Size the day: The time perspectives of the Dark Triad

Recent empirical findings on the Dark Triad and Life History Theory suggest that the behaviors linked to the Dark Triad are dominantly characterized by a fast life strategy with increased motivation to acquire short-term benefits and prioritize situations with immediate rewards. Current studies have also suggested that time perspectives could be one of the psychological mediators between actual behavior and life history strategies assuming that a present-oriented attitude is associated with fast life strategies. In line with this suggestion, we predicted to find associations between time perspectives and the Dark Triad traits. The prediction was investigated by self-reports. In accordance with the predictions, the results showed positive associations of the Dark Triad traits with the present-oriented time perspectives. In addition, unlike Narcissism, Machiavellianism and Psychopathy were found to be related to a negative view of the past. Our study provides the first evidence for significant associations between Dark Triad personality and time perspectives. (C) 2015 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.