Sustaining Engagement: How Follower Resilience May Mitigate the Negative Effects of Dark Triad Leaders

Abstract

We propose that followers with leaders who exhibit any or all of the dark triad leadership traits, may be able to mitigate negative effects through their resilience. In this study, we use Job Demands-Resources theory to propose moderated relationships among follower perceptions of their leader’s psychopathic, Machiavellian, or narcissistic traits, follower engagement, and follower resilience. We found support for two of three hypotheses: Follower resilience mitigated the negative effects of leader psychopathy and leader Machiavellianism on follower work engagement. We also found an opposite effect for how resilience moderated the relationship between narcissism and job engagement: People with lower resilience were more engaged under narcissistic leaders. Given the reality of dark triad leaders, our findings support the promotion of coping methods that followers may use to mitigate negative outcomes.