How ruthless are you? - take the test to find out

Psychologists have devised surveys to measure where a person falls on the "dark triad” spectrum of personalities, which encompasses Machiavellianism, narcissism and psychopathy

Christian Bale as Patrick Bateman in American Psycho (Moviestore Collection/REX/Shutterstock)

Do you identify more with The Joker than Batman, and are baffled by how anyone would rather be sorted into Gryffindor than Slytherin by the Harry Potter sorting hat?

If this sounds familiar, you may be may fall into the "dark triad" of personalities which is categorised by high levels of Machiavellianism, narcissism and psychopathy.

Psychologists from the Universities of Texas at El Paso and the University of British Columbia Canada are among those to study such traits.

The BBC recently used their research as a basis for a quiz to measure where a person falls on this spectrum.

Those who score highly are unafraid to manipulate others to get their way, are unsympathetic, and regard themselves as admirable.

But the makers stress that the quiz is just a bit of fun – so don’t be too concerned if you score highly - but it does give an interesting insight into an invidual's personality.

Click here to take the test

(BBC ) (BBC)

Another measure of traits associated with the dark triad is whether a person enjoys bitter foods such as black coffee, according to a recent study.

Researchers at Innsbruck University in Austria showed 500 men and women a list of equal numbers of sweet, salty, sour and bitter foods and drinks.

The participants rated whether they liked or disliked each food, and later completed personality questionnaires.

The study published in the journal ‘Appetite’ showed: “General bitter taste preferences emerged as a robust predictor for Machiavellianism, psychopathy, narcissism and everyday sadism.”