Narcissistic and Sociopathic Leadership and the World of Higher Education

This chapter was designed to explore mobbing and bullying within higher education. This chapter per the researchers revealed the theoretical framework, the schema of people making versus bullying and mobbing, as well as differentiating between bullying and mobbing. Moreover, an array of examples of types of dark leadership and toxicity was provided. Furthermore, the researchers felt it was imperative to include the organizational culture applied to bullying and mobbing, in addition to the emphasis of counterproductive behavior. Also, the physiological and psychological impact on individuals under that leadership was provided as well as bullying and mobbing case studies. Preventative measures of bullying and mobbing within all levels was discussed and included a solution such as the TSTL survey created by Dr. David B. Ross. Lastly, a conclusion was provided.

The Consequences of “Dark” Leadership: Perspective of Generation Z

The paper examines the relationship between the Dark Triad personality traits and leadership outcomes from the perspective of Generation Z. A quasi-experiment with hypothetical leaders’ scenarios as stimulus was applied in this empirical research.

Defeating the Toxic Boss: The Nature of Toxic Leadership and the Role of Followers

Drawing on the findings from a multiple case study, we build a process model of toxic leadership and empirically illustrate the toxic leadership process and its outcomes. In doing so, we make two important contributions to current literature. First, we provide a theoretical model of the toxic leadership process that details the intent and outcomes of toxic leadership relative to other dark leadership styles: destructive, abusive, and ineffective. In doing so, we show that, although the intent of toxic leaders is relatively less harmful, the behaviors these leaders engage may be harmful for the organization. More specifically, we show that the primary intent of toxic leaders is to conceal lack of relevant competence and maintain a position of control, at the exclusion of other organizationally relevant objectives. To achieve their intent, toxic leaders engage in upward and downward directed influence attempts that create ambiguity and confusion, thus increasing the toxicity of the context and interfering with others’ ability to perform their work. Second, our findings suggest that followers are more agentic than previously suggested. We show that followers not only choose to unfollow their leaders but also actively work to neutralize the influence of toxic leaders through workarounds and learning. Followers have largely been neglected by the extant leadership literature, and thus, the agency they often display in leadership processes has been insufficiently examined.

Dark Leadership Impact on Psychological Well-being and Work-Family Conflict: Implications for Project Success of Bahrain Companies

This paper examines dark personality traits of leaders involved in management and proposes a conceptual framework for future studies. Based on the personality characteristics identified using Hogan Development survey, the influence of personality traits is hypothesized to affect the well-being of employees and consequently, business success. The study shows a negative relationship between the personality traits of leaders and the psychological well-being of employees and work-family conflict. According to the developed concept, there is a negative impact on business and project success due to the work-life conflict and psychological well-being of employees supervised by project leaders with a negative personality. Most of the studies in this area has focused on identifying the positive aspects of leadership, thus limiting the discussion on the implication of dark leadership. The originality of this paper can be described in the context of research on project leaders, whose negative traits are linked towards business and project failure. This dissertation contributes to leadership literature by identifying the significance of negative personality traits and by presenting the link to business failures.