Is This a Psychopath’s Sport? Examining the Prevalence of Dark Personality Traits and Sportspersonship Among Combat Sports Athletes

Mojtahedi, D., Whitfield, S., Watson, D., Farrimond, C., Fozzard, T., Brimmell, Jack and Ruddick, L. (2026) Is This a Psychopath’s Sport? Examining the Prevalence of Dark Personality Traits and Sportspersonship Among Combat Sports Athletes. Martial Arts Studies, 19. pp. 16-28. ISSN 2057-5696

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Abstract

Due to the inherently aggressive nature of many combat sports (CS), it is sometimes assumed that athletes who participate in these disciplines possess malevolent, or ‘dark’ personality traits associated with a propensity to harm others (e.g., psychopathy). The present study compared the prevalence of Dark Triad personality traits (psychopathy, narcissism, and Machiavellianism) and sportspersonship attitudes between CS athletes and non-aggressive sport participants (Ultimate Frisbee [UF] players). Survey responses from 194 CS athletes and 194 UF players indicated that CS participants exhibited higher levels of psychopathy, narcissism, and Machiavellianism than UF participants. Moreover, CS athletes placed a greater emphasis on winning compared with UF players. The findings further suggest that psychopathy is negatively associated with respect towards opponents, while narcissism is positively associated with the prioritisation of winning over other factors.

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