What dark side characteristics do you have? How can you use them to get ahead? How can they hurt you? This presentation will help you to learn more about the dark side of personality, in particular the Dark Triad of narcissism, Machiavellianism, and psychopathy.
Unlocking Productivity and Personal Growth through the Importance-Urgency Matrix
Dark Side of Personality and Leadership (FYE)
1. Seth M. Spain, Ph.D.
School of Management & Center for Leadership Studies,
Binghamton University
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Presented to the
Binghamton University First Year Experience
2. Seth M. Spain, Ph.D.
School of Management & Center for Leadership Studies,
Binghamton University
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Presented to the
Binghamton University First Year Experience
3. Objectives
Introduce the concept of personality characteristics
Orient you to the so-called “dark side” of personality
Provide guidance on the interpersonal perspective
on psychology
Orient important dark side characteristics in it
Orient “good” leadership in it
Provide perspective on failures of leadership
Effective vs. successful leaders
Why do managers derail?
8. What do I mean, “Dark Side”?
Personality traits characterize a person’s typical
interpersonal style
Typical ways of thinking, feeling, and behaving
Relatively enduring over time, vis à vis states
“Bright Side” or Normal-range personality
“Paddle your CANOE in the OCEAN”
Dark Side or subclinical personality
Not necessarily dysfunctional (for everyday life)
“Dark triad” and DSM-IV
9. Why should you (or anyone)
care?
Normal-range personality can predict behavior-at-work
Job performance
Citizenship behaviors
Counterproductive behaviors
Leadership
Abusive supervision
Managerial derailment
The Dark Side seems to be much, much more powerful
Twice as potent, even after accounting for normal-range
(Harms, Spain, Hannah, & Hogan, 2011)
10. Axis II – Hogan Development
Survey – Dark Triad
Subclinical Trait DSM-IV Construct Dark Triad Construct
Excitable Borderline
Skeptical Paranoid Machiavellianism?
Cautious Avoidant
Reserved Schizoid
Leisurely Passive-Aggressive
Bold Narcissistic Narcissism
Mischievous Antisocial Psychopathy
Colorful Histrionic
Imaginative Schizotypal
Diligent Obsessive-Compulsive
Dutiful Dependent
Table from Spain, Harms, &
LeBreton (2014), modified from
Harms, Spain, & Hannah, (2011)
11. Axis II – Hogan Development
Survey – Dark Triad
Subclinical Trait DSM-IV Construct Dark Triad Construct
Excitable Borderline
Skeptical Paranoid Machiavellianism?
Cautious Avoidant
Reserved Schizoid
Leisurely Passive-Aggressive
Bold Narcissistic Narcissism
Mischievous Antisocial Psychopathy
Colorful Histrionic
Imaginative Schizotypal
Diligent Obsessive-Compulsive
Dutiful Dependent
Table from Spain, Harms, &
LeBreton (2014), modified from
Harms, Spain, & Hannah, (2011)
12. Axis II – Hogan Development
Survey – Dark Triad
Subclinical Trait DSM-IV Construct Dark Triad Construct
Excitable Borderline
Skeptical Paranoid Machiavellianism?
Cautious Avoidant
Reserved Schizoid
Leisurely Passive-Aggressive
Bold Narcissistic Narcissism
Mischievous Antisocial Psychopathy
Colorful Histrionic
Imaginative Schizotypal
Diligent Obsessive-Compulsive
Dutiful Dependent
Table from Spain, Harms, &
LeBreton (2014), modified from
Harms, Spain, & Hannah, (2011)
16. Effective vs. Successful
Leaders can be either “effective” or “successful”
Ensure tasks get done
Get ahead
Only a handful are both
17. Effective vs. Successful
Leaders can be either “effective” or “successful”
Ensure tasks get done (beat competition)
Get ahead (get promoted)
Only a handful are both (10%)
Effective leaders
Communicate
Manage their teams
18. Effective vs. Successful
Leaders can be either “effective” or “successful”
Ensure tasks get done (beat competition)
Get ahead (get promoted)
Only a handful are both (10%)
Effective leaders
Communicate
Manage their teams
Successful leaders
Network
Engage in office politics
23. Destructive Leadership
Rates of managerial incompetence are HIGH (maybe
as high as 70%, according to Bob Hogan)
That is just ineffective leadership
Here, we’re concerned with leaders who are
basically evil
Intent-to-harm (Krasikova, Green, & LeBreton, 2014)
Tend to impute hostile motives to others
More machiavellian
Trait aggressiveness
Skeptical/Paranoid
25.
Narcissists may be more motivated to work hard to
become leaders
Want to “be the best” at what they do
May be domineering and competitive with
subordinates and peers, though
Narcissists can be good at selling ideas
May “poison” the well in long-term relationships,
though
Narcissism
26.
Narcissists may be more motivated to work hard to
become leaders
May be domineering and competitive with
subordinates, though
Narcissists can be good at selling ideas
May “poison” the well in long-term relationships,
though
Narcissism
27.
Narcissists may be more motivated to work hard to
become leaders
May be domineering and competitive with
subordinates, though
Narcissists can be good at selling ideas
May “poison” the well in long-term relationships,
though
Narcissism
29. Machiavellianism
Manipulators
Liars
Good at forming alliances
Use lots of social influence tactics (“Protean”)
Engage in office politics
Willing to use threats, intimidation
Willing to beg and compromise
“Do what needs to be done”
30. Machiavellianism
Manipulators
Liars
Good at forming alliances
Use lots of social influence tactics (“Protean”)
31. Machiavellianism
Manipulators
Liars
Good at forming alliances
Use lots of social influence tactics (“Protean”)
32. Psychopathy
Not prone to feeling guilt or shame
Less anxiety than others
Impulsive
Willing to harm others to succeed
33. Psychopathy
Not prone to feeling guilt or shame
Less anxiety than others
Impulsive
Willing to harm others to succeed
35. Bond, James Bond
The Dark Triad
Narcissism
Machiavellianism
Psychopathy
Powerfully agentic
36. Bond, James Bond
The Dark Triad
Narcissism
Machiavellianism
Psychopathy
Powerfully agentic
Puts self ahead of
others
“Not a team player”
37. Bond, James Bond
The Dark Triad
Narcissism
Machiavellianism
Psychopathy
Powerfully agentic
Puts self ahead of
others
“Not a team player”
38. Skeptical
Euphemism for “paranoid”
Described as “having a chip on [their] shoulders”
Suspicious
People high in skepticism look for—and find!—
ulterior motives in interpersonal interactions
Bad for development
Bad for team-work
39. Skeptical
Euphemism for “paranoid”
Described as “having a chip on [their] shoulders”
Suspicious
People high in skepticism look for—and find!—
ulterior motives in interpersonal interactions
Bad for development
Bad for team-work
47. Thanks!
To you!
To my six-month old, identical twin daughters, for
sleeping enough to let me do this!
48. Follow
@SethMSpain on Twitter
Sethspain.wordpress.com
www.psychologytoday.com/blog/the-dark-side-work
Hinweis der Redaktion
I’ll be using a lot of pop culture illustrations…so…
1. They tend to exploit and trick others for self-advancement.
2. They have used lies and deception to get their way.
3. They have used ingratiation to get their way.
4. They tend to manipulate others for selfish reasons.
5. They tend not to feel regretful and apologetic after having done wrong.
6. They tend not to worry about whether their behaviour is ethical.
7. They tend to be lacking in empathy and crassly unaware of the distress they can cause others.
8. They tend to take a pretty dim view of humanity, attributing nasty motives and selfishness.
9. They tend to be hungry for admiration.
10. They tend to want to be the centre of attention.
11. They tend to aim for higher status and signs of their importance.
12. They tend to take it for granted that other people will make extra efforts to help them.
* Courtesy of Office Politics by Oliver James (Vermillion)
Effective leaders get work done…spend a lot of time communicating with their staff, in meetings, etc.
Successful leaders get promoted…spend most of their time networking
Effective leaders get work done…spend a lot of time communicating with their staff, in meetings, etc.
Successful leaders get promoted…spend most of their time networking
Effective leaders get work done…spend a lot of time communicating with their staff, in meetings, etc.
Successful leaders get promoted…spend most of their time networking
Napoleon – poor student, but a voracious reader of military history and tactics
Napoleon’s coronation – he’s said to have taken the crown from the Pope and crowned himself emperor of France.
Napoleon’s retreat from Moscow. Said to be an example of the “Victory disease”—don’t let early successes go to your head; confidence is good, hubris will destroy you.
Honestly, Putin might not be a Machiavellian, but he was in the KGB, for lands’ sake. Also…that picture is a narcissist if I’ve ever seen one!
Frank Underwood’s first monologue in the premiere episode of House of Cards sums this up well: “Moments like this require someone like me. Someone who will act. Who will do what no one else has the courage to do. Someone who will do the unpleasant thing. The necessary thing.” In business, the psychopath’s comparative lack of feelings of remorse could make it easier to fire people during downsizing, or even just for thrills, as Jack Donaghy memorably demonstrated on 30 Rock:
Jack: “Fire her. And don’t ever make me talk to a woman that old again.”
Liz: “I can’t fire Rosemary!”
Jack: “Sure you can. It’s easy. Observe. Jonathan, you’re fired.”
Jack Donaghy clearly has no remorse when it comes to firing people.
Frank Underwood’s first monologue in the premiere episode of House of Cards sums this up well: “Moments like this require someone like me. Someone who will act. Who will do what no one else has the courage to do. Someone who will do the unpleasant thing. The necessary thing.” In business, the psychopath’s comparative lack of feelings of remorse could make it easier to fire people during downsizing, or even just for thrills, as Jack Donaghy memorably demonstrated on 30 Rock:
Jack: “Fire her. And don’t ever make me talk to a woman that old again.”
Liz: “I can’t fire Rosemary!”
Jack: “Sure you can. It’s easy. Observe. Jonathan, you’re fired.”
Jack Donaghy clearly has no remorse when it comes to firing people.
High dominance, low nurturance (agency, communion)
“The point is, ladies and gentleman, that greed, for lack of a better word, is good. Greed is right, greed works. Greed clarifies, cuts through and captures the essence of the evolutionary spirit. Greed, in all of its forms: greed for life, for money, for love; knowledge has marked the upward surge of mankind.”
- Gordon Gekko