Psychologists sometimes study traits related to everyday sadism, meaning a subclinical (non-clinical) tendency to enjoy minor forms of others’ discomfort. This is not the same as clinical sadism or criminal behaviour.

Some findings from research on “dark personality traits” suggest that:

• A small minority of people report some enjoyment of activities like teasing, humiliating others in games, or seeing others “get what they deserve”
• These traits often cluster with other “Dark Tetrad” traits:
  • narcissism (self-importance)
  • Machiavellianism (manipulation)
  • psychopathy (callousness/low empathy)
  • sadism (enjoyment of others’ suffering)
• In experimental or questionnaire-based studies (including among student samples), a minor percentage of participants endorse statements suggesting they sometimes enjoy causing or watching mild discomfort—but this is typically in low-intensity, socially acceptable contexts (e.g., competitive games, humour, arguments)

⚠️ Important clarifications

• This does not mean most people are sadistic—the majority strongly reject harming others.
• It does not automatically indicate violence or abuse.
• Many findings are based on self-report surveys, which can be influenced by humour, exaggeration, or misunderstanding of questions.
• Context matters a lot: what looks like “enjoying dominance in arguments” can often be competitiveness, humour, or conflict style, not sadism.

🧩 The key takeaway

Research in this area suggests that a very small proportion of people may derive mild pleasure from others’ discomfort, but in most cases it exists on a spectrum of personality traits rather than as a clear-cut “type of person.”

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