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Eck J, Schoel C, Sedikides C, Gebauer JE, Stahlberg D. Which leadership style do more narcissistic subordinates prefer in supervisors? J Pers 2024. [PMID: 38888272 DOI: 10.1111/jopy.12950] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 01/17/2024] [Revised: 05/03/2024] [Accepted: 05/10/2024] [Indexed: 06/20/2024]
Abstract
BACKGROUND AND OBJECTIVE Subordinates in Western cultures generally prefer supervisors with a democratic rather than autocratic leadership style. It is unclear, however, whether more narcissistic subordinates share or challenge this prodemocratic default attitude. On the one hand, more narcissistic individuals strive for power and thus may favor a democratic supervisor, who grants them power through participation. On the other hand, similarity attracts and, thus, more narcissistic subordinates may favor an autocratic supervisor, who exhibits the same leadership style that they would adopt in a leadership position. METHOD Four studies (Ntotal = 1284) tested these competing hypotheses with two narcissism dimensions: admiration and rivalry. Participants indicated the leadership style they generally prefer in a supervisor (Study 1), rated their own supervisor's leadership style (Study 2a: individual ratings; Study 2b: team ratings), and evaluated profiles of democratic and autocratic supervisors (Study 3). RESULTS We found a significantly weaker prodemocratic default attitude among more narcissistic subordinates: Subordinates' narcissism was negatively related to endorsement of democratic supervisors and positively related to endorsement of autocratic supervisors. Those relations were mostly driven by narcissistic rivalry rather than narcissistic admiration. CONCLUSION The results help clarify the narcissistic personality and, in particular, how more narcissistic subordinates prefer to be led.
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Affiliation(s)
- Jennifer Eck
- School of Social Sciences, University of Mannheim, Mannheim, Germany
| | - Christiane Schoel
- School of Social Sciences, University of Mannheim, Mannheim, Germany
- Department of Social Work, Fulda University of Applied Sciences, Fulda, Germany
| | | | - Jochen E Gebauer
- School of Social Sciences, University of Mannheim, Mannheim, Germany
- Department of Psychology, University of Copenhagen, Copenhagen, Denmark
| | - Dagmar Stahlberg
- School of Social Sciences, University of Mannheim, Mannheim, Germany
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Wang HQ, Jiang X, Li D, Jin X, Zhang J. The Effect of Leader Perfectionism on Employee Deviance: An Interpersonal Relationship Perspective. Psychol Res Behav Manag 2024; 17:1677-1688. [PMID: 38645482 PMCID: PMC11032712 DOI: 10.2147/prbm.s454596] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 12/13/2023] [Accepted: 04/09/2024] [Indexed: 04/23/2024] Open
Abstract
Purpose Despite growing evidence of significant role of leader perfectionism in the workplace, few theoretical accounts have delved into intricate dynamics of interpersonal relationships impacted by leader perfectionism, nor have they explored the extent to which these interactions might stimulate employee unethical behavior. From an interpersonal relationship perspective, based on interpersonal complementarity theory, this study proposes a link between leader perfectionism and employee deviant behavior while assessing the mediating impact of supervisor-subordinate relationship conflict, and the moderating influence of employee narcissism. Methods This study employed three-wave surveys, with 335 employees (female 55.8%, 26-35 years old 67.4%, bachelor's degree 61.5%, worked 3-10 years 67.4%, worked with their current leader 1-5 years 66.3%) across 11 enterprises in Chinato reduce the risk of common method bias. On this basis, MPLUS 7.4 was used to test the confirmatory factor analysis of data, and SPSS 24.0 was used to test the hypotheses. Results (1) Leader perfectionism has a positive effect on supervisor-subordinate relationship conflict. (2) Leader perfectionism has a significantly positive effect on employee deviant behavior via supervisor-subordinate relationship conflict. (3) Employee narcissism positively moderates the relationship between leader perfectionism and supervisor-subordinate relationship conflict, and further positively moderates the indirect effect of leader perfectionism on employee deviant behavior via supervisor-subordinate relationship conflict. Conclusion This study reveals the mechanism of how employee through deviant behavior as a opposition to leader perfectionism from an interpersonal relationship perspective, which provides theoretical and practical implications for reducing the negative impact of leader perfectionism and employee deviant behavior.
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Affiliation(s)
- Hua Qiang Wang
- School of Economics and Management, Yangtze University, Jingzhou, Hubei Province, People’s Republic of China
| | - Xin Jiang
- School of Economics and Management, Yangtze University, Jingzhou, Hubei Province, People’s Republic of China
| | - Dan Li
- School of Business Administration, Zhongnan University of Economics and Law, WuHan, Hubei Province, People’s Republic of China
| | - Xin Jin
- Wuchang Shouyi University, Wuhan, Hubei Province, People’s Republic of China
| | - Jie Zhang
- School of Economics and Management, Yangtze University, Jingzhou, Hubei Province, People’s Republic of China
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Nevicka B, van Gerven EJG, Sedikides C. Narcissistic coaches and athletes' individual rowing performance. Sci Rep 2023; 13:21010. [PMID: 38030807 PMCID: PMC10687005 DOI: 10.1038/s41598-023-48239-6] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 05/16/2023] [Accepted: 11/23/2023] [Indexed: 12/01/2023] Open
Abstract
Narcissism, a personality trait marked by an excessively self-aggrandizing, entitled, and dominant orientation, has been associated with high performance under competitive pressure, as these contexts afford the opportunity to self-enhance. Narcissism is often characteristic of organizational and political leaders, yet little is known about narcissism in sports coaches. We propose that in a competitive context narcissistic coaches could inspire and motivate their athletes to raise their performance. We investigated the association between coach narcissism and athletes' performance, and the role of athletes' perceived self-enhancement opportunity as a potential mediating mechanism. We examined coach narcissism, athletes' individual end times (i.e., performance), and athletes' perceptions of self-enhancement opportunity during annual national indoor rowing competitions in 266 national level competitive rowers from 52 rowing clubs. Results of multilevel analyses showed that coach narcissism positively predicted athlete performance, and this was explained by athletes' perceived opportunity to self-enhance during the competition. Thus, narcissistic coaches seem to reinforce athletes' perceptions that competition provides them with an opportunity to show off their skills, which in turn accounts for athletes' better performance in comparison to athletes who do not train with narcissistic coaches. The findings point to a potentially functional side of narcissism in coaching.
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Affiliation(s)
- Barbara Nevicka
- Department of Psychology, University of Amsterdam, Amsterdam, The Netherlands.
| | - Emma J G van Gerven
- Amsterdam Business School, University of Amsterdam, Amsterdam, The Netherlands
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Tobore TO. On power and its corrupting effects: the effects of power on human behavior and the limits of accountability systems. Commun Integr Biol 2023; 16:2246793. [PMID: 37645621 PMCID: PMC10461512 DOI: 10.1080/19420889.2023.2246793] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 05/08/2023] [Revised: 08/02/2023] [Accepted: 08/02/2023] [Indexed: 08/31/2023] Open
Abstract
Power is an all-pervasive, and fundamental force in human relationships and plays a valuable role in social, political, and economic interactions. Power differences are important in social groups in enhancing group functioning. Most people want to have power and there are many benefits to having power. However, power is a corrupting force and this has been a topic of interest for centuries to scholars from Plato to Lord Acton. Even with increased knowledge of power's corrupting effect and safeguards put in place to counteract such tendencies, power abuse remains rampant in society suggesting that the full extent of this effect is not well understood. In this paper, an effort is made to improve understanding of power's corrupting effects on human behavior through an integrated and comprehensive synthesis of the neurological, sociological, physiological, and psychological literature on power. The structural limits of justice systems' capability to hold powerful people accountable are also discussed.
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Gutiérrez F, Valdesoiro F. The evolution of personality disorders: A review of proposals. Front Psychiatry 2023; 14:1110420. [PMID: 36793943 PMCID: PMC9922784 DOI: 10.3389/fpsyt.2023.1110420] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Submit a Manuscript] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 11/28/2022] [Accepted: 01/12/2023] [Indexed: 02/02/2023] Open
Abstract
Personality disorders (PDs) are currently considered dysfunctions. However, personality differences are older than humanity and are ubiquitous in nature, from insects to higher primates. This suggests that a number of evolutionary mechanisms-other than dysfunctions-may be able to maintain stable behavioral variation in the gene pool. First of all, apparently maladaptive traits may actually improve fitness by enabling better survival or successful mating or reproduction, as exemplified by neuroticism, psychopathy, and narcissism. Furthermore, some PDs may harm important biological goals while facilitating others, or may be globally beneficial or detrimental depending on environmental circumstances or body condition. Alternatively, certain traits may form part of life history strategies: Coordinated suites of morphological, physiological and behavioral characters that optimize fitness through alternative routes and respond to selection as a whole. Still others may be vestigial adaptations that are no longer beneficial in present times. Finally, variation may be adaptative in and by itself, as it reduces competition for finite resources. These and other evolutionary mechanisms are reviewed and illustrated through human and non-human examples. Evolutionary theory is the best-substantiated explanatory framework across the life sciences, and may shed light on the question of why harmful personalities exist at all.
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Affiliation(s)
- Fernando Gutiérrez
- Hospital Clínic de Barcelona, Institute of Neuroscience, Barcelona, Spain
- Institut d’Investigacions Biomèdiques August Pi i Sunyer (IDIBAPS), Barcelona, Spain
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Czarna AZ, Ziemiańska M, Pawlicki P, Carré JM, Sedikides C. Narcissism moderates the association between basal testosterone and generosity in men. Horm Behav 2022; 146:105265. [PMID: 36155912 DOI: 10.1016/j.yhbeh.2022.105265] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Submit a Manuscript] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 10/04/2021] [Revised: 08/10/2022] [Accepted: 09/12/2022] [Indexed: 11/17/2022]
Abstract
Research has linked hormones to behavioral outcomes in intricate ways, often moderated by psychological dispositions. The associations between testosterone and antisocial or prosocial outcomes also depend on dispositions relevant to status and dominance. In two studies (N1 = 68, N2 = 83), we investigated whether endogenous testosterone, measured in saliva, and narcissism, a psychological variable highly relevant to status motivation, interactively predicted men's preferences regarding resource allocation. Narcissism moderated the links between testosterone and social value orientation: among low narcissists testosterone negatively predicted generosity in resource allocation and probability of endorsing a prosocial (vs. pro-self) value orientation, whereas among high narcissists testosterone tended to positively predict generosity and the probability of endorsing a prosocial (vs. pro-self) value orientation. We discuss these results as examples of calibrating effects of testosterone on human behavior, serving to increase and maintain social status. We advocate the relevance of psychological dispositions, alongside situations, when examining the role of T in social outcomes.
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Affiliation(s)
- Anna Z Czarna
- Institute of Applied Psychology, Jagiellonian University, ul. Stanisława Łojasiewicza 4, 30-348 Kraków, Poland.
| | - Magdalena Ziemiańska
- Institute of Applied Psychology, Jagiellonian University, ul. Stanisława Łojasiewicza 4, 30-348 Kraków, Poland
| | - Piotr Pawlicki
- Center of Experimental and Innovative Medicine, University of Agriculture in Krakow, Redzina 1c, 30-248 Krakow, Poland.
| | - Justin M Carré
- Faculty of Arts and Sciences - Psychology, Nipissing University, North Bay, Ontario, Canada.
| | - Constantine Sedikides
- School of Psychology, University of Southampton, Southampton SO17 1BJ, England, United Kingdom.
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Dugger Z, Petrides KV, Carnegie N, McCrory B. Trait emotional intelligence in American pilots. Sci Rep 2022; 12:15033. [PMID: 36056145 PMCID: PMC9440132 DOI: 10.1038/s41598-022-18868-4] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 01/21/2022] [Accepted: 08/22/2022] [Indexed: 11/13/2022] Open
Abstract
There is a dearth of trait emotional intelligence (trait EI) research within an aviation context. Using the Trait Emotional Intelligence Questionnaire (TEIQue), the present study investigated potential trait EI differences between pilots and general population controls in the United States. The forty-four pilots who volunteered to participate were primarily male (93%) and between 24 and 67 years with a wide range of flight experience (150–5000 + hrs.) They were matched with controls based on age, gender, and ethnicity. Comparisons on global trait EI and the four trait EI factors revealed significant differences, with pilots scoring consistently lower than their matched counterparts in global trait EI, Well-being, Emotionality, and Sociability, but not Self-control. Overall, the findings indicated that pilots felt less connected to their emotional world than controls. Though limited by sample size and participant diversity, the results provide a basis for future studies into the trait EI profile of pilots, which had not been previously investigated.
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Affiliation(s)
- Zachary Dugger
- Department of Mathematical Sciences, United States Military Academy, West Point, NY, USA.
| | - K V Petrides
- London Psychometric Laboratory, University College London, London, UK
| | - Nicole Carnegie
- Department of Mathematical Sciences, Montana State University, Bozeman, MT, USA
| | - Bernadette McCrory
- Department of Mechanical and Industrial Engineering, Montana State University, Bozeman, MT, USA
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O'Reilly CA, Pfeffer J. Organizational power and politics: The narcissist's advantage? PERSONALITY AND INDIVIDUAL DIFFERENCES 2021. [DOI: 10.1016/j.paid.2021.111061] [Citation(s) in RCA: 1] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.3] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Submit a Manuscript] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 12/31/2022]
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Sanecka E. Grandiose and vulnerable narcissism and regulatory focus at work in relation to strengths use and deficit correction in the workplace. PLoS One 2021; 16:e0258609. [PMID: 34679100 PMCID: PMC8535390 DOI: 10.1371/journal.pone.0258609] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 06/04/2021] [Accepted: 09/30/2021] [Indexed: 11/18/2022] Open
Abstract
Extant research has shown that grandiose narcissism predicts a wide range of work-related outcomes. However, despite differentiating in the social-personality literature besides grandiose narcissism also its vulnerable form, there is little organizational research that would include both expressions of narcissism, in particular with regard to positive organizational behaviors, including strengths use and deficit correction in the workplace. In addition, the role of dark-side personality traits, such as narcissism, in predicting strengths use and deficit correction in the workplace, in particular in regard to motivational factors, seems understudied. Accordingly, this study adds to the literature on narcissism in the organizational context by investigating the direct effects of grandiose and vulnerable narcissism and motivational orientation in the form of regulatory focus at work on strengths use and deficit correction in the workplace. Based on a sample of 446 working adults from the Polish population, it was found that grandiose narcissism positively predicted both strengths use and deficit correction. In turn, vulnerable narcissism was unrelated to strengths use and deficit correction. Furthermore, drawing on the distal-proximal model of work-specific regulatory focus, it also tested whether regulatory focus at work has the incremental validity over grandiose and vulnerable narcissism in predicting strengths use and deficit correction. The hierarchical regression analyses indicated that both promotion and prevention focus were positively associated with strengths use and deficit correction, predicting them beyond grandiose and vulnerable narcissism. The theoretical and practical implications of this study in the context of narcissism in the workplace and positive organizational scholarship are discussed.
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Affiliation(s)
- Elżbieta Sanecka
- Institute of Psychology, Faculty of Social Sciences, University of Silesia in Katowice, Katowice, Poland
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Nevicka B, Sedikides C. Employee narcissism and promotability prospects. J Pers 2021; 89:847-862. [PMID: 33483944 PMCID: PMC8518866 DOI: 10.1111/jopy.12619] [Citation(s) in RCA: 5] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.7] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 10/07/2020] [Revised: 01/05/2021] [Accepted: 01/16/2021] [Indexed: 12/26/2022]
Abstract
Introduction Narcissistic individuals often rise to positions of influence, but how so? Upward mobility in formal hierarchies is frequently contingent upon supervisory evaluations. We examined the relation between employee narcissism and supervisor promotability ratings, testing predictions from the display of power perspective (narcissism will positively predict promotability due to higher perceived power) and impression management perspective (narcissism will positively predict promotability due to self‐promotion). Method In two multisource studies involving employees and their supervisors from diverse organizations (S1: Nemployees = 166; Nsupervisors = 93; S2: Nemployees = 128; Nsupervisors = 85), we measured employee narcissism (S1, S2), employee sense of power, employee impression management tactics toward the supervisor (S2), and employee promotability as rated by supervisors (S1–S2). Further, in an experiment (S3: N = 181), we tested the causal effect of employee sense of power on promotability. Results Results favored the display of power perspective. Although narcissism predicted both higher self‐promotion toward the supervisor and greater sense of power, it was the latter that explained the positive relation between employee narcissism and promotability ratings. Conclusion Employees high on narcissism act as if they have more power in organizations, and thus, demonstrate behavior that would be expected in higher level positions. The findings help to explain narcissistic individuals' rise through the ranks.
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Affiliation(s)
- Barbara Nevicka
- Department of Work and Organizational Psychology, University of Amsterdam, Amsterdam, The Netherlands
| | - Constantine Sedikides
- Center for Research on Self and Identity, School of Psychology, University of Southampton, Southampton, UK
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