Skip to main content

Advertisement

Log in

Pathological Work Victimisation in Public Sector Organisations

  • Published:
Public Organization Review Aims and scope Submit manuscript

Abstract

Workers in public sector organisations might expect any threat to their physical and psychological safety and wellbeing to fall far short of any unreasonable risk. However, the evidence is by no means certain. One of the most persistent and prevalent organisational perils is work victimisation. A propensity towards this type of abuse in government organisations is most disturbing, since they remain a major employer, and hence, have a direct bearing on the occupational fates of a large and growing number of personnel. This paper provides a brief discussion of work victimisation and focuses attention one of its most unrepentant and enigmatic perpetrators, the corporate psychopath. The paper highlights some individual and institutional measures designed to enable employees to mitigate the risk of abuse by these victimisers.

This is a preview of subscription content, log in via an institution to check access.

Access this article

Price excludes VAT (USA)
Tax calculation will be finalised during checkout.

Instant access to the full article PDF.

Institutional subscriptions

Similar content being viewed by others

References

  • Akhtar, R., Ahmetoglu, G., & Chamorro-Premuzi, T. (2013). Greed is good? Assessing the relationship between entrepreneurship and subclinical psychopathy. Personality and Individual Differences, 54, 420–425.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Alvesson, M., & Willmott, H. (2002). Identity regulation as organizational control: producing the appropriate individual. Journal of Management Studies, 39, 619–644.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Arneson, R. (2007). Hame, stigma, and disgust in the decent society. The Journal of Ethics, 11, 31–63.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Australian Public Service Commission (2011–2012). State of the service report. Canberra: APSC.

  • Babiak, P. (1995). When psychopaths go to work: a case study of an industrial psychopath. Applied Psychology: An International Review, 44, 171–188.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Babiak, P. (2000). Psychopathic manipulation at work. In C. Gancono (Ed.), The clinical and forensic assessment of psychopathy: A practitioner’s guide (pp. 287–311). London: Lawrence Erlbaum Associates.

  • Babiak, P., & Hare, R. (2006). Snakes in suits: When psychopaths go to work. New York: Harper Collins.

    Google Scholar 

  • Babiak, P., Neumann, C., & Hare, R. (2010). Corporate psychopathy: talking the walk. Behavioural Sciences and the Law, 28, 174–193.

    Google Scholar 

  • Bergquist, M. (1993). The postmodern organization: Mastering the art of the irreversible change. San Francisco: Josey-Bass.

    Google Scholar 

  • Blair, R. (2005). Responding to the emotions of others: dissociating forms of empathy through the study of typical and psychiatric populations. Consciousness and Cognition, 14, 698–718.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Board, B., & Fritzon, K. (2005). Disordered personalities at work. Psychology Crime and Law, 11, 7–32.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Boccardi, M., Frisoni, G., Hare, R., Cavedo, E., Najt, P., Pievani, M., et al. (2011). Cortex and amygdala morphology in psychopathy. Psychiatry Research: Neuroimaging, 193, 85–92.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Boddy, C. (2010). Corporate psychopaths and organizational type. Journal of Public Affairs, 10, 300–312.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Boddy, C. (2011). Corporate psychopaths, bullying and unfair supervision in the workplace. Journal of Business Ethics, 100, 369–379.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Caponecchia, C., Sun, A., & Wyatt, A. (2012). ‘Psychopaths’ at work? Implications for lay persons’ use of labels and behavioural criteria for psychopathy. Journal of Business Ethics, 107, 399–408.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Castells, M. (2009). Communication power. Oxford: Oxford University Press.

    Google Scholar 

  • Cleckley, H. (1941). The mask of sanity. St. Louis: Mosby.

    Google Scholar 

  • Coid, J., Yan, M., Ullrich, S., Roberts, R., & Hare, R. (2009). Prevalence and correlates of psychopathic traits in the household population of Great Britain. International Journal of Law and Psychiatry, 32, 65–73.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Collinson, D. (2008). Conformist, resistant, and disguised selves: A post-structuralist approach to identity and workplace followership. In R. Riggio, I. Chaleff, & J. Lipman-Blumen (Eds.), The art of followership: How great followers create great leaders and organizations (pp. 309–323). San Francisco: Jossey-Bass.

    Google Scholar 

  • Comcare. (2008). Working well: An organisational approach to preventing psychological injury. Canberra: AGPS.

    Google Scholar 

  • Comcare (2014). Costs of psychological injury. Retrieved from http://www.comcare.gov.au/safety__and__prevention/health_and_safety_topics/psychological_injury/costs_of_psychological_injury

  • De Cuyper, M., De Pauw, S., De Fruyt, F., De Bolle, M., & De Clercq, B. (2009). A meta-analysis of psychopathy, antisocial PD and FFM associations. European Journal of Personality, 23, 531–565.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • De Vries, G., & Miller, D. (1986). Personality, culture and organization. Academy of Management Review, 11, 266–279.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Deigh, J. (1995). Empathy and universalisability. Ethics, 105, 743–763.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Dutton, K. (2012). The wisdom of psychopaths: Lessons in life from saints, spies and serial killers. London: Arrow.

    Google Scholar 

  • Edens, J. (2006). Unresolved controversies concerning psychopathy: Implications for clinical and forensic decision making. Professional Psychology: Research and Practice, 37, 59–65.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Edens, J., Davis, K., Smith, K., & Guy, L. (2013). No sympathy for the devil: attributing asychopathic traits to capital murderers also predicts support for executing them. Personality Disorders: Theory, Research, and Treatment, 4, 175–181.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Erickson, S., & Vitacco, M. (2012). Predators and punishment. Psychology, Public Policy, and Law, 18, 1–17.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Fecteau, S., Pascual-Leone, A., & Théoret, H. (2008). Psychopathy and the mirror neuron system: preliminary findings from a non-psychiatric sample. Psychiatry Research, 160, 137–144.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Federman, C., Holmes, D., & Jacob, J. (2009). Deconstructing the psychopath: a critical discursive analysis. Cultural Critique, 72, 36–65.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Felthous, A. (2011). The “untreatability” of psychopathy and hospital commitment in the USA. International Journal of Law and Psychiatry, 34, 400–405.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Forouzan, E., & Cooke, D. (2005). Figuring out la femme fatale: conceptual and assessment issues concerning psychopathy in females. Behavioral Sciences & the Law, 23, 765–778.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Foucault, M. (1980). Two lectures: Truth and power and the eye of power. In C. Grodon (Ed.), Power/knowledge: Selected interviews and other writings (pp. 1972–1977). New York: Pantheon.

    Google Scholar 

  • Frost, P. (2003). Toxic emotions at work. Boston: Harvard University Press.

    Google Scholar 

  • Giblin, E. (1981). Bureaupathology: the denigration of competence. Human Resource Management, 20, 22–25.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Glenn, A., Raine, A., & Laufer, W. (2011). Is it wrong to criminalize and punish psychopaths? Emotion Review, 3, 302–304.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Glenn, A., Laufer, W., & Raine, A. (2013). Author Reply: Vitacco, Erickson, and Lishner: holding psychopaths morally and criminally culpable. Emotion Review, 5, 426–427.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Goffman, E. (1971). The presentation of self in everyday life. Harmondsworth: Penguin.

    Google Scholar 

  • Goffman, E. (1974). Frame analysis. New York: Harper.

    Google Scholar 

  • Greene, J., Sommerville, J., Nystrom, L., Darley, J., & Cohen, J. (2001). An fMRI investigation of emotional engagement in moral judgment. Science, 293, 2105–2108.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Greenleaf, R. (1977). Servant leadership: A journey into the nature of legitimate power and greatness. New York: Paulist Press.

    Google Scholar 

  • Gustafson, S. (2000). Personality and organizational destructiveness: Fact, fiction, and fable. In L. R. Bergman, R. B. Cairns, L. Nilsson, & L. Nystedt (Eds.), Developmental science and the holistic approach (pp. 299–314). Mahwah: Erlbaum.

    Google Scholar 

  • Gustafson, S., & Ritzer, D. (1995). The dark side of normal: a psychopathy-linked pattern called, aberrant self-promotion. European Journal of Personality, 9, 147–183.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Hare, R. (1991). The Hare psychopathy checklist revised. New York: Multi-Health Systems Inc.

    Google Scholar 

  • Hare, R. (1993). Without conscience: The disturbing world of the psychopaths among us. New York: Guilford Press.

    Google Scholar 

  • Hare, R., Forth, A., & Strachan, E. (1992). Psychopathy and crime across the life span. In R. D. Peters, R. J. McMahon, & V. L. Quinsey (Eds.), Aggression and violence throughout the life span (pp. 285–300). Newbury Park: Sage.

    Google Scholar 

  • Harris, G., Rice, M., & Quinsey, V. (1994). Psychopathy as a taxon: evidence that psychopaths are a discrete class. Journal of Consulting and Clinical Psychology, 62, 387–397.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Harris, G., Skilling, T., & Rice, M. (2001). The construct of psychopathy. Crime and Justice, 28, 197–264.

    Google Scholar 

  • Heilbrun, A. (1982). Cognitive models of criminal violence based upon intelligence and psychopathy levels. Journal of Consulting and Clinical Psychology, 50, 546–557.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Hirschman, A. (1970). Exit, voice, and loyalty: Responses to decline in firms, organizations, and states. Cambridge: Harvard University Press.

    Google Scholar 

  • Horley, J. (Ed.). (2013). Born bad: Critiques of psychopathy. New York: Novinka.

    Google Scholar 

  • Karpman, P. (1948). The myth of the psychopathic personality. American Journal of Psychiatry, 104, 523–534.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Keashly, L., & Neuman, J.H. (2010) Faculty experiences with bullying in higher education: Causes, consequences and management. Administrative Theory and Praxis, 32(1), 48–70.

  • Lakoff, G. (2006). Thinking points: Communicating our American values and vision. New York: Farrar, Straus and Giroux.

    Google Scholar 

  • Lee, Z., & Salekin, R. (2010). Psychopathy in a noninstitutional sample: differences in primary and secondary subtypes. Personality Disorders: Theory, Research, and Treatment, 1, 153–169.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Levenson, M. (1992). Rethinking psychopathy. Theory and Psychology, 2, 51–71.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Levenson, M., Kiehl, K., & Fitzpatrick, C. (1995). Assessing psychopathic attributes in a noninstitutionalized population. Journal of Personality and Social Psychology, 68(1), 151–158.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Lipton, H. (1948). The psychopath. Journal of Criminal Law and Criminology, 40, 548–595.

    Google Scholar 

  • McHoskey, J., Worzel, W., & Szyarto, C. (1998). Machiavellianism and psychopathy. Journal of Personality and Social Psychology, 74, 192–210.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Messick, D., & Tenvrunsel, A. (Eds.). (1996). Codes of conduct: Behavioural research into business ethics. New York: Russell Sage.

    Google Scholar 

  • Michelson, G., & Mouly, V. (2002). ‘You didn’t hear it from us but …’: towards an understanding of rumour and gossip in organisations. Australian Journal of Management, 27, 57–65.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Millon, T., Simonsen, E., Birket-Smith, M., & Davis, R. (Eds.). (1998). Psychopathy: Antisocial, criminal, and violent behaviour. New York: The Guilford Press.

    Google Scholar 

  • Mullins-Sweatt, S., Glover, N., Derefinko, K., Miller, J., & Widiger, T. (2010). The search of the successful psychopath. Journal of Research in Personality, 44, 554–558.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Murphy, J. (1972). Moral death: a Kantian essay on psychopathy. Ethics, 82, 284–298.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Neumann, C., & Hare, R. (2008). Psychopathic traits in a large community sample: links to violence, alcohol use and intelligence. Journal of Consulting and Clinical Psychology, 76, 142–154.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Nicholls, T., & Patrila, J. (2005). Gender and psychopathy: an overview of important issues and introduction to the special issue. Behavioral Sciences & the Law, 23, 729–741.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • O’Neill, T., Lewis, R., & Carswell, J. (2011). Employee personality, justice perceptions, and the prediction of workplace deviance. Personality and Individual Differences, 51, 595–600.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Ogloff, J. (2006). Psychopathy/antisocial personality disorder conundrum. Australian and New Zealand Journal of Psychiatry, 40, 519–528.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Osumi, T., & Ohira, H. (2010). The positive side of psychopathy: emotional detachments in psychopathy and rational decision-making in the ultimatum game. Personality and Individual Differences, 49, 451–456.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Pech, R., & Slade, B. (2007). Organisational sociopaths: rarely challenged, often promoted. Why? Society and Business Review, 2, 254–269.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Preuss, L. (2009). Codes of conduct in organisational context: from cascade to lattice-work of codes. Journal of Business Ethics, 94, 471–487.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Ray, J., and Ray, J. (1982). Some apparent advantages of subclinical psychopathy. Journal of Social Psychology, 117, 135–142.

    Google Scholar 

  • Rayner, C., & Cooper, C. (1997). Workplace bullying: myth or reality—can we afford to ignore it? Journal of Community and Applied Psychology, 7, 211–214.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Salekin, R. T., & Worley, C. (2010). Treatment of psychopathy: a review and brief introduction to mental models approach for psychopathy. Behavioral Sciences & the Law, 28, 235–266.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Schein, E. (2000). The next frontier: Edgar Schein on organizational therapy. The Academy of Management Executive, 14, 31–48.

    Google Scholar 

  • Smith, R. (1978). The psychopath in society. New York: Academic.

    Google Scholar 

  • Smith, R. (1984). The psychopath as moral agent. Philosophical and Phenomenological Research, 48, 177–193.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Smith, R. (1995). Psychopathy one more time: comment to Levenson. Theory & Psychology, 5, 131–137.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Smith, R. (1999). Psychopathic behavior and issues of treatment. New Ideas in Psychology, 17, 165–176.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Stevens, G., Deuling, J., & Armenakis, A. (2012). Successful psychopaths: are they unethical decision-makers and why? Journal of Business Ethics, 105, 139–149.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Tepper, B. (2007). Abusive supervision in work organizations: review, synthesis, and research agenda. Journal of Management, 33, 261–289.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Tracy, S., Lutgen-Sandvik, P., & Alberts, J. (2006). Nightmares, demons and slaves: exploring the painful metaphors of workplace bullying. Management Communication Quarterly, 20, 148–185.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Vitacco, M., Erickson, S., & Lishner, D. (2013). Comment: holding psychopaths morally and criminally culpable. Emotion Review, 5, 423–425.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Weick, K. (1995). Sensemaking in organisations. California: Sage.

    Google Scholar 

  • Williams, B. (1972). Morality: An introduction to ethics. New York: Harper and Row.

    Google Scholar 

  • Wittgenstein, L. (1963). Philosophical investigations (trans: Anscombe, G., & Rhees, R.). Oxford: Blackwell.

  • Yeung, R. (2006). The rules of office politics. London: Marshall Cavendish.

    Google Scholar 

  • Zavaliy, A. (2008). Absent, full and partial responsibility of the psychopaths. Journal for the Theory of Social Behaviour, 38, 87–103.

    Article  Google Scholar 

Download references

Author information

Authors and Affiliations

Authors

Corresponding author

Correspondence to John Solas.

Rights and permissions

Reprints and permissions

About this article

Cite this article

Solas, J. Pathological Work Victimisation in Public Sector Organisations. Public Organiz Rev 15, 255–265 (2015). https://doi.org/10.1007/s11115-014-0273-z

Download citation

  • Published:

  • Issue Date:

  • DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/s11115-014-0273-z

Keywords

Navigation