霍莉·安德鲁斯博士，高级讲师 伍斯特商学院，讨论了工作场所心理变态特征的好处和缺点.
什么是精神变态?
Psychopathy is a personality disorder associated with characteristics such as guiltlessness, 缺乏同理心, manipulativeness, 麻木不仁, 肤浅的魅力, 冲动和无法从经验中学习. 当U2电竞体育听到“精神病患者”这个词时, historically most people would think about crazed serial killers (like Hannibal Lecter). 然而，最近U2电竞体育开始听到更多关于工作场所中的精神变态者的消息. This post will consider what evidence that there are psychopaths working within organisations 而且 explore why they might come to be successful.
There is good evidence that not all individuals who possess the core personality traits of psychopathy have been in contact with either the mental health or criminal justice services. 研究估计在0.总人口中有6%到5%的人具有高水平的精神病态特征. 其中一些人在组织内部工作, 它们通常被称为工作场所, 组织或公司的精神病患者.
早期对职场精神病患者的研究是基于个案研究. Industrial-organisational psychologist Paul Babiak identified a number of individuals who met the clinical criteria for psychopathy but were working within organisations. He found that these workplace psychopaths all operated within their organisations in similar ways:
- They initially assessed the utility of other employees 而且 built relationships with those that possessed power, 有影响或有实际用途.
- They then manipulated these relationships in order to present the appearance of being a good employee whilst actually producing little work or work of a low quality.
- Anyone who questioned the psychopath or was a threat to them was the subject of what could be described as a smear campaign by the psychopath in order to undermine their reputation 而且 influence within the organisation 而且 ultimately reduce the negative impact on the psychopath.
- The psychopaths Babiak studied ultimately ascended the corporate ladder in their own or other organisations.
最近, survey studies have found that levels of psychopathy in organisations may be higher than that found in the general population. Studies have also identified that there are greater numbers of individuals who possess levels of psychopathy that would warrant a clinical diagnosis within organisations than in the general population. 这表明精神病患者在组织中工作得很成功.
Studies of workplace psychopaths have found that they are not equally distributed across organisational types. 银行, 金融, 公务员制度, 警察, 消防服务, commerce 而且 business have all been identified as being more attractive to psychopaths, whilst professions that involve caring for others have been found to be less attractive. 研究ers have hypothesised that psychopaths are attracted to organisations 而且 roles that hold the potential for power, 地位和奖励.
因此，精神变态者可以在组织中取得成功并获得权力, 他们渴望地位和奖励?
答案似乎是 “是的”. 研究表明，一个人在组织中的职位越高, the more likely it is that they will possess psychopathic traits themselves or have worked with someone they believe to have psychopathic traits. 研究 has even identified high levels of psychopathic traits in British CEOs 而且 US presidents! 从理论上讲, this success is thought to occur because the traits that we find desirable in leaders overlap to a certain extent with the traits of psychopathy. 例如, the manipulativeness of the psychopath is an extreme version of the ability to influence seen in successful leaders. 精神病态的情感贫困可能与做出艰难决定的能力有关. Gr而且iose traits displayed by psychopaths could be mistaken for the confidence needed to lead 而且 inspire others. 因此，精神变态者可能能够描绘出理想领导者的形象. 在文化提倡竞争的组织中，这一点可能尤其正确, 个人主义, 利润和短期主义. The self-serving actions of the psychopath may not st而且 out in such organisational cultures 而且 their ruthlessness may be rewarded. Organisations experiencing chaotic change may also be ideal workplaces for psychopaths as they are able to take advantage of the lack of rules 而且 structures in place.
在动荡时期, 人们可能会求助于所谓的“魅力领袖”，为未来提供愿景. 精神变态者的魅力, 保持冷静的能力, tolerance of uncertainty 而且 extreme self-confidence may therefore make them appear to be an ideal charismatic leadership c而且idate in uncertain times.
雇佣一个精神病患者是件坏事吗?
Performance wise, psychopathy is weakly negatively correlated with overall performance at work. Psychopathy appears to be positively associated with presentational elements of work performance (such as creativity, 战略思维和沟通), 但对团队合作有负面影响, 管理技能和整体成就. 换句话说，它们都是形式，没有实质内容.
与精神病患者共事显然会损害一个人的事业, with employees who work with a psychopathic boss or colleague reporting lower levels of productivity, 满意度和组织承诺以及更高水平的职场欺凌. Beyond reduced morale in the workforce, consequences for the organisation can be wide ranging. 精神变态者倾向于做出更冒险和不道德的决定, 哪些因素会影响组织的声誉. Employing individuals with psychopathic traits in leadership roles may result in undesirable traits being transferred to the wider culture of the organisation, 这反过来又会鼓励员工复制负面行为. 简而言之，一个坏苹果能使一桶坏苹果.
结论, whilst research into workplace psychopathy has grown exponentially over the past two decades 而且 provided us with the confidence to assert that psychopaths are operating successfully in organisations, 还有很多U2电竞体育不知道的. Future researchers will need to examine more closely exactly how 而且 why psychopaths come to be successful in organisations 而且 longitudinal research is needed to ascertain the career paths of psychopaths. 这样的研究将揭示组织的“阴暗面”.
霍莉·安德鲁斯博士是一名高级讲师 伍斯特商学院. 冬青的博士, 题为“心理变态特征对职业发展影响的分析”,调查了工作场所的心理变态特征.
All views expressed in this blog are the Academic’s own 而且 do not represent the views, U2电竞体育平台或其任何合作伙伴的政策或意见.