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I’m Not a Psychopath, I Just Talk and Act Like One
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relationship is much more complex than this and involves other
things, not the least of which is the work situation itself. Yet we all
tend to refer to these factors (sometimes by other names) when asked
to rate how “good” or “bad” our leaders are.
“Coworkers from Hell”?
“Bad” bosses are not the only people we hear about. We have also
heard a lot about coworkers and colleagues with negative attitudes,
antisocial tendencies, manipulation, irresponsibility, poor performance,
and a tendency to disrupt others who are trying to work.
Clearly, these individuals are particularly difficult to work with and
to manage, but there may be plausible explanations other than psychopathy
for their behavior. To understand this we need to consider
the factors people commonly use when evaluating colleagues and
coworkers. Again, organizational researchers have discovered an important
factor: it is called conscientiousness by the industrial psychologists
who study it.
Individuals who are highly conscientious tend to focus on doing
a good job; they like being accurate, timely, and thorough. They take
pride in completing the jobs they start, are very responsible and detail
oriented, and like to be seen by others as competent. Lowconscientiousness
coworkers can get sloppy about meeting deadlines,
achieving goals, or finishing what they start. They can come across as
irresponsible, unfocused, disruptive, and poor performers. Sometimes
they rely on others to help them get their work done—or others
may feel the need to “cover” for them so as not to hurt the team’s
or department’s overall performance. Clearly, most of us prefer to
work next to individuals who are conscientious in their work. It
seems fairer to us for others to carry their own weight on the job, especially
if they are drawing a salary similar to the one we receive.
A lot of research has shown that conscientiousness is a primary dimension
of personality, rather than just a style or personal preference.