Wolves in Sheep’s Clothing: How and When Machiavellian Leaders Demonstrate Strategic Abuse

Feng, Zhiyu; Keng-Highberger, Fong T.; Yam, Kai Chi; Chen, Xiaoping; Hu, Li

doi:10.1007/s10551-022-05132-y

Cited by 9 publications

(9 citation statements)

References 167 publications

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“…From these we then calculated IE sizes at high (1 SD above the mean) and low (1 SD below the mean) levels of our moderators, TADJE and TVDJE, to test their significance levels. As an additional test, we calculated the index of moderated mediation, which quantifies the association between an IE and a moderator and indicates whether the IEs are significantly different at high and low values of the moderator (Feng et al, 2023; Hayes, 2015; Matusik et al, 2022; Motro et al, 2022).…”

Section: Methodsmentioning

confidence: 99%

The impact of developmental job experience on job performance: The importance of team context

Cao

Hamori

2023

Human Resource Management

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Drawing on social resources theory, we examine the impact of developmental job experience (DJE) on employees' job performance and the role of the team context in this relationship. In a multisource, multiwave dataset of 354 employees working on 40 teams in seven Chinese companies, we find that DJE has a positive indirect relationship with job performance through increasing employees' information and support seeking. This positive indirect relationship is stronger for employees on teams with a high average DJE and low variance in DJE; it is significantly weaker for employees on teams with a low average DJE and a high variance in DJE. These results reveal that the work and team contexts play important roles in the relationship between DJE and employees' work outcomes.

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Section: Methodsmentioning

confidence: 99%

The impact of developmental job experience on job performance: The importance of team context

Cao

Hamori

2023

Human Resource Management

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“…Of course, a special focus needs to be put on leadership, a key component in both formal and informal systems (as executives and role models). The results of our review make it clear that leaders have a strong influence on the inception and transmission of toxicity (Bureau et al, 2021;Feng et al, 2023;Klasmeier et al, 2022;Woodrow & Guest, 2017). Thus, it will be essential to educate and train leaders-at all levels (Schminke, 2012)-on setting better standards and conveying those standards to employees (Gonzalez-Morales et al, 2018;Hoobler & Hu, 2013).…”

Section: Insights For Practice and Combating Toxic Workplacesmentioning

confidence: 99%

“…Abusive supervision climate has been related to a host of negative outcomes that impact individuals, their work relationships, and the functioning of the work unit overall. In particular, abusive supervision climates harm group processes and group productivity (Farh & Chen, 2014; Feng et al, 2023; Klasmeier et al, 2022; Mawritz et al, 2012). Furthermore, employees suffer affective and psychological issues as well as performance decline (e.g., Jiang & Gu, 2016; Lee et al, 2018; Ogunfowora et al, 2021).…”

Section: Toxic Work Climates: a Review Of Underlying Facet-specific C...mentioning

confidence: 99%

“…A few empirical studies shed light on the antecedents of abusive climates. Scholars have determined that managers’ psychological distress (e.g., Li et al, 2016) or dark personality traits (Feng et al, 2023; Wisse & Sleebos, 2016) can feed employees’ collective perceptions of abuse at work. Another prominent trigger of abusive supervision climates is leader and executive behaviors that trickle down to the supervisory level and, in turn, to the employee level (e.g., Mawritz et al, 2012; Tahir & Khan, 2019).…”

Section: Toxic Work Climates: a Review Of Underlying Facet-specific C...mentioning

confidence: 99%

“…For example, Wisse and Sleebos (2016) found that a supervisor’s authoritarian practices influence shared hostile perceptions. Additionally, our review indicates that leader personality traits (e.g., neuroticism and machiavellianism), and personal experiences can impact collective perceptions of toxicity (Feng et al, 2023; Kim & Toh, 2019; Mayer et al, 2007; Nielsen, 2013; Samnani & Singh, 2016; Wisse & Sleebos, 2016).…”

Section: Bringing It All Together: Building An Overarching Theoretica...mentioning

confidence: 99%

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Toxic work climates: An integrative review and development of a new construct and theoretical framework.

Priesemuth,

Schminke

2024

Journal of Applied Psychology

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Research and the media demonstrate the profound impact hostile work environments have on organizations and their members. Often, the term "toxic work climate" is used to describe patterns of aggressive behaviors that harm individuals and manifest in the broader workplace. However, despite these common references, scholars still know relatively little about what a toxic work climate actually entails, the processes by which they emerge, and their influence on organizational outcomes. The research domain is complex. Within the organizational literature alone, toxic work climates have been described as those that harbor abusive bosses, aggressive employees, and those that show signs of bullying or incivility. Our aim in this integrative conceptual review is to add precision and focus to this multidisciplinary and fragmented literature. Grounding our efforts in multilevel theories, we first introduce an overarching definition of the toxic work climate construct and review research on existing hostile climate types that can appropriately be consolidated under this new heading. We then develop a new theoretical model that outlines the dominant causes and mechanisms by which toxic work climates form, and the main pathways by which they influence employees, teams, and organizations. Finally, we provide a unified path forward for advancing theory, research, and practice, including advice on how toxic climates might be combated in years to come.

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Middle power plays: How and when Mach middle managers use downward abuse and upward guanxi to gain and maintain power

Keng‐Highberger,

Feng,

Yam

et al. 2024

J Organ Behavior

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SummaryGiven Machiavellianism's strong historical and theoretical roots in power and politics, there are surprisingly few empirical studies, if any, that directly examine how Machiavellians attain and maintain power in organizations. Understanding this is important because Machiavellian employees have managed to effectively gain power to reach managerial positions of influence in organizations despite their negative reputation. Further, there are contradictory theories and peripheral empirical findings that suggest they gain power either by strategically forging important connections or through coercive force. We propose that a Mach middle manager perspective can help illuminate which power‐gaining strategy is used. Drawing from the Machiavellianism literature and power dependence theory, we theorize how Mach middle managers gain coercive power through abusive supervision on those with less power (their subordinates), while building close guanxi with those with more power (their senior manager) to obtain relational empowerment. Moreover, we theorize that they maintain power by increasing both power‐gaining strategies when Mach middle managers perceive a high threat to hierarchy from subordinates, suggesting these parallel relations are positively connected. We found support for our theoretical model using data from a multi‐confederate experimental lab study and two multi‐wave field studies. The theoretical and empirical implications of our findings are discussed.

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Wolves in Sheep’s Clothing: How and When Machiavellian Leaders Demonstrate Strategic Abuse

Cited by 9 publications

References 167 publications

The impact of developmental job experience on job performance: The importance of team context

The impact of developmental job experience on job performance: The importance of team context

Toxic work climates: An integrative review and development of a new construct and theoretical framework.

Middle power plays: How and when Mach middle managers use downward abuse and upward guanxi to gain and maintain power

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