Testing Gender Differences: The Dark Triad and Motives for Deceptive Impression Management

This study examined the effect of the dark triad personality traits of Machiavellianism, narcissism, and psychopathy on motives for deceptive impression management in consideration of gender differences. An online survey was conducted with 121 Japanese university students (57 men, 64 women), who completed the Short Dark Triad-Japanese version and the Acting in Daily Life Scale. Multiple-group structural equation modeling results were as follows: (a) Men with high Machiavellianism scored lower on relationship maintenance and relationship acquisition than women with high Machiavellianism did; (b) narcissism was positively associated with relationship acquisition in men, whereas in women, narcissism was negatively associated with difficult situations; and (c) in both men and women, psychopathy was negatively associated with relationship acquisition. The findings suggest that the effects of the dark triad of personality on deceptive impression management in daily life are gender-specific and dependent on cost estimates.