If You Consider Yourself Creative, You Might Be a Bit of a Psychopath

The stereotype of a crazy artist or mad scientist might not be too far off. According to a study published last month in the journal Personality and Individual Differences, creative people share many of the same characteristics of psychopaths.

While the medical field has been back-and-forth on whether creativity is linked to sanity or madness, researchers at De La Salle University suggest psychopathic qualities may be intrinsically linked with the need to innovate.

“Emotional disinhibition, in the form of psychopathic boldness, is actually integral to some creative personalities and functionally related to the creative process,” the abstract read.

“A creative field might not just shape a person into a more arrogant or dishonest personality, it might be actively selecting them,” the researchers continued. “Not for the sake of having disagreeable traits, but because such traits meaningfully co-vary with creativity itself,” 

In a series of three experiments, scientists found that signs of creativity “were correlated with dark triad narcissism and psychopathy, but the stronger correlation was for psychopathic boldness.” 

Despite discovering a link between psychopathic meanness and disinhibition, the researchers were careful to point out that these behaviors “do not seem essential to the creative personality.”

“They just happen to coincide with it,” the researchers added.

So continue carry on with your crazy, cooky, creative ways. Just don’t use it as an excuse to be a jerk.