The “dark factor” is the basic disposition to maximize one’s individual utility and disregarding, accepting, or malevolently provoking disutility for others while adopting justifying beliefs. In the social sciences, this is a study in what is called “ethically, morally, and socially questionable behavior”. The theory posits a common source behind “dark traits” (listed below) and the behavior manifested—thus presenting in that behavior beyond what any individual dark trait would predict.