Research suggests a dark empath often feels: a lack of pleasure from social rewards, despite feeling the need for attention. high attunement to others' experiences and circumstances. emotional distance or detachment. a drive toward grandiosity conflicted by intense self-criticism.
What Is a Dark Empath? A dark empath is a term that describes someone who exploits their ability to understand how other people think and feel. They can recognize another person's perspective while also showing signs of psychopathy, narcissism and Machiavellianism.
It is usually motivated by personal gain. Dark empathy is related to the dark triad personality traits. The dark triad refers to the malevolent personality types of narcissism, Machiavellianism, and psychopathy. Characteristics of a regular compassionate empath would score low on dark triad traits but high in empathy.
Research has revealed that the personality type of the dark empath has the dark triad of traits: narcissism, Machiavellianism, and psychopathic tendencies.
A professional dating and relationship coach (@jacoblucas101 on TikTok) has said the dark empath is “the most dangerous personality type”, and a recent study calculated that around 19 percent of people in a group of 991 people were dark empaths, so they're not as hard to come by as you'd expect.
Heyoka empath
Heyoka empaths are said to be the rarest and most powerful variety, acting as a spiritual mirror to those around them to assist their growth. The Heyoka's unorthodox approach to life makes others question their own preconceived notions of what's right and wrong, real and fantasy.
Individuals are considered dark empaths when they possess cognitive and/or affective empathy as well as characteristics from the “dark triad” — a collective term for three dark personality traits: Machiavellianism, psychopathy and narcissism.
Going back to our earlier descriptions of the different types of empathy, dark empaths typically are highly skilled at cognitive empathy. They understand emotions very well, but struggle to translate that emotion into a motivation to help, and instead use it to their advantage.
Dark empaths don't necessarily lack empathy, however. They just have a “calculated way of experiencing empathy, which is expressed in a cognitive way versus an emotional way,” Adams says. They might use it to manipulate, gaslight, or bully others, instead of genuinely caring for or helping someone.
Moreover, dark empaths were a little higher in neuroticism, a type of negative thinking, but did not score higher on depression, anxiety or stress. Instead, their neuroticism may reflect sub-traits such as anger, hostility or self-doubt.
A dark empath, however, does not experience the affective nature of another's feelings. They cognitively understand what another person is feeling, but they do not have affective empathy, which means they don't emotionally connect with the feelings of others.
Dark empaths can be loving and give us the relationship goals we've always wanted. Yet, under the surface, their actions are designed to manipulate us — not so that we can have what we've always wanted but so that they can achieve their own ends.
Dark empaths show emotions, while psychopaths lack them.
According to a 2014 study by Martens in Psychiatric Times, psychopathy is generally characterized by features such as an incapacity for love and a lack of remorse or shame. This is different from dark empaths who do show emotions no matter how fake they may seem.
Some babies enter the world with more sensitivity than others—an inborn temperament. You can see it when they come out of the womb. They're much more responsive to light, smells, touch, movement, temperature, and sound. These infants seem to be empaths from the start.
No noise, bright lights, phone calls, texts, emails, internet, television, or conversations. It's sometimes important to just feel your own energy without anyone else around. You are being your own best friend, which is a way to nurture yourself. By decreasing external stimulation, it's also easier to clear negativity.
The Dark Triad personality traits – narcissism, psychopathy and Machiavellianism – can be toxic and damaging in the workplace. But be aware that someone exhibiting these traits may initially be a high achiever and potentially charming, conscientious and achievement-oriented.
The current results suggest that alcohol consumption acutely reduces empathic accuracy for positive emotions in men who do not drink hazardously, while empathic accuracy for negative emotions appears unaffected, as are men who drink hazardously.
The second type of empathy is what I call “deep empathy.” This is more than just a cognitive ability. It's the ability not just to imagine but to actually feel what other people are experiencing. It's the ability to actually enter the “mind space” of another person so that you can sense their feelings and emotions.
Empaths, generally, would rather receive a handmade gift or item of sentimental value than to be showered with expensive items. Empaths would likely place gift giving as their least desired love language, whereas narcissists would place it at the top of the list.
Our study, published in Personality and Individual Differences, identified a group of individuals with dark traits who report above average empathic capacities – we call them "dark empaths". Since this study, the dark empath has earned a reputation as the most dangerous personality profile.
INFJ is the rarest personality type across the population, occurring in just 2% of the population. It is also the rarest personality type among men. INFJ stands for Introversion, Intuition, Feeling, and Judging. This unique combination is hard to find in most people.
People who are extroverted, sensing, thinking, and perceiving are likely to catch your eye, experts say. These people are fun and adventurous, and that spirit will lure you in and keep you wanting more.