Negative impression management: the troublemaker as trouble seeker

Abstract

Extending the discourse on impression management, we explore a counter-intuitive workplace deviance phenomenon whereby employees aim to get themselves fired from their jobs. Employing exploratory qualitative methods, we collected evidence from employees who practice deliberate negative impression management (NIM), from parties who witnessed NIM, and from Human Resource (HR) managers who have dealt with NIM, in two distinct geographies: Israel and Taiwan. The paper outlines the diverse sources of NIM, its specified and unspecified aims, its actual consequences, and its prevalence. This unique dataset offers insights that extend our understanding of impression management theory and practice, serving as a mean to explicating a variant of deviant behavior at the workplace and providing information to HR personnel on ways to engage with the issue.