Narcissism in the

workplace

Narcissism in the workplace involves the impact of narcissistic employees and managers in
workplace settings.

Job interviews
Narcissists typically perform well at job interviews; they receive more favorable hiring ratings
from interviewers than individuals who are not narcissists. Typically, because they can make
favorable first impressions, though that may not translate to better job performance once
hired.[1][2][3][4][5][6][7][8][9]

Impact on workplace
satisfaction

Impact on stress, absenteeism and

staff turnover
There tends to be a higher level of stress with people who work with or interact with a narcissist.
While there are a variety of reasons for this to be the case, an important one is the relationship
between narcissism and aggression. Aggression is believed to moderate the relationship
between narcissism and counterproductive work behaviors.[10] According to Penney and
Spector, narcissism is positively related to counterproductive workplace behaviors, such as
interpersonal aggression, sabotaging the work of others, finding excuses to waste other peoples'
time and resources, and spreading rumors.[11] These aggressive acts can increase the stress of
other employees,[12] which in turn increases absenteeism and staff turnover.[13] Moreover, no
correlation was found between employees under the directions of a narcissist leader and
absenteeism. However, employees under the direction of a non-narcissist leader show a decline
on absenteeism over time.[14]

Workplace bullying
In 2007, researchers Catherine Mattice and Brian Spitzberg at San Diego State University, USA,
found that narcissism revealed a positive relationship with bullying. Narcissists were found to
prefer indirect bullying tactics (such as withholding information that affects others'
performance, ignoring others, spreading gossip, constantly reminding others of mistakes,
ordering others to do work below their competence level, and excessively monitoring others'
work) rather than direct tactics (such as making threats, shouting, persistently criticizing, or
making false allegations).[15] This is significant in the workplace because narcissists are likely to
be more emotionally volatile and aggressive than other employees, which could become a risk
for all employees.[15]

The research also revealed that narcissists are highly motivated to bully, and that to some
extent, they are left with feelings of satisfaction after a bullying incident occurs.[16] Despite the
fact that many narcissists will avoid work, they can be eager to steal the work of others. In line
with other dark triad traits, many narcissists will manipulate others and their environment so that
they can claim responsibility for company accomplishments that they had little or nothing to do
with.[17] A study was done in 2017, that looked at dark traits within those who hold leadership
positions and that effect on employee depression. The research done supported the idea that
employees mental health and stability was negatively affected by bullying (some narcissistic
behavior) in the workplace.[18]

Organizational Design
Preferences
Narcissists like hierarchical organizations because they think they will rise to high ranks and
reap status and power. They take special interest in acquiring leadership positions and may be
better at procuring them.[19] Besides, narcissists are less interested in hierarchies where there is
little opportunity for upward mobility.[20] The prototypical narcissist is more concerned with
getting praised and how they are perceived than doing what benefits all of the "stakeholders".[21]
Some narcissistic attributes may confer benefits, but the negative and positive outcomes of
narcissistic leadership are not yet fully understood. In terms of the internal functioning of
organizations, narcissists can be especially damaging, or ill-fit, to jobs that require judicious self
assessment, heavily rely on teams, and/or use 360 degree feedback.[5]
Corporate narcissism
According to Alan Downs, corporate narcissism occurs when a narcissist becomes the chief
executive officer (CEO) (or another leadership role) within the senior management team and
gathers an adequate mix of codependents around him or her to support the narcissistic
behavior. Narcissists profess company loyalty but are only really committed to their own
agendas; thus, organizational decisions are founded on the narcissist's own interests rather than
the interests of the organization as a whole, the various stakeholders, or the society in which the
organization operates.[22] As a result, a certain kind of charismatic leader can run a financially
successful company on thoroughly unhealthy principles (at least for a time).[23]

Neville Symington has suggested that one of the ways of differentiating a good-enough
organisation from one that is pathological is through its ability to exclude narcissistic characters
from key posts.[24]

Narcissistic supply
The narcissistic manager will have two main sources of narcissistic supply: inanimate (status
symbols like cars, gadgets or office views); and animate (flattery and attention from colleagues
and subordinates).[25] Teammates may find everyday offers of support swiftly turn them into
enabling sources of permanent supply, unless they are very careful to maintain proper
boundaries.[26] The narcissistic manager's need to protect such supply networks will prevent
objective decision-making.[27] Such a manager will evaluate long-term strategies according to
their potential for gaining personal attention instead of to benefit the organization.[28]

Productive narcissists
Crompton has distinguished what he calls productive narcissists from unproductive
narcissists.[29] Maccoby acknowledged that productive narcissists still tend to be over-sensitive
to criticism, over-competitive, isolated, and grandiose, but considered that what draws them out
is that they have a sense of freedom to do whatever they want rather than feeling constantly
constrained by circumstances, and that through their charisma they are able to draw people into
their vision, and produce a cohort of disciples who will pursue the dream for all it's worth.[30][31]
Studies show that narcissists tend to be more proactive in their work in an attempt to achieve a
higher, more prestigious status.[32]

Others have questioned the concept, considering that the dramatic collapse of Wall Street and
the financial system in 2009 must give us pause. Is the collapse due to business leaders who
have developed narcissistic styles—even if ostensibly productive?[33] Certainly one may conclude
that at best there can be quite a fine line between narcissists who perform badly in the
workplace because of their traits, and those who achieve outrageous success because of
them.[34]
See also

Abusive power and control

Control freak
Culture of fear
Fear mongering
Kick the cat
Kiss up kick down
Machiavellianism in the workplace
Management by perkele
Micromanagement
Narcissistic leadership
Occupational health psychology
Psychopathy in the workplace
Setting up to fail
Toxic leader
Toxic workplace
Organized labour portal
 Psychology portal

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24. Neville Symington, Narcissism: A New

Theory (London 2004) p. 10

25. A. J. DuBrin, Narcissism in the Workplace

(2012) p. 143
26. A. J. DuBrin, Narcissism in the Workplace
(2012) p. 143 and p. 181

27. S. Allcorn, Organizational Dynamics and

Intervention (2005) p. 105

28. A. J. DuBrin, Narcissism in the Workplace

(2012) p. 122

29. Simon Crompton, All about me (London

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30. Maccoby M The Productive Narcissist

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32. Sanecka, Elżbieta (2021-01-01). "Grandiose
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33. Jay R. Slosar, The Culture of Excess (2009)

p. 7

34. Crompton, p. 159

Further reading

Gerald Falkowski, Jean Ritala

Narcissism in the Workplace (2007)

Samuel Grier Narcissism in the

Workplace: What It Is - How To Spot It -
What To Do About It (2011)

Belinda McDaniel The Narcissists in Your

Life: Coping with and Surviving
Narcissists in the Workplace, at Home
and Wherever You Are Forced to
Associate with People Suffering from
Narcissistic Personality Disorder (2014)

Sam Vaknin, Lidija Rangelovska The

Narcissist and the Psychopath in the
Workplace (2006)
External links

Anna Verasai Dealing With Different

Types of Narcissists at Work (https://ww
w.thehrdigest.com/dealing-different-type
s-narcissists-work) The HR Digest 28
Jul 2016
Tomas Chamorro-Premuzic Why We
Keep Hiring Narcissistic CEOs (https://h
br.org/2016/11/why-we-keep-hiring-narc
issistic-ceos) Harvard Business Review
29 Nov 2016

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