The dark triad of personality
Dark personality in the workplace and its related traits have been increasingly studied and scrutinized since their inception, with researchers and practitioners concerned over the exceedingly negative consequences of having individuals with these traits in senior positions within an organization (Schyns, 2022). A study conducted in 2002 by Paulhus and Williams had originally defined the three terms of the Dark Triad of Personality:
- Narcissism – in which someone has an unreasonably high sense of their own importance.
- Machiavellianism – when someone has the drive to use whatever means necessary to gain power.
- Subclinical psychopathy – someone highly skilled in the art of manipulation.
Yet, organizational scholars are beginning to consider whether short bursts of these dark traits may be “effective strategies for dealing with anxiety or advancing one’s agenda” albeit producing “negative social consequences when they were displayed either too much or too long” (Harms, 2022, p. 280). It could also be argued that power that comes with leadership is somewhat affixed to dark personality traits, which can negatively affect employees and organizations (Schattke & Marion-Jetten, 2022). Schattke & Marion-Jetten argue that a “high explicit power motive is a double-edged sword depending on whether people desire power for dominance, prestige, or leadership,” (Schattke & Marion-Jetten, 2022, p. 290) in a cross-sectional and a prospective study on this topic, which revealed that those wanting dominance exhibit a more counterproductive work behavior, while those desiring leadership and are outcome-focused may be best suited for executive positions. Therefore, the question we must ask ourselves is – how can we identify these traits in employees, and how can we best use what we learn to produce positive outcomes for organizations?
