This study investigates how and why individuals with dark triad traits – Machiavellianism, narcissism, and psychopathy – develop diverging entrepreneurial intentions in social and commercial entrepreneurial domains. Drawing on social exchange theory, our study posits that individuals exhibiting high levels of certain dark triad traits are predisposed to environments that normalize self-serving, unilateral exchanges (e.g., commercial entrepreneurship). In contrast, reciprocal and prosocial exchange settings (e.g., social entrepreneurship) may be less appealing when employing stronger antisocial and manipulative strategies. We use meta-analytic techniques to examine the relationships between the dark triad traits and both social and commercial entrepreneurial intentions across 43 independent samples (N = 19,992). Our findings reveal that Machiavellianism and psychopathy are positively related to commercial entrepreneurial intention and negatively related to social entrepreneurial intention, while narcissism is positively related to commercial entrepreneurial intention and social entrepreneurial intention. Further investigating moderation effects, the study illuminates on the methodological and demographic contingencies of dark triad traits in entrepreneurship. We uncover not only gender-based variations, but also instrument-dependent variations in the relationship between the dark triad traits and (social) entrepreneurial intentions. This study advances social exchange theory by proposing a forward-looking perspective, demonstrating how individuals’ anticipation of social exchange contexts shapes their intentions to engage in them. By uncovering these preferences, our research provides actionable insights for policymakers and educators to channel such individuals’ entrepreneurial potential into sustainable and ethical business practices.
