Do psychopaths in a position of power help a business grow or inhibit its growth?

What is a psychopath?

In order to evaluate the proposal of how psychopaths influence the progression of a business, we first need to understand what a psychopath is. One common misconception is that psychopathy is a disorder however, this is not exactly true as psychopathy does not appear in the DMS-5 as a diagnostic category.

Psychopathy is actually a set of personality traits which individuals exhibit to varying degrees and is considered a form of personality pathology. It is often argued that psychopathy is a subset of anti social personality disorder (ASPD) or that they are the same disorder and some even argue they are on a spectrum. 

For example, here is a table comparing the core traits of psychopathy and (ASPD):

Psychopathy	Anti social personality disorder
Arrogant and or deceitful behaviour such as superficial charm or a grandiose sense of self-worth	Having a sense of superiority and being extremely opinionated
Lack of remorse, guilt and empathy along with callous disregard for others.	Feeling no guilt about harming others. Doing dangerous things with no regard for the safety of self or others.
Living impulsively and with an irresponsible lifestyle	Being irresponsible and failing to fulfill work or financial responsibilities.

As shown, the symptoms of psychopathy and (ASPD) are similar which gives weight to suggestions that the disorders are linked.

While the constructs share many features of social deviance, the key distinction is that (ASPD) is related to a pattern of disregard for societal norms such as “doing dangerous things” whereas psychopathy is a more specific set of personality traits that include a lack of empathy and manipulative behaviour. In essence, ASPD explains the “What?” while psychopathy explains the “Why?”. As a result, it is vital to understand that almost all psychopaths have (ASPD) whereas not all individuals with (ASPD) have psychopathy.

Psychopathy in the business world:

Psychopaths often aim to reach higher positions within their organizations as it allows for control over more people. This is because psychopaths are hyper disconnected, individuals who are hyper disconnected often have an obsessive desire to add “more” to their life^[1] [Taylor, Steve 2023]. As a result, senior business positions often have higher levels of psychopathic traits than others ^[2] [Boddy, Clive R.P. 2010].

Statistics exemplify this by highlighting the disparity between the global and corporate population of psychopaths. Case in point, 1% of the global population are psychopaths. However, research by experts in the field such as Dr. Rober Hare and Dr. Paul Babiak, often suggests that there is a prevalence rate of 3-4% in senior business positions such as managers.

Reasons for the disparity between these two worlds is that those with psychopathic traits are often well suited to climb the corporate ladder as they generally appear to be intelligent, sincere, powerful, charming, witty, and entertaining communicators. Due to these abilities, they are able to quickly assess what someone wants to hear and fabricate a story in order to appeal to the expectations. Studies have also found psychopaths  have significant natural advantages when working in environments where abuse is prominent as they are naturally more resistant to stress ^[3] [University of Notre Dame 2018]  ^[4] [McGowan, Matt 2018].

The effect of psychopaths in positions of power

From surface level, some psychopathic traits sound desirable in a leadership position and can provide useful insight. Two of these traits include resistance to stress under pressure and lack of ethical considerations. 

As previously stated, psychopaths are highly resistant to stress which is a useful tool within a business for a considerable number of reasons.

One reason is due to habits, when an individual experiences severe stress they may quickly find themselves overwhelmed. A natural response is to fall back on habits as they feel safe; however, this leads to a lack of growth within a business as people cling to what is known. A psychopath's emotional detachment allows them to bypass emotional paralysis often felt by others in stressful situations. As a result, psychopaths can make swift unsentimental decisions grounded in narrow goal-orientated logic ^[5] [Hamilton, Diane 2025]. 

Moreover, emotional contagion is another strength of psychopathic leadership due to the synchronisation of traits which a leader presents. A psychopath's cool and calm demeanor under pressure will likely be mimicked by others due to emotional contagion leading to a team working objectively rather than on emotion. Because of this, the decisions made will be purely calculative and due to this, informed and not impulsive.

Finally, those with psychopathy are able to make difficult decisions promptly due to their lack of empathy ^[6] [Psychology today 2025]. Inside the business world this may be a useful trait for a senior position as they can effectively remove employees based on performance alone without consideration for the emotional or ethical implications.

While these traits may seem beneficial in isolation, psychopathy in the business world can lead to highly dysfunctional environments within the corporate world due to the underlying lack of empathy. Because of this, psychopathy can lead to highly damaging outcomes some of the behaviour which can bring about this is listed below:

Firstly, psychopaths in the workplace may lead to legal liabilities as they are often bold, arrogant, and fixated on short term goals. In a position of power, they may cut corners in the pursuit of short term gains even going so far as to engage in illegal activities such as fraud^[7] [Boddy, Clive R.P. et al. 2024] . These illegal activities can easily lead to bankruptcy or significant damage shown by how Barings bank collapsed at the behest of fraudulent activities carried out by an unmonitored employee^[8] [Chen, James 2025]. 

Secondly, workplace bullying due to psychopaths is highly extensive with some studies suggesting up to 35% of all workplace bullying comes from those with psychopathic traits. In some cases, death threats to employees' families have been perpetrated by corporate psychopaths in an attempt to coerce employees^[9] [Boddy, Clive R.P. et al. 2017]. Workplace bullying such as this may lead to low self-esteem and detachment from the company as employees associate the negative behaviour of their superior with the company. This leads to decreases in productivity and motivation ultimately negatively affecting growth^[10] [Boddy, Clive R.P. et al. 2010]. (For a comprehensive representation of the outcome of workplace bullying, refer to figure 1)                        

Finally, corporate psychopaths may actually perpetuate a circle of violence within a company. Corporate psychopaths often have a need to control the individuals around them which is often sought after through manipulation or fear^[11] [Boddy, Clive R.P. 2015]. Additional studies have shown that those who work under violent and abusive bosses are more likely to engage in counterproductive behaviour themself. 

This counterproductive behaviour isn’t referring to absence or unauthorised extra breaks. People who work under abusive bosses may actually begin to mirror the superiors' behaviour leading to a cycle of abuse^[12] [Glowatz, Elana 2017]. As we have explained before, psychopaths thrive under abusive conditions which demonstrates that the culture of bullying does not remain confined to the victim and can become a self-perpetuating cycle throughout the organisation.

Case study: The 2008 financial crisis

In 2008, the financial crisis occurred where a major US bank filed for bankruptcy and another had to be bailed out which exacerbated the great recession leading to a global recession which lost 30 million people their jobs while trade volume plummeted by 15% during 2008-2009^[13] [The econosphere]. 

Clyde Boddy suggests a theory that psychopathy is responsible for the 2008 financial crisis. In specific, he claims the actions of psychopaths at the top of the corporate ladder are accountable. 

For example, the fifth largest bank at the time by market capitalization was the Royal Bank of Scotland. The CEO Fred “the shred” Goodwin has been singled out as exhibiting psychopathic traits by renowned psychotherapist Professor Manfred F.R. Kets de Vries due to the way he handled the bank^[14] [de Vries and Manfred, 2012]. Goodwin's questionable behaviour includes excessive risk taking, little concern for his mismanagement, unpredictable demeanour towards colleagues and fostering “a culture of fear”^[15] [Cooper, 2013].

Goodwin's behaviour ultimately led to the collapse of the bank which echoes the fact that psychopathic behaviour within the business world could be one of the key factors in the 2008 financial crisis. However, what Goodwin's story signifies is something much greater in that it represents the scale of destruction psychopaths can cause when acquiring power in the business world.

Conclusion:

Throughout the essay the distinction between ASPD and psychopathy has been established, the minimal positive traits of psychopaths for businesses have been explored and the negative consequences of corporate psychopaths have been exemplified. In light of the evidence, it is clear that corporate psychopaths foster a harmful working environment and make devastating decisions in positions of power. A combination of their pursuit of short term goals and lack of empathy may be effective in inducing growth for a period of time however, this is like holding a bomb on a leash. Therefore, psychopathy does not help a business grow in the long term and in fact inhibits long term growth.

Citations

1. Taylor, S. “Why Do Psychopaths Crave Power?” (2023). Psychology Today. https://www.psychologytoday.com/us/blog/out-of-the-darkness/202310/why-do-psychopaths-crave-power?msockid=199810f4dc5463dd361704dbdd0662a7

2. Boddy, C. R. P., Ladyshewsky R., Galvin, P. (2010). “Leaders without ethics in global business: Corporate psychopaths”. *Journal of Public Affairs, 10 (3), 121-138. https://doi.org/10.1002/pa.352

3. University of Notre Dame (2018). “Flourishing under an abusive boss? You may be a psychopath, study shows”, Science news. https://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2018/01/180123171433.htm

4. McGowan, M. (2018). “Study Shows Psychopathic Employees Thrive Under Abusive Supervisors”, University of Arkansas. https://arkansasresearch.uark.edu/study-shows-psychopathic-employees-thrive-under-abusive-supervisors/#:~:text=Results%20showed%20that%20high%20primary%20pscychopathy%20individuals%2C%20compared,as%20well%20as%20less%20angry%2C%20under%20abusive%20supervisors.

5. Hamilton, D. (2025). “Why Distress Tolerance And Resonance Matters In Successful Leadership”. Forbes. https://www.forbes.com/sites/dianehamilton/2025/04/22/why-distress-tolerance-and-resonance-matters-in-successful-leadership/

6. Psychology today. (n.d.). “Psychopathy”. https://www.psychologytoday.com/us/basics/psychopathy#:~:text=Psychopathy%20is%20a%20spectrum%20disorder,%2C%20or%20fully%20applies%20%282%29

7. Boddy, C.R.P., Freeman, C., Karpacheva-Hock, E. (2024). “Fraud and corporate psychopaths: The proposition for reintroducing personality traits of the economic crime offender”, Journal of Economic Criminology, 5. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.jeconc.2024.100081

8. Chen, J. (2025). “Barings Bank Collapse: A Case Study in Oversight and Banking Crises”, Investopedia. https://www.investopedia.com/terms/b/baringsbank.asp

9. Boddy, C., Taplin, R. (2017). “A note on workplace psychopathic bullying - Measuring its frequency and severity”, Aggression and Violent Behaviour, 34, 117-119. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.avb.2017.02.001

10.  Boddy, C. R. P., Ladyshewsky R., Galvin, P. (2010). “The Influence of Corporate Psychopaths on Corporate Social Responsibility and Organizational Commitment to Employees”, Journal of Business Ethics, 97, 1-19. https://doi.org/10.1007/s10551-010-0492-3

11. Boddy, C. R. P. (2015). “Psychopathic Leadership: A Case Study of a Corporate Psychopath CEO”, Journal of Business Ethics, 145, 141-156.  https://doi.org/10.1007/s10551-015-2908-6

12.  Glowatz, E. (2017). “Bad Jobs: If Your Boss Is A Psychopath, You Might Act Like One Too”, Medical Daily. https://www.medicaldaily.com/bad-jobs-if-your-boss-psychopath-you-might-act-one-too-407934

13.  The Econosphere. (2025). “The Causes and Consequences of the 2008 Global Financial Crisis” https://theeconosphere.com/the-causes-and-consequences-of-the-2008-global-financial-crisis/

14.  de Vries, K., Manfred, F. R. (2012). “The Psychopath in the C Suite: Redefining the SOB”. INSEAD. https://sites.insead.edu/facultyresearch/research/doc.cfm?did=50923

15. Cooper, C. (2013). “Fiddling while RBS burned - new book reveals Fred the Shred Goodwin’s fatal obsessions”, The Independent. https://www.independent.co.uk/news/business/news/fiddling-while-rbs-burned-new-book-reveals-fred-the-shred-goodwin-s-fatal-obsessions-8795202.html