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Sociologists and academics are increasingly interested in “toxic” managers. Employees who rub shoulders with such leaders must learn how to deal with these destructive personalities, at the risk of being crushed by the pressure and suffering professionally.
Simon L. Dolan drew on decades of “toxic” management research to paint a clinical picture of these leaders in his latest book, “De-Stress at Work: Understanding and Combating Chronic Stress” (Routledge, 2023, not translated). He explains that destructive bosses are likely to exhibit certain personality traits.
Portrait of toxic managers
Among them are the fact of being jealous of their collaborators, of fearing the presence of “enemies” in their workplace, of taking credit for others or of constantly comparing themselves to others. “Whether consciously or not, a toxic leader is someone who abuses their authority and betrays trust. [de ses subordonnés] to satisfy his own ego“, explains Professor Dolan in a press release.
This hostile behavior often finds its origin in the disproportionate expectations that are projected on hierarchical superiors, especially since the Covid crisis. Managers had to show inventiveness to face the technical vagaries of telework while ensuring the well-being of their teams. The return to the office has also weighed on their morale, especially when it is necessary to convince employees to return to their workplace. As a result, managers are exposed to situations of psychological distress. “They are bound to hide their feelings even when under tremendous pressure. Pretending to be a superman does a lot of damage to mind and body—the key is to be realistic about your strengths and weaknesses“, emphasizes Professor Dolan.
Excess anger and abuse of power
Managers may thus be tempted to over-invest in their work to meet the challenges of the company’s growth. Their collaborators must comply with their orders and comply, otherwise they will give them a hard time. For Professor Dolan, this attitude hides, in reality, a cruel lack of self-confidence. “Many factors contribute to a toxic personality, including a compulsive need to display one’s worth in the eyes of others, but most importantly a deep-seated lack of self-esteem. It is usually the culmination of a lack of ethical and emotional development throughout life.“, he declares.
If the recommendations for being a “good” manager have been known for a long time, academic research is now moving towards the consequences of destructive management on the well-being of employees. A studypublished in August 2022 in the journal Frontiers in Psychology, found that the hostile behaviors of some “toxic” leaders would cause employees to engage in similar behavior, whether it was tantrums, abuse of power or mistreatment of their peers. This could lead, in the long term, to a feeling of insecurity at work.
Thus, Simon L. Dolan details several strategies to adopt to guard against toxic management in “De-Stress at Work”, both at the level of employees and of the company as a whole. “Leadership can make or break an organization“, he says in a press release, “good leaders motivate their teams to be creative and productive. But conversely, a bad leader can demotivate employees and demoralize them, which can have a devastating effect on them.“.