It’s reasonably well known that there is a high(er) likelihood that psychopathic individuals will find their way into leadership positions. To date, most research into this phenomenon has focused on the leader themselves, and the impact they have on their team. Much less attention has been given to how followers can effectively work under such a leader.
A new study from Durham University attempts to redress the balance, and provide insight into how employees can play a big part in how the leader ultimately behaves. It suggests that the right behavior among followers can help to buffer the worst excesses of the leader.
“Surprisingly, not only leaders’ but also followers’ dark-sides have emerged as hindering factors for organizational functioning. We are moving away from the somewhat unidimensional view that leaders are omnipotent and solely to blame for negative outcomes in organizations,” the authors say.
Leaders and followers
The authors believe it to be relatively rare for studies to examine the dance between leaders and followers, and especially when that involves somewhat dark and negative traits within both groups.
The researchers focus on three characteristics that are at the core of ‘dark leadership’: dishonesty, disagreeableness and carelessness. If the leader is also highly extroverted then it can be a recipe for disaster, with absenteeism rising alongside stress, employee turnover and lower performance.
Followers can play their own role in things however. For instance, followers can also display high levels of Machiavellianism, which can be effectively buffered by an ethical leader. Likewise, when followers are ethical and have high self-esteem, this can buffer the worst instances of psychopathic leadership.
What’s more, followers with low self-esteem are more likely to find narcissistic leaders damaging, with their performance and stress levels suffering as a result. It underlines the complexity of an issue that goes beyond a simplistic leader-focused perspective on things. The authors believe that their work can help to guide businesses on the dark side of both leader and follower behaviors, and how they can be remedied.
“A good start could be a positive organizational culture that buffers against negative leadership. Perceived accountability, organizational transparency, and values such as trust, respect and support can offset some of the negative effects a few individuals may have on the overall organization,” they say.
Organizations could also do more during the hiring process to identify dark traits and prevent them from entering the organization. It’s believed that the three negative traits identified above can be relatively closely matched with specific personality profiles, which can help to identify leaders and followers who may be problematic at various stages of their career.
“Diligence is required in early hiring and selection stages, when candidates with dark-side traits may seek to take control of the process,” the authors explain. “Structured interviews, work samples, and focus on actions and feelings can help to spot inconsistencies. Checking the facts through information from previous employers is a must.”
It’s inevitable that an organization will have people with darker characteristics, but the authors believe that the more research that goes into understanding such personalities, the better we will be able to prevent them from harming the business and its employees.
