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JOMXXX10.1177/0149206317733511Journal of ManagementSmith et al. / Upsides to Dark and Downsides to Bright
Journal of Management
Vol. 44 No. 1, January 2018 191–217
DOI: https://doi.org/10.1177/0149206317733511
10.1177/0149206317733511
© The Author(s) 2017
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It has become common practice to refer to personality traits as being either bright or dark, and
a wealth of research has provided support for the effects of both bright traits and dark traits
in organizations. This research has largely focused on explaining the downside of dark traits
and the upside of bright traits. However, a recent trend has emerged in which scholars are
challenging the long-standing convention that bright traits are always beneficial and dark
traits are always detrimental. Instead, novel research has begun to explore the potential upside
of dark traits and downside of bright traits. In this review, we adopt a multidomain perspec-
tive—integrating work from organizational behavior, human resources, strategic management,
and entrepreneurship—to highlight this growing body of research. Specifically, we focus on the
work advancing our understanding of the complexity of personality, such as identifying situa-
tions in which dark traits may be advantageous or beneficial and detecting curvilinear effects
that suggest too much of a bright trait may be disadvantageous. Furthermore, we provide a
Acknowledgments: This article was accepted under the editorship of Patrick M. Wright. We would like to thank the
editorial team, our action editors David G. Allen and Ernest H. O’Boyle, and two anonymous reviewers for their
guidance throughout the revision process.
Corresponding author: Mickey B. Smith, Department of Management, Mitchell College of Business, University of
South Alabama, 5811 USA Drive South, Mobile, AL 36688-0002, USA.
E-mail: mbsmith@southalabama.edu
191
192 Journal of Management / January 2018
brief discussion on special considerations for the measurement of both bright and dark traits
and close with a series of avenues for future research.
Literature Review
Our distinction of bright and dark traits follows prior patterns (e.g., Judge & LePine,
2007). Traits composing traditional models of personality, such as the five-factor model
(FFM, or Big 5; Costa & McCrae, 1992) and the six-factor HEXACO—for Honesty-Humility
(H), Emotionality (E), Extraversion (X), Agreeableness (A), Conscientiousness (C), and
Openness to Experience (O) (Ashton, Lee, & Goldberg, 2004)—are normally seen as bright
traits in that they are desirable and relate to positive outcomes (Barrick & Mount, 1991;
Judge, Heller, & Mount, 2002). In contrast, traits such as those in the Dark Triad (Paulhus &
Williams, 2002), the Dark Tetrad (Paulhus, 2014; Plouffe, Saklofske, & Smith, 2017), and
the multifactor model of aberrant personality (Wille, De Fruyt, & De Clercq,
Smith et al. / Upsides to Dark and Downsides to Bright 193
2013) are commonly referred to as dark traits and are seen as undesirable. The bright and
dark distinction is not meant to imply a moral or ethical divide. The categorizations corre-
spond to the evolution of a larger bright and dark dichotomy in psychology and management
research; thus, consistent with previous researchers, we employ these terms here for both
parsimony and uniformity while remaining agnostic to any moral or ethical considerations
(Judge & LePine, 2007). Indeed, many of the traits in early models of personality (e.g., the
Big 5) focus on morally and ethically neutral characteristics but note their general benefits to
people and organizations. Subsequently, the tradition has been to approach bright traits as
generally desirable while reprobating dark traits as generally undesirable.
A wealth of research exists showing the benefits of bright traits and the drawbacks of dark
traits, so it would appear relatively easy to assume that bright traits lead only to desirable
outcomes and dark traits are universally bad. However, a growing body of research suggests
this to be an oversimplification. Rather, all personality traits—bright or dark—are likely to
have upsides and downsides. Traits typically seen as bright traits may incorporate maladap-
tive qualities that are detrimental in some instances, such as prosocial orientation being asso-
ciated with oversensitivity to aggression (e.g., Schwenzer, 2008). Conversely, traits typically
seen as dark may beget benefits in certain situations, such as the agentic social style associ-
ated with the Dark Triad, which helps individuals to extract key resources from their environ-
ment (e.g., Jonason, Li, & Teicher, 2010; see also Carter et al., 2015; Judge & LePine, 2007;
Judge, Piccolo, & Kosalka, 2009). This research—focusing on the downsides of bright traits
and the upsides of dark traits—is the focus of our review.
The domain of personality is broad and includes many traits, and so reviewing each and
every bright or dark trait would be unwieldy. Thus, we had to both narrow our focus on some
traits to the exclusion of others while also attempting to be representative and comprehensive
(cf. Short, 2009). Since our focus was the upside of traits typically seen as dark and vice versa,
we used various methods to systematically identify research to be included in the review.
Specifically, we took the following approaches: (1) we conducted a general database search
(e.g., Web of Science) for the term personality coupled with various descriptors, such as bright,
dark, upside, downside, and curvilinear, among others; (2) we focused on research, as much as
possible, specifically appearing in management and applied psychology journals (e.g., Journal
of Management, Journal of Applied Psychology) along with relevant literature from personality
journals (e.g., Journal of Personality and Social Psychology); (3) we used recent reviews,
meta-analyses, and feedback from the editor and reviewers as sources for identifying additional
relevant traits and literature; and (4) we made sure to highlight literature in the context of each
of the primary domains in management research. As a result of this search process, we offer
Table 1 as a summary of the bright and dark traits we include in the review, and we also point
to other sources that extend beyond what we offer here (e.g., Barrick & Mount, 1991; Finkelstein
et al., 2009; J. Hogan et al., 2010; Judge, Heller, & Mount, 2002; Judge & LePine, 2007;
O’Boyle et al., 2012; Spain et al., 2014). We provide the trait, the source of the trait, and a sum-
mary of the components or facets composing the trait.
Organizational Behavior
Dark traits. Several meta-analyses and literature reviews highlight how dark traits posi-
tively relate to undesirable workplace outcomes, such as counterproductive work behav-
iors (CWBs), abusive supervision, unethical behavior, and job stress (e.g., Greenbaum, Hill,
194 Journal of Management / January 2018
Table 1
Summary of Traits Included in the Review
Conscientiousness (FFM/ Costa & McCrae (1992) Competence; Order; Dutifulness; Achievement;
HEXACO) Striving; Self-Discipline; Deliberation
Agreeableness (FFM/ Costa & McCrae (1992) Trust; Straightforwardness; Altruism;
HEXACO) Compliance; Modesty; Tender-Mindedness
Extraversion (FFM/ Costa & McCrae (1992) Warmth; Gregariousness; Assertiveness; Activity;
HEXACO) Excitement seeking; Positive emotions
Openness to Experience Costa & McCrae (1992) Fantasy; Aesthetics; Feelings; Actions; Ideas;
(FFM/HEXACO) Values
Neuroticism/Emotional Costa & McCrae (1992) Anxiety; Angry hostility; Depression; Self-
Stability (FFM/ Consciousness; Impulsivity; Vulnerability
HEXACO)
Honesty-Humility Lee & Ashton (2005) Sincerity; Fairness; Greed avoidance; Modesty
(HEXACO)
Machiavellianism (DT3/ Christie & Geis (1970) Manipulative; Cynical worldview; Lack of
DT4) morality
Dahling, Whitaker, & Four-factor model—Distrust of others; Desire for
Levy (2009) status; Desire for control; Amoral manipulation
Narcissism (DT3/DT4) Raskin & Hall (1979, Grandiose sense of self-importance; Delusions of
1981) grandeur; Sensitive to ego threat; Heightened
sense of entitlement; Lack of empathy
Psychopathy (DT3/DT4) Hare (1985) Callous; Lack of empathy; Impulsive; Thrill
seeks
Sadism—Everyday (DT4) Buckels, Jones, & Paulhus Exploitative; Propensity to cruelty
(2013)
Excitable (HDS) R. Hogan & Hogan (1997) Moody; Instances of intense enthusiasm
Skeptical (HDS) R. Hogan & Hogan (1997) Cynical/distrusting
Cautious (HDS) R. Hogan & Hogan (1997) Risk aversion; Fear of rejection or harm
Reserved (HDS) R. Hogan & Hogan (1997) Unaware/unconcerned with others’ feelings;
Detached
Leisurely (HDS) R. Hogan & Hogan (1997) Irritable/argumentative when others make
requests
Bold (HDS) R. Hogan & Hogan (1997) Self-confident; Overevaluation of one’s abilities;
Feelings of grandiosity
Mischievous (HDS) R. Hogan & Hogan (1997) Risk taking; Manipulative; Cunning; Deceitful
Colorful (HDS) R. Hogan & Hogan (1997) Expressive; Attention seeking
Imaginative (HDS) R. Hogan & Hogan (1997) Creative in unusual ways
Diligent (HDS) R. Hogan & Hogan (1997) Perfectionism; Lack of flexibility; Highly critical
of others’ work
Dutiful (HDS) R. Hogan & Hogan (1997) Eager to please; Reluctant to take action
Antisocial (FFMAP) Wille, De Fruyt, & De Indifferent to others; Callous; Impulsive
Clercq (2013)
Narcissistic (FFMAP) Wille et al. (2013) Strong sense of self-importance; Lacking
empathy; Seeking social dominance; Need for
admiration
Borderline (FFMAP) Wille et al. (2013) Poor self-concept; Impulsive; Unable to maintain
relations
Schizotypal (FFMAP) Wille et al. (2013) Unconventional beliefs; Disorganized thoughts;
Social anxiety; Suspicious of others
(continued)
Smith et al. / Upsides to Dark and Downsides to Bright 195
Table 1 (continued)
Personality Trait Source(s) Components of Trait
Note: Constructs are mapped onto existing models of bright personality, that is, the five-factor model (FFM) and
HEXACO, and models of dark personality, including the Dark Triad (DT), Dark Tetrad (DT4), Hogan Development
Survey (HDS), and five-factor model of aberrant personality (FFMAP). Hubris and overconfidence were found
exclusively in strategic management (SM).
Mawritz, & Quade, 2017; Grijalva & Newman, 2015; O’Boyle et al., 2012; Wille et al.,
2013; Wu & LeBreton, 2011), and negatively relate to positive employee attitudes and per-
formance (Dahling, Whitaker, & Levy, 2009; Mathieu, 2013; Mathieu, Neumann, Hare, &
Babiak, 2014; Michel & Bowling, 2013; O’Boyle et al., 2012; Smith, Wallace, & Jordan,
2016; Wille et al., 2013). Thus, we refer readers to these sources for a discussion of the
undesirable outcomes tied to dark traits. However, there are examples in the literature of the
potential upside to dark traits, which implies that the effects of dark traits are more complex
than previously suggested.
One particularly complicated relationship exists between the Dark Triad and organiza-
tional citizenship behavior (OCB). Narcissists and psychopaths engage in less OCB than
others low in the traits (Schütte et al., in press; Smith et al., 2016), but those high in
Machiavellianism (Machs) appear to exhibit higher levels of challenging OCB. More specifi-
cally, Machs engage in challenging OCB under two conditions: when they perceive their
leader to be transformational and in the presence of a preferred transactional psychological
contract (Belschak, Den Hartog, & Kalshoven, 2015; Zagencyk, Restubog, Kiewitz, Kiazad,
& Tang, 2014). This speaks to the means-focused characteristics of Machs. Similarly, Castille
et al. (in press) find Machs to engage in prosocial behaviors, which is a stark derivation from
conventional thinking. Thus, despite their self-interest and hyperfocus on the achievement of
power, Machs may benefit their organizations.
In addition, recent findings indicate the need to consider the influence of contextual fac-
tors (e.g., occupation type; Furnham, Trickey, & Hyde, 2012) and nonlinear effects tied to
dark personality. Indeed, Grijalva and Harms (2014) lay out a host of potential moderators
that may reveal the upside of narcissism. For instance, narcissists may be more adept at
working in changing or chaotic environments and when interacting with an audience (e.g.,
customer-facing employees). To this point, Goncalo, Flynn, and Kim (2010) reported a
positive effect between narcissism and other-ratings of creativity, which they attributed to
narcissists’ ability to effectively sell their ideas as being creative. Work by Czarna, Leifeld,
Śmieja, Dufner, and Salovey (2016), for example, highlights the effect of narcissism over
time on popularity in social networks. The authors found that narcissists are initially consid-
ered popular, but over time, they make fewer friends—indicating the moderating effect of
time. In addition to moderators, scholars are beginning to report nonlinear relationships in
the dark personality literature (e.g., Goncalo et al., 2010; Grijalva, Harms, Newman, Gaddis,
196 Journal of Management / January 2018
& Fraley, 2015). This research evokes trends that are also occurring in bright personality
research.
Bright traits. The relationships among bright traits and beneficial performance outcomes
are well documented (e.g., Barrick & Mount, 1991; Chiaburu, Oh, Berry, Li, & Gardner,
2011; Judge & Bono, 2001; Judge, Heller, & Mount, 2002), but novel research is beginning
to reveal conditions in which bright traits may be a hindrance to employee performance. For
instance, conscientiousness has long been held as the chief personality predictor of perfor-
mance (Barrick & Mount, 1991). However, LePine (2003) demonstrated that conscientious-
ness, particularly the dependability subfacet, may hurt team performance when change is
necessitated. In addition, bright traits may enhance undesirable relationships. For instance,
Kim and Glomb (2010) found cognitive ability to be positively associated with victimization,
which was exacerbated by victims possessing high levels of agentic personality. Moreover,
employees high in openness to experience may be less committed to their organizations (Erd-
heim, Wang, & Zickar, 2006), and those high in agreeableness appear to experience increased
levels of stress due to their inability to cope with interpersonal conflict (Suls, Martin, &
David, 1998). In each of these situations, traits that are commonly held as desirable are not
without potential costs.
Furthermore, recent evidence suggests bright personality traits may have deleterious
effects either when taken to the extreme (e.g., too nice) or when present in certain situa-
tions (e.g., too agreeable to dissent to bad ideas; Ng, Eby, Sorensen, & Feldman, 2005).
This emerging body of research belongs to what management scholars are referring to as
the “too-much-of-a-good-thing” movement (cf. Pierce & Aguinis, 2013) and focuses on
nonlinear effects (e.g., Uppal, 2017). For instance, Carter et al. (2015) reported an
inverted-U relationship between conscientiousness and psychological well-being, liken-
ing too much conscientiousness to obsessive-compulsiveness. Others have described
similar inverted-U effects (e.g., Carter, Dalal, Anthony, O’Connell, Kung, & Delgado,
2014; Le, Oh, Robbins, Ilies, Holland, & Westrick, 2011), indicating that there may be
optimum levels of bright traits. In addition, there is value in further investigating the con-
textual influences on curvilinear effects—situations in which optimum levels of bright
traits change. Indeed, Le et al. (2011) found that task complexity moderated the conscien-
tiousness-performance relationship. Ultimately, higher levels of conscientiousness were
particularly helpful in complex jobs but not in simpler jobs. Wihler, Meurs, Momm, John,
and Blickle (2017) reported findings relating the discipline and achievement motivation
(DAM) factors of conscientiousness to salesperson performance. The authors found a
curvilinear relationship that was moderated by stable social potency (SSP), such that
DAM exhibited an inverted-U shape when SSP was low but a gradual U shape when SSP
was high. These findings imply that too much conscientiousness can be counterproduc-
tive, particularly for those who lack relevant social skills to channel their conscientious-
ness in positive ways.
particularly inclined to advance into leadership positions. Indeed, dark personality traits
have been shown to relate to leader emergence (Grijalva et al., 2015; Owens, Wallace, &
Waldman, 2015; Paunonen, Lönnqvist, Verkasalo, Leikas, & Nissinen, 2006), and individu-
als high in dark traits are commonly promoted to points of leadership within organizations
(Hiller & Hambrick, 2005; R. Hogan & Hogan, 2001). Consider narcissists, hubristic/over-
confident individuals, and Machs, who all exhibit the propensity to self-promote and take
risks, which causes them to stand out among other potential leaders. Narcissists, for example,
may be particularly inclined to emerge in moments of uncertainty or chaos because they are
perceived by stakeholders to be creative and confident. Machs may be adept at navigating
organizational politics to achieve positions of power. Hall and Benning (2006) speak of “suc-
cessful psychopaths” and how they reach top leadership positions. Thus, these individuals
appear to effectively position themselves for future leadership opportunities, and others read-
ily promote them.
However, emerging as a leader does not necessarily equate to being an effective one, and
the evidence is mixed in terms of dark personality and leader effectiveness. Prior research
illustrates these effects, specifically for follower outcomes (Mathieu et al., 2014), self-ratings
of leadership-related outcomes (Judge, LePine, & Rich, 2006), and organizational-level out-
comes (Craig & Amernic, 2011; Galvin, Waldman, & Balthazard, 2010; O’Reilly, Doerr,
Caldwell, & Chatman, 2014). Grijalva and colleagues’ (2015) meta-analysis reported a posi-
tive relationship between narcissism and leader emergence but no effect between narcissism
and leader effectiveness. However, Owens and colleagues (2015) found narcissism to nega-
tively relate to perceptions of leader effectiveness. Paunonen and colleagues (2006) con-
cluded that leader effectiveness and leader emergence varied depending upon the positive or
negative subfacets of narcissism being studied. For instance, among 200 military cadets,
effective leaders exhibited positive aspects of narcissism (e.g., egotism, self-esteem) and
fewer negative aspects of narcissism (e.g., manipulation, impression management).
Ultimately, there appears to be duality among leadership and dark personality in which
terms such as corporate psychopathy (Boddy, Miles, Sanyal, & Hartog, 2015) and manage-
rial derailment (J. Hogan et al., 2010) describe the downfall of leaders, but certain compo-
nents of dark traits lead individuals to emerge as, and are in some instances perceived to be
effective, leaders (Judge et al., 2009). Tied to the latter, another angle for studying emergence
and effectiveness might be investigating how dark traits relate to effective leadership styles
(Peterson, Galvin, & Lange, 2012). For instance, Deluga (1997, 2001) reported that U.S.
presidents who were rated as narcissistic or Machiavellian were viewed as charismatic and
as better performers. This is a limited area of research, but it may be an avenue for uncover-
ing how dark traits relate both to emergence and to effectiveness.
Bright traits. Bright traits, such as extraversion, are common predictors of leader emer-
gence and effectiveness (Judge, Bono, Ilies, & Gerhardt, 2002), but some bright traits may
be less advantageous for leaders in certain situations or at extreme levels (Judge et al., 2009).
For instance, R. Hogan and Hogan (2001) outlined potential pitfalls of leaders possessing
high levels of diligence and dutifulness, narrow traits commonly associated with conscien-
tiousness and agreeableness. They suggested that the diligent leader, who is a micromanager
and restricts the autonomy of followers, may be perceived as ineffective and potentially
harmful to employee and team performance. The downside of dutifulness for a leader might
198 Journal of Management / January 2018
include failing to take a stand when conflict arises or an inability to make tough decisions.
Similarly, high levels of agreeableness may undermine the performance evaluation process,
leading to inaccurate and ineffective information (Bernardin, Cooke, & Villanova, 2000).
Like dark traits, there is a need to further study bright personality in relation to leadership
styles. This is a well-established body of research, but we see the opportunity to address
unanswered questions—particularly considering the recent research on nonlinear relation-
ships. For instance, do extreme levels of bright traits counteract the commonly observed
benefits of transformational leadership? Perhaps leaders high in emotional stability, a trait
commonly seen as desirable in leaders, may be perceived as lacking attachment or concern
for follower well-being (Judge et al., 2009). Indeed, extreme levels of emotional stability
may interfere with the idealized influence component of transformation leadership, which is
one of the more powerful sources of follower inspiration.
The implications of personality are particularly salient when considering leadership from
a practitioner view. If dark traits of leaders lead to the development of dark organizational
processes, routines, or cultures, there may be ramifications for employees at lower levels that
ultimately harm the organization’s bottom line (Crook, Ketchen, Combs, & Todd, 2008).
Organizational leaders who possess certain dark personality traits may make suboptimal
decisions and fail to adjust course considering overconfidence and commitment (Chatterjee
& Hambrick, 2011; Chen, Crossland, & Luo, 2015). Those tasked with selection of individu-
als or with leading others should consider the potential deleterious impacts of certain dark
traits. Ultimately, dark personality may be quite consequential to organizational effective-
ness. These same aspects extend, although in different ways, to bright personality traits as
well (e.g., negative perceptions of overly dutiful leaders). Ultimately, these are topics in need
of subsequent research.
Human Resources
Bright and dark traits have considerable implications for human resource practices.
Research in this area focuses more on bright traits, but there have been several recent calls
for more research into the effects of dark personality in human resources (e.g., Campbell,
Hoffman, Campbell, & Marchisio, 2011; Dilchert, Ones, & Krueger, 2014). Of chief interest
is how dark personality affects personnel decision making and whether applicants with dark
personalities have an advantage in the selection process. For example, narcissists are posi-
tively rated in both interviewing situations (Paulhus, Westlake, Calvez, & Harms, 2013) and
assessment centers (Brunell, Gentry, Campbell, Hoffman, Kuhnert, & DeMaree, 2008),
which leads some to raise concerns that dark traits may subvert the effectiveness of selection
methods. Machs, for instance, are more likely to use deception to make themselves appear
better than others (Hogue, Levashina, & Hang, 2013), which implicates their willingness and
ability to lie throughout a selection program. Given desirability and faking concerns, one
might consider these risks to be escalated in a high-stakes scenario such as interviewing for
a job. Although researchers champion personality assessments as effective tools for person-
nel selection, these assessments have largely measured bright traits. Thus, special consider-
ation should be made when attempting to measure dark traits.
Some have raised concerns for the potential liability tied to measuring and basing person-
nel decisions on dark traits. Individuals who have been diagnosed with Axis II disorders,
Smith et al. / Upsides to Dark and Downsides to Bright 199
such as clinical psychopathy, are protected by law under the Americans With Disabilities Act.
Despite this protection, Wu and LeBreton (2011) provide a sound rationale for why measur-
ing dark personality within a selection protocol should not pose a threat to disability discrimi-
nation claims. For instance, the scales used in academic research were developed and
validated to measure subclinical levels of dark traits, not to assess and diagnose individuals.
Furthermore, only a small portion of the population (~10%) would score high in any of the
dark traits. Nonetheless, practitioners should always consider the job relatedness of bright or
dark personality when using it as a metric of selection and, at the same time, consider trade-
offs of these traits.
Beyond selection, more work is needed in the areas of promotion, training and develop-
ment, and turnover. Possible insights might be offered by the work of Furguson, Semper,
Yates, Fitzgerald, Skatova, and James (2014), who discuss how too much conscientiousness
and too little anxiety are detrimental with respect to the acquisition of knowledge and skill in
medical professions, implying that there are effects for training and personal development.
Likewise, although dark personality shares positive relationships with bad behaviors (e.g.,
CWB) and negative relationships with desired behaviors (e.g., job performance), we know
little of the subsequent effects these relationships have on other important human resource
outcomes.
Strategic Management
Within strategic management, personality research typically explicitly employs upper
echelons theory (Hambrick & Mason, 1984) or implicitly utilizes similar logic to explain
how the personality of important decision makers, such as the CEO or top management team
(TMT), affects organizational outcomes (for a review, see Finkelstein et al., 2009). As
Hambrick noted, “If we want to understand why organizations do the things they do, or why
they perform the way they do, we must consider the biases and dispositions of their most
powerful actors—their top executives” (2007: 334). Thus, the bright and dark personality
traits of executives have become focal points in strategic management research.
Dark traits. Strategy researchers largely focus on three dark personality traits: executive
hubris, overconfidence, and narcissism. Most of this research highlights how CEOs higher
in hubris and/or overconfidence are bad for organizations and stockholders (Hayward &
Hambrick, 1997; Malmendier & Tate, 2008; Seth, Song, & Pettit, 2002). Hubristic CEOs
appear to engage in fewer socially responsible activities (Tang, Qian, Chen, & Shen, 2015),
and overconfident managers choose ineffective strategies that commonly fail (Camerer &
Lovallo, 1999; Simon & Hougton, 2003). While firms with narcissistic CEOs do not tend to
perform better or worse than firms with less narcissistic executives, CEO narcissism posi-
tively relates to variance in performance (Chatterjee & Hambrick, 2007; Wales, Patel, &
Lumpkin, 2013). Furthermore, narcissistic CEOs tend to be particularly bold, engaging in
risky actions reflecting their self-perceived superiority (Chatterjee & Hambrick, 2011; Zhu
& Chen, 2015a, 2015b) and need for attention (Petrenko et al., 2016).
Only a few studies identify “bright spots” associated with darker CEO traits. For example,
Patel and Cooper acknowledged both dark and bright aspects of CEO narcissism, arguing
that “while narcissistic CEOs are less likely to protect against potential shocks, they are adept
200 Journal of Management / January 2018
at helping firms recover from such shocks” (2014: 1528). Tang, Li, and Yang (2015) and
Hirshleifer, Low, and Teoh (2012) found that CEO hubris/overconfidence positively related
to innovation. Petrenko et al. (2016) concluded that narcissistic CEOs engaged in socially
responsible activities because of the positive attention it brings upon them. In addition, nar-
cissistic executives appear to be more impervious to social influence than others low in the
trait (Zhu & Chen, 2015a, 2015b). This is a growing body of research, but the extant evidence
suggests that narcissistic, hubristic, and overconfident executives may not always be bad for
organizations or certain stakeholders.
Entrepreneurship
Dark traits. Given the crucial role that entrepreneurs’ abilities and traits play in guid-
ing their decision making, scholars have called for a focused investigation into possible dark
sides of entrepreneurial personality traits (e.g., DeNisi, 2015; Klotz & Neubaum, 2016). As in
research on executives, scholars have examined the potential influence that hubris and over-
confidence each has on the entrepreneurial process and entrepreneurial outcomes (Haynes,
Hitt, & Campbell, 2015; Hayward, Shepherd, & Griffin, 2006). For instance, Navis and Ozbek
(2016) concluded that entrepreneurs with high levels of overconfidence are drawn to new
ventures operating in novel contexts rather than new ventures operating in familiar contexts.
Furthermore, traits appear to influence one’s entrepreneurial orientation (EO). Engelen,
Gupta, Strenger, and Brettel (2015) investigated the link between CEO overconfidence and
firm EO, finding that CEO overconfidence was positively related to EO. Wales et al. (2013)
Smith et al. / Upsides to Dark and Downsides to Bright 201
found that CEO narcissism both positively related to EO and mediated the relationship
between EO and performance variation. Although these effects are occurring at the strategic
level, the subsequent effects of overconfidence speak to the behavioral tendencies of entre-
preneurs. Relatedly, links between the Dark Triad and both entrepreneurial intentions and
productive versus unproductive entrepreneurship also appear in the literature (Hmieleski &
Lerner, 2013). Individuals higher on the Dark Triad may be more likely to possess entrepre-
neurial intentions because they view entrepreneurship as a path to satisfy their need for atten-
tion and admiration—leading to venture formation.
Bright traits. There is evidence that bright traits are not always beneficial for entrepre-
neurs. Much of this research focuses on individual traits outside of the FFM or HEXACO
(for exceptions, see the use of openness and agreeableness by De Jong, Song, & Song, 2013).
For instance, two studies by Hmieleski and Baron (2008, 2009) elucidate the potential down-
sides of entrepreneurial optimism—the former finding that high optimism and self-efficacy
can be detrimental for organizational performance in dynamic environments and the latter
suggesting that optimism is negatively related to both revenue and employment growth in
new ventures. Likewise, both Baron, Hmieleski, and Henry (2012) and Baron, Tang, and
Hmieleski (2011) discussed the potential benefits and costs of positive affect, whereas Baron,
Mueller, and Wolfe (2016) argue that high levels of self-efficacy may cause entrepreneurs to
set unattainable goals. Self-efficacy and self-assurance are two attributes scholars typically
consider to be beneficial for entrepreneurs, but when taken to the extreme, these positive
traits may manifest into undesirable outcomes. Indeed, entrepreneurial personality is a com-
plex factor that needs significant study (Klotz & Neubaum, 2016; D. Miller, 2015).
Bright traits. Beyond the vast study of how high mean levels of bright traits lead to good
outcomes (e.g., mean-level team conscientiousness and performance; Bell, 2007), there are
concerns that some bright traits may be harmful for group or team effectiveness. Although
202 Journal of Management / January 2018
agreeableness is commonly tied to lower levels of conflict in groups (e.g., Varela, Burke, &
Landis, 2008), there may be times in which certain forms of conflict are necessary. In these
instances, having all agreeable members may lead to outcomes such as groupthink (Janis,
1982) or forced agreement. Also, using a disjunctive approach to composition in the group
or team, there are likely instances in which variance in bright personalities may cause harm
through emotional or relational conflict—the proverbial personality clash.
Essentially, personality research must move beyond simply studying how mean levels or
variance of personality traits within groups and teams—both bright and dark—indepen-
dently affect outcomes at that level. Instead, it may be more fruitful to study how certain
facets of traits uniquely affect outcomes or how processes are affected by the interplay of
composition and dispersion (i.e., using mean-dispersion models of group or team personal-
ity composition). We see further value in investigating nonlinear effects for group/team
outcomes (e.g., teams with too many conscientious individuals may not be able to adapt to
changing contexts).
direction or another (e.g., Dalal & Carter, 2015). In several instances, this method has been
shown effective in detecting previously unobserved curvilinear effects (e.g., Carter et al.,
2014; Carter et al., 2015). In addition, too little/too much (TLTM) scaling is a measurement
approach that may improve the ability to detect curvilinear relationships beyond Likert-type
scales (Vergauwe, Wille, Hofmans, Kaiser, & De Fruyt, 2017). Some attribute the existence
of extreme scores on measures of psychological constructs to artifacts of extreme response
style (cf. Naemi, Beal, & Payne, 2009), and TLTM scaling may offer promise in this vein. We
see value in further integrating both TLTM and ideal point models into personality research.
do not stem from clinical settings, however, such as hubris and overconfidence, we need to
more clearly articulate the specific aspects of the traits that distinguish them from other simi-
lar constructs. Chen et al. (2015) noted that amid concerns for conceptual overlap, strategy
scholars have sometimes offered conceptual distinctions between definitions of hubris and
overconfidence. For instance, Hayward and Hambrick defined hubris as “exaggerated pride
or self-confidence, often resulting in retribution” (1997: 106). Although we are not champi-
oning the development of more scales, as there are too many existing measures to report in
this review, we are suggesting that subsequent scale development or refinement be based first
on theory and second on empirics. Another avenue for advancing this work is by focusing on
subfacets of personality traits.
Facets of Personality
The prevailing work in personality evokes broad traits. However, traits composing the
most popular models of personality (e.g., FFM, Dark Triad) are not truly first-order con-
structs. Instead, these traits are second-order constructs composed of facets. For instance,
conscientiousness is commonly studied as a single-factor construct, but it was developed as
a multifaceted trait encompassing the subfacets of competence, order, dutifulness, achieve-
ment striving, self-discipline, and deliberation (Costa, McCrae, & Dye, 1991). The same
applies for dark traits. Narcissism, for example, can be separated into vulnerable and grandi-
ose narcissism (J. D. Miller, Hoffman, Gaughan, Gentile, Maples, & Campbell, 2011). There
is debate as to whether and how to “split” traits into various facets or “lump” them together.
Rather than repeat this lively conversation, we instead wish to note that there is discussion on
the topic as well as that a growing number of personality researchers are shifting their atten-
tion to the effects of splitting traits into facets in place of broadly lumping traits. Indeed,
extant research demonstrates the utility of applying a facet-based approach to uncover the
nuanced effects of both bright traits (e.g., LePine, 2003; Wihler et al., 2017) and dark traits
(e.g., Czarna, Dufner, & Clifton, 2014; Schütte et al., in press). Scholars interested in this
area should refer to these works, but we offer a summary and some implications here.
Judge and colleagues (2013) made a compelling case to study facets of the FFM, citing
that their meta-analytic evidence supports the effective bandwidth of narrower traits; recent
research suggests this to be true for dark traits as well (e.g., Dahling et al., 2009; J. D. Miller,
Flory, Lynam, & Leukefeld, 2003; Whiteside, Lynam, Miller, & Reynolds, 2005). J. D. Miller
et al. (2011) found evidence that the two-factor model of narcissism (i.e., vulnerable, grandi-
ose) led to unique relationships between each narcissism facet and facets of the Big 5 and
interpersonal variables. Furthermore, Czarna et al. (2014) demonstrated the independent
effects of vulnerable and grandiose narcissism in relation to popularity within peer networks.
Similar findings have emerged for psychopathy (Schütte et al., in press) and the multidimen-
sional Hogan Development Survey (R. Hogan & Hogan, 1997), which further support calls
to study facets in lieu of broad traits.
Applying a facet-based approach to studying dark personality may effectively address
concerns with construct redundancy by narrowing the focus on certain dimensions of bright
and dark traits. Instances in which facets of dark traits do not neatly map onto broader (or
narrower) bright traits could indicate uniqueness among the traits. We need to note that
although we see this as a potential way to refute construct redundancy, critics also apply a
206 Journal of Management / January 2018
facet-based approach to challenge the uniqueness of dark traits. O’Boyle et al. (2015) reported
that each of the Dark Triad traits effectively mapped onto several facets of the FFM. Jakobwitz
and Egan (2006) suggested that their data supported a two-factor psychopathy construct over
three individual traits in the Dark Triad. Nonetheless, more work is needed focusing on the
theoretical development of bright and dark traits—specifically, how either narrow facet-
based approaches or broad approaches influence the observed similarities and differences
among bright and dark traits.
exhibition or inhibition of trait-based behaviors—some have already begun to apply the the-
ory to dark personality (e.g., Greenbaum et al., 2017).
Strategic Management
We note several avenues for future personality research within strategic management.
First, we see promise in addressing the paucity of research investigating the personality of
other executives beyond the CEO—such as chief financial officers or chief operating offi-
cers—that might both affect the organization uniquely or interact with CEO traits. Importantly,
not only would such investigations be relevant within personality but also the topic has prom-
ise to advance upper echelons theory more generally by moving beyond investigations of
CEOs alone or aggregations of individuals (i.e., within the TMT). At the same time, the ways
that boards of directors function are different from groups and teams at other levels of the
organization, and incorporating the idiosyncratic concerns within boards could develop our
understanding of both personality and firm governance. For example, directors are primarily
concerned with monitoring and providing resources to firms (Hillman & Dalziel, 2003).
Incorporating dark personality, for instance, may help us to understand how CEOs subvert
governance.
Conversely, Ridge and Ingram (2014) noted that the predominant focus of personality
research in strategy is on dark traits. Thus, the literature ultimately stands to benefit from the
integration of bright traits as well. For instance, agreeable directors may not adequately mon-
itor and challenge a CEO’s actions in the event of an unethical or otherwise damaging event.
On the other hand, hubristic directors, owing to their belief that they are always right, might
be so active in monitoring the actions of the CEO that such behavior undermines the CEO’s
ability to move reasonable ideas forward. This evokes several additional research questions.
For example, can executives be too nice to be effective? Also, how do the personalities of
other stakeholders affect the actions of the CEO?
Finally, another avenue of potential inquiry is to extend personality generally to the orga-
nizational level. It may be that firms also develop relatively stable differences akin to founder
or executive personalities, which may overlap, at least partially, with existing constructs such
as culture and routines. However, there are several societal examples of founder or CEO
personality being intimated throughout an organization to the point of influencing individual
employee behaviors. For instance, many of the scandals of the past two decades have been
attributed to leaders who arguably possess many of the dark traits we discuss in this review.
However, in most situations, the CEOs and founders were not alone in engaging in unethical
behavior. Thus, can organizations perhaps develop cultures or routines that directly mimic
executive personalities? As tools to better assess personality of executives advance, inquiries
can extend this work to address our understanding of bright traits.
Entrepreneurship
Recent calls from entrepreneurship researchers suggest that personality is an important
factor to consider in the entrepreneurial process (e.g., DeNisi, 2015; Klotz & Neubaum,
2016), and we need to identify how entrepreneurs differ in aspects of the Big 5 and HEXACO
models from other populations (e.g., Baron et al., 2012; Hmieleski & Baron, 2009; Zhao &
Smith et al. / Upsides to Dark and Downsides to Bright 209
Seibert, 2006). Specifically, future research should investigate ways in which entrepreneurs’
personalities are either like or different from other populations. Furthermore, characteristics
of entrepreneurial ventures are often different from those of established organizations. Thus,
personalities of employees and leaders within these organizations may lead to different out-
comes (e.g., survival, competitive advantage). That is, new ventures may be affected by
personality traits differently from more established organizations.
As a multifaceted process, the success of entrepreneurial efforts is surely to be affected by
dark personality traits (e.g., Hmieleski & Lerner, 2013). Additional research is needed to
enrich our understanding of the effects of dark personality traits on other facets of the entre-
preneurial process. For instance, future research may delve into the influence of personality
on opportunity recognition, development, and evaluation. Might hubristic entrepreneurs be
less likely to adapt to changing environments? Are narcissistic entrepreneurs more likely to
take advantage of risky opportunities? Beyond assessing entrepreneurs’ dark personality
traits, the extant literature would benefit from exploring how investors’ dark personality traits
drive the funding process. Might more narcissistic investors want bigger upside gains to sati-
ate their need for attention, thus affecting which ideas get funded? Entrepreneurship scholars
have a great opportunity to investigate the potential pitfalls of bright traits as well. For exam-
ple, optimism and self-efficacy may be problematic at certain levels for entrepreneurs
(Hmieleski & Baron, 2008, 2009), but might high levels of conscientiousness help mitigate
those downsides owing to the strong desire for thorough and dutiful action?
Furthermore, understanding the effects of entrepreneurial personality has practical impli-
cations. Entrepreneurial personality is a meaningful predictor of new venture outcomes, so
potential investors might be cautious of an entrepreneur who seems overly optimistic or
extremely efficacious. As entrepreneurial education continues to expand in universities, we
see the practical importance of this work extending to the classroom where young developing
entrepreneurs learn to self-assess and avoid pitfalls that come with both bright and dark traits.
We see the potential in applying other prevalent theories of human behavior to the study
of personality in the workplace. In their review of the Dark Triad, O’Boyle et al. (2012)
grounded their hypotheses in social exchange theory. Not only were their findings supported
by social exchange theory but they also advanced the theory by demonstrating the impact that
dark personality has on exchange relationships. This might be a particularly fruitful path for
understanding the effects of both bright and dark traits in groups and teams. Facets of social
cognitive theory, such as moral disengagement (Bandura, 1999), offer excellent avenues with
which to study the deleterious behavioral outcomes tied to dark personality. For instance,
research might address whether some dark traits are more likely to lead to moral disengage-
ment than others (or at all). Ultimately, the future theoretical applications of personality are
innumerable.
Conclusion
On the basis of our review of the literature, we find that personality continues to be a focal
variable in management research. Our review highlights a growing body of research that
challenges the previously held assumptions about bright and dark traits. Indeed, traits tradi-
tionally seen as dark may have upsides and vice versa. Thus, we hope that future researchers
see our effort as providing a comprehensive review that opens the door to new research
opportunities both within various domains of management research and beyond the confines
of these domains. There remain many avenues for subsequent research into both the dark and
the bright sides of personality in organizations, and we hope our review offers a challenge to
scholars to seek out these opportunities and advance our understanding of personality across
all disciplines in management.
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