Publisher
University of Tennessee at Chattanooga
Place of Publication
Chattanooga (Tenn.)
Abstract
Individuals who possess higher levels of subclinical (i.e., non-pathological level) dark personality traits, specifically psychopathy, Machiavellianism, and narcissism, often fill leadership positions (Harms et al., 2011; Diller et al., 2021). Psychopathy refers to the tendency to desire power/control and lack remorse, Machiavellianism refers to the tendency to break the rules and strategically plan for one’s benefit, and narcissism refers to views of superiority and need for adoration (Cesinger et al., 2022). Sadism, finding pleasure in cruelty, has recently appeared as a pertinent addition to the three original dark traits, establishing the Dark Tetrad (Bonfá-Araujo et al., 2022). Certain situations moderate the emergence of trait-related behaviors via Trait Activation Theory (Tett & Burnett, 2003), including goal orientation congruence, which is the alignment of goal setting and achievement patterns (Elliott & Dweck, 1988). However, the interplay between Dark Tetrad traits in leaders, situational activators, and leader effectiveness has not yet been explored. As such, the current study aims to investigate how goal orientation congruence as a situational cue may moderate the relationship between dark leader personality traits and perceived leader effectiveness. To examine this, the relationships between the Dark Tetrad, goal orientation congruence, and perceived leader effectiveness will be evaluated in employed individuals who work as team members within an organization (e.g., managers and subordinates). We hypothesize that leader Dark Tetrad traits will have differential indirect effects on subordinate perceived leader effectiveness via subordinate perceptions of leader dark traits depending on leader perceptions of congruence with subordinate goal orientation. Managers and subordinates will complete surveys at different time points, where managers assess their dark trait levels and perceived goal orientation congruence, and subordinates assess perceived leader dark trait levels and leader effectiveness. Multilevel models will be conducted to test the hypotheses. Findings on this topic could better inform workplace practices regarding leader development and interventions that aim to reduce harmful leader behaviors.
Date
11-9-2024
Subject
Industrial and organizational psychology
Document Type
posters
Language
English
Rights
http://rightsstatements.org/vocab/InC/1.0/
License
http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/
Included in
Dark leaders unveiled: How goal orientation shapes perceived effectiveness
Individuals who possess higher levels of subclinical (i.e., non-pathological level) dark personality traits, specifically psychopathy, Machiavellianism, and narcissism, often fill leadership positions (Harms et al., 2011; Diller et al., 2021). Psychopathy refers to the tendency to desire power/control and lack remorse, Machiavellianism refers to the tendency to break the rules and strategically plan for one’s benefit, and narcissism refers to views of superiority and need for adoration (Cesinger et al., 2022). Sadism, finding pleasure in cruelty, has recently appeared as a pertinent addition to the three original dark traits, establishing the Dark Tetrad (Bonfá-Araujo et al., 2022). Certain situations moderate the emergence of trait-related behaviors via Trait Activation Theory (Tett & Burnett, 2003), including goal orientation congruence, which is the alignment of goal setting and achievement patterns (Elliott & Dweck, 1988). However, the interplay between Dark Tetrad traits in leaders, situational activators, and leader effectiveness has not yet been explored. As such, the current study aims to investigate how goal orientation congruence as a situational cue may moderate the relationship between dark leader personality traits and perceived leader effectiveness. To examine this, the relationships between the Dark Tetrad, goal orientation congruence, and perceived leader effectiveness will be evaluated in employed individuals who work as team members within an organization (e.g., managers and subordinates). We hypothesize that leader Dark Tetrad traits will have differential indirect effects on subordinate perceived leader effectiveness via subordinate perceptions of leader dark traits depending on leader perceptions of congruence with subordinate goal orientation. Managers and subordinates will complete surveys at different time points, where managers assess their dark trait levels and perceived goal orientation congruence, and subordinates assess perceived leader dark trait levels and leader effectiveness. Multilevel models will be conducted to test the hypotheses. Findings on this topic could better inform workplace practices regarding leader development and interventions that aim to reduce harmful leader behaviors.
Department
University of Tennessee at Chattanooga. Dept. of Psychology