is the tamer answer, and the results flip accordingly. ISFJs and ISTJs tied at 83%, the highest rates of any type, in saying they avoid risky or unpredictable situations. INFJs (77%) and INTJs (76%) were close behind. Introverted personalities with the Judging trait would generally rather know how the evening ends.

At the other end sit the types who treat "unpredictable" as a selling point. Only 27% of ESTPs and 28% of ENTPs said they avoid risky situations, meaning roughly three-quarters of each type walk toward the uncertainty. ENFPs came in at 40%, with ENTJs and ESFPs both at 45%. The Prospecting trait explains a lot of this, but so does Extraversion. Risk, for these personalities, often looks like a room they haven't been in yet.

Other People's Business as Leverage

Staying informed about other people's business, just in case the information comes in handy someday, is the most Machiavellian habit in the survey, and Thinking personalities owned it. Fully 79% of ENTJs said they stay informed about other people's business in case the information becomes useful, followed by 74% of ENTPs and 67% of ESTPs. INTJs at 65%, ESTJs at 62%, and INTPs at 58% also leaned yes. For these types, information is leverage, and gathering it is simply good planning.

Feeling personalities were far less interested in building a file on anyone. Only 27% of ISFJs said they keep tabs on other people's business for their own advantage, with ISFPs at 32%, INFPs at 34%, and INFJs at 37%. The framing matters here. Plenty of Feeling types know everything about everyone. They just aren't saving it for later.

Ego, Temper, and the Private Self

Four questions then turned inward, asking respondents how they see themselves and how they think others see them. Do people have less fun without them, would friends call them reckless or hot-tempered, do they hold many secrets, and do they feel special? Extraverted types claimed the two ego questions almost outright, Prospecting types claimed the temper, and Introverted types claimed the secrets. This is the section where each part of the personality spectrum gets its own dark habit.

Believing the Fun Leaves with You

The suspicion that people have less fun when you're not in the room is the survey's purest test of narcissism, and no personality type reached a majority. ESTPs came the closest, with 49% saying people have less fun when they aren't around. ENTPs followed at 43% and ENTJs at 41%. ESFPs (37%) and ENFPs (34%) were next. The top eight spots all belonged to Extraverted types, which makes sense. If you're usually the one turning the music up, it's not unreasonable to assume the party dims a little when you leave.

Introverted personalities mostly assumed the party carried on fine. Just 13% of INFPs and 13% of ISFJs said people have less fun without them, with INFJs, ISTJs, and INTJs all at 15%. Humility explains part of it. The rest may be the quiet suspicion that no one noticed they left.

Reckless and Hot-Tempered Reputations

A reputation for being reckless or hot-tempered, at least now and then, is one ESTPs readily accept. Among ESTPs, 77% believe the people around them would call them reckless or hot-tempered at times, followed by 73% of ENTPs and 63% of ENTJs. ESFPs (61%), ENFPs (57%), and ISTPs (56%) filled out the top half. Prospecting and Extraverted traits dominate this list, and Explorer personality types (the Observant, Prospecting group) are especially well represented.

ISFJs were the least likely to expect that label. Only 32% of ISFJs think others would call them reckless or hot-tempered, with ESFJs at 37% and INFJs at 38%. INTJs and ISTJs both sat at 42%. Notice that ENTJs, a Judging type, still landed at 63%. ENTJs may plan everything else, and the temper still slips out.

A Private Store of Secrets

Having many secrets that no one else knows turned out to be an Introverted specialty, and the rates were remarkable. INTJs and INTPs tied at 82% in reporting many secrets no one else knows, with INFJs at 80% and ISTPs at 78%. INFPs followed at 74%. For Introverted types, an inner life that nobody else can fully access is the default setting.

ESFJs were the only personality type where fewer than half agreed. Just 41% of ESFJs said they have many secrets no one else knows. ESTJs at 54%, ISFJs at 55%, and ESFPs at 56% weren't far above the line. Whether secrecy belongs on the "dark side" at all is debatable, since most secrets are harmless.

A Sense of Being Special

Feeling special in many ways came easily to ENTJs. They topped the list, with 82% saying they feel special in many ways, followed by 78% of ENTPs and 71% of INTJs. ENFJs (70%) and ENFPs (66%) were next, with ESTPs also at 66%. The Intuitive trait, a preference for ideas and possibilities over concrete detail, runs through most of the upper half. Intuitive personalities tend to see themselves as a work in progress, and a work in progress is, by definition, unlike anything else.

Observant personalities, who focus on what's real and in front of them, were more modest. Only 35% of ISFJs said they feel special in many ways, with ISFPs at 36%, ISTPs at 43%, and ISTJs at 44%. The four lowest scores all belong to Observant, Introverted types. These personalities may simply have a more grounded yardstick. Special compared to what, exactly?

Mean Streaks, Hard Bargains, and Brushes with the Law

The final four questions asked where these tendencies leave a mark. Do respondents have a mean streak, guard against deals that favor someone else, make sure their achievements get noticed, and have a history of run-ins with the law? The first two produced the cleanest Thinking and Feeling splits in the survey, the third belongs to Extraverted types, and the last drew the lowest agreement of any question. Even the types most willing to admit to everything else mostly stopped short of legal trouble.

Owning Up to a Mean Streak

Admitting to a mean streak produced one of the cleanest personality splits in the survey. Every Thinking type owned up to a mean streak at a higher rate than every Feeling type, with no overlap between the two groups. ENTJs led, with 58% of ENTJs saying they have a mean streak, followed by ESTPs at 57% and ENTPs at 56%. INTJs came in at 51%, making them the fourth and final type to cross the halfway mark.

Feeling personalities were reluctant to claim one. Only 29% of ESFJs said they have a mean streak, with ISFJs at 30% and ENFJs at 32%. The overall spread here was fairly narrow, under 30 points, which suggests that a mean streak is something a lot of people recognize in themselves regardless of type. The difference is who's comfortable saying so. Thinking types may be more willing to name the streak because they don't experience it as a contradiction of who they are.

Refusing Deals That Benefit Others More

Being careful never to commit to something that benefits someone else more than yourself is a guarded way to live, and most respondents said it wasn't their style. No personality type reached a majority. ENTJs were the most guarded, with 47% saying they're always careful not to commit to something that benefits someone else more than themselves. INTJs followed at 45%, ESTPs at 43%, INTPs at 40%, and ENTPs at 39%. Here, once again, every Thinking type outscored every Feeling type.

Feeling personalities barely registered the concern. Just 16% of ESFJs and 16% of INFPs said they're always careful to avoid deals that benefit someone else more, with ENFPs at 17% and ENFJs at 18%. For these types, a lopsided arrangement in someone else's favor doesn't set off alarms. It might even be the point. Whether that reads as generosity or as a blind spot probably depends on which side of the deal you're standing on.

Making Sure the Credit Lands

Making certain that your achievements don't slip by unnoticed is second nature to ENTJs. Nearly two-thirds of ENTJs (64%) said they make sure their achievements don't go unnoticed, followed by 60% of ENTPs and 58% of ESTPs. ESTJs (51%) were the only other type above half. Extraverted personalities crowd the top of this list. Seven of the eight Extraverted types outscored every Introverted type, and the exception, ESFJs at 41%, missed by a fraction of a point.

Introverted personalities preferred to let the work speak for itself, or at least to let someone else mention it. Only 23% of ISFJs said they make sure their achievements get noticed, the lowest of any type, with INFPs at 29% and both ISFPs and INFJs at 30%.

Brushes with the Law

Occasional trouble with the law was rare across the board, and this was the least-endorsed item in the survey for every personality type. Still, two types stood apart. Roughly one in three ESTPs (31%) and ENTPs (31%) reported occasional run-ins with the law. ENTJs followed at 22%, with INTPs and ENFPs both at 19%. The two types at the top share the Extraverted, Thinking, and Prospecting traits, and both scored high on recklessness earlier in the survey.

ISFJs, fittingly, were the least likely to have tangled with the law. Only 8% of ISFJs reported occasional run-ins with the law, with INFJs and ISFPs both at 10%. Even at the high end, this question is a reminder of scale. Most ESTPs haven't had a brush with the law either. The dark side, for most personality types, lives well within legal limits.

What These Dark Side Findings Mean in Everyday Life

Read the whole survey in one sitting and a few characters emerge, along with a question the data can't fully answer. These numbers measure who was willing to say yes. A Thinking personality who agrees to "I have a mean streak" may not be meaner than a Feeling personality who says no. They may just be less bothered by the admission. Candor about your flaws is its own kind of virtue, and it happens to be one the survey couldn't separate from the flaws themselves.

What the data does show is that the dark side has a recognizable shape for each personality type. For some, it's the friend kept on file. For others, it's the secret nobody will ever hear, or the group project quietly commandeered. Knowing the shape of your dark side makes it a lot harder to pretend it isn't there.