In the following case, we see how a personality can be seen and described quite differently: as both a model leader and as a narcissist.

In the 1980s, Jan Carlzon, CEO of the Scandinavian airline SAS, was described by Tom Peters as a model leader. By 2004, he was described by Maccoby (2004) as a narcissist. In Greek mythology, Narcissus was a man so vain and proud that he fell in love with his own image; narcissism is a personality trait encompassing grandiosity, arrogance, self-absorption, a sense of entitlement, fragile self-esteem, and hostility. Narcissists lack empathy, value competition over cooperation, and are interpersonally dismissive and abrasive (Sedikides et al., 2004); they do not make good ‘team players’.

They have also been found to denigrate those close to them who outperform them (Morf and Rhodewalt, 1993; 2001). But as well as having negative traits, narcissistic personalities also possess the charisma and grand vision that have been said to be ‘vital to effective leadership’ (Rosenthal and Pittinksy, 2006); narcissism is an attribute of many powerful leaders and can be seen—as evident in the examples above cited by Maccoby (2004; 2007)—as a personality characteristic of successful leaders.

A business psychologist, Professor Binna Kandola, has commented that he feels that the banking bosses have been displaying signs of narcissism, characterized by a certain grandiosity and a strong sense of envy. They also seem to think that the rules do not apply to them. The personality characteristics that made the banking bosses successful in the first place—that is, ambition, drive, and ruthlessness—have ultimately proven to be the very characteristics that brought them down.

Questions

1. Given that narcissism is socially undesirable, and that few people would wish to be described as vain, self-absorbed, egotistical, selfish, conceited and grandiose, lacking in empathy, or poor team players, would you expect organizations to screen these people out at hiring stage?

2. How do you think a narcissistic employee might respond to appraisal? (See Bushman and Baumeister, 1998.)

3. There appears to be no research that investigates how narcissists react to negative feedback ( Judge et al., 2006). How difficult might it be to research this?