Abstract
Abstract. Prior research has revealed relevant associations between narcissism and leadership, but most studies have focused on narcissism as a personality trait and its grandiose dimension. However, other forms of narcissism (e.g., vulnerable, pathological, and communal narcissism) might also be relevant for leadership but have mainly been neglected in leadership research. Therefore, in this research spotlight, I investigate the link between alternative forms of narcissism and leadership criteria such as leader emergence and leader effectiveness. Along with theoretical considerations, I will derive suggestions for future research on these forms of narcissism and leadership.
Highlights
Prior research has revealed relevant associations between narcissism and leadership, but most studies have focused on narcissism as a personality trait and its grandiose dimension
It seems that grandiose narcissism has positive and negative implications for leadership – but does this apply to vulnerable, pathological, and communal narcissism? In the following, I will describe how these other forms of narcissism might contribute to our understanding of leadership
It might be that communal narcissistic leaders engage in communal forms of destructive leadership such as passive destructive behaviors, talking badly about followers behind their back, and so forth. This Research Spotlight shows that while grandiose narcissism has received a large amount of research attention in the field of leadership, other types of narcissism remain underexplored
Summary
Leadership researchers have mostly examined narcissism as a personality trait and its grandiose form (e.g., Braun, 2017), which I will refer to in the following as grandiose narcissism. Grandiose narcissists employ intrapsychic and interpersonal self-regulatory strategies to increase and maintain inflated self-views (e.g., fantasizing about grandiosity or using relationships to feel special). This description shows why grandiose narcissism may be relevant for leadership. Grandiose narcissistic leaders might exploit their followers due to their selfishness, which might turn into destructive leadership (e.g., Krasikova et al, 2013) or abusive supervision (e.g., Waldman et al, 2018) It seems that grandiose narcissism has (at least some) positive and (even more) negative implications for leadership – but does this apply to vulnerable, pathological, and communal narcissism? It seems that grandiose narcissism has (at least some) positive and (even more) negative implications for leadership – but does this apply to vulnerable, pathological, and communal narcissism? In the following, I will describe how these other forms of narcissism might contribute to our understanding of leadership
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