The relationship between the dark triad and suicidal ideation: the mediation model of social alienation

Suicidal thoughts, as the main predictor of suicide attempts, have been the focus of many specialists and clinical experts in recent years. The present study was conducted with the aim of investigating the relationship between dark triad personality traits and suicidal thoughts with the mediation of social alienation. The method of the present research is fundamental in terms of its purpose and cross-sectional-descriptive in terms of the type of data collection, and it is included in the collection of correlation-modeling studies of structural equations. The statistical population of the study includes all young people aged 18 to 40 in Tabriz, 200 of whom participated in the research through voluntary sampling. Three personality traits, Beck Suicidal Thoughts inventory and Social Alienation Questionnaire were used for research measurements. The results of data analysis using the path analysis method indicate the significance of the direct effect of the dark triad, narcissism and psychopathy, and the non-significance of the direct effect of Machiavellianism on suicidal thoughts. Also, the indirect effect of dark triad, narcissism and Machiavellianism on suicidal thoughts due to social alienation was significant, but the indirect effect of psychopathy on suicidal thoughts due to social alienation was not significant. Based on this, it can be said that the dark triad, narcissism and Machiavellianism play a significant role in increasing suicidal thoughts by affecting social alienation. The findings of the present study can be useful for clinical interventions aimed at reducing suicidal thoughts.