HW about management

Snakes  in  Suits:  When  Psychopaths  Go  to  Work    

— Paul  Babiak  and  Robert  D.  Hare       Selected  excerpts:     Psychopaths  are  without  conscience  and  incapable  of  empathy,  guilt,  or  loyalty  to   anyone  but  themselves.       Reviews  of  their  records  showed  them  to  be  antisocial  and  violent  for  reasons  that   often  seemed  random  and  senseless.  They  could  be  egocentric  in  the  extreme,  and   were  seemingly  unable  to  experience  deep  human  emotions,  especially  love  and   compassion.  They  failed  to  have  significant  or  intimate  relationships.       They  are  known  for  their  ability  to  don  many  masks,  change  “who  they  are”   depending  upon  the  person  with  whom  they  are  interacting,  and  make  themselves   appear  likable  to  their  intended  victim.       They  are  the  perfect  invisible  predator.  Like  chameleons,  psychopaths  can  hide  who   they  really  are  and  mask  their  true  intentions  from  their  victims  for  extended   periods.  The  psychopath  is  a  near-­‐perfect  invisible  human  predator.       Psychopaths  lack  empathy  and  possibly  even  the  most  basic  understanding  of   human  feelings.       Because  they  see  most  people  as  weak,  inferior,  and  easy  to  deceive,  psychopathic   con  artists  will  often  tell  you  that  their  victims  deserved  what  they  got.       Amazingly,  more  often  than  not,  victims  will  eventually  come  to  doubt  their  own   knowledge  of  the  truth  and  change  their  own  views  to  believe  what  the  psychopath   tells  them  rather  than  what  they  know  to  be  true.      

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Psychopaths  may  even  blame  the  victims  for  their  own  misfortune,  offering   convincing  reasons  why  they  got  what  they  deserved!       Your  ability  to  recognize  psychopathic  manipulation  is  increased  if  you  are  not  seen   as  valuable  or  a  threat  to  the  psychopath,  and  therefore  of  little  interest.   Psychopaths  invest  a  lot  of  mental  energy  in  identifying  and  manipulating  their   victims,  but  they  don’t  spend  much  energy  trying  to  uphold  a  mask  for  those  with   little  utility  to  them;         Because  a  psychopath—our  new  true  friend—is  an  excellent  communicator;  he  or   she  easily  picks  out  topics  that  are  important  to  us  and  reflects  sympathetic  points   of  view,  sometimes  complete  with  enthusiasm  or  “emotion”  to  reinforce  the  spoken   words.       For  one,  the  persona  of  the  psychopath—the  “personality”  the  person  is  bonding   with—does  not  really  exist.  It  was  built  on  lies,  carefully  woven  together  to  entrap   you.  It  is  a  mask,       In  summary,  the  psychopath’s  psychological  game  involves  analyzing  the   individual’s  expectations  and  desires,  and  then  reflecting  them  in  a  psychological   mask  that  is  so  convincing  the  person  bonds  with  him  or  her.         Psychopaths  often  are  cunning,  master  manipulators,  able  to  influence  individuals   into  fulfilling  their  own  selfish  ends.  They  hide  their  true  motivations  and  project   carefully  formed  personas  to  capitalize  on  the  needs,  expectations,  and  naïveté  of   individuals  useful  to  them.       Affinity  groups—religious,  political,  or  social  groups  in  which  all  members  share   common  values  or  beliefs—are  particularly  attractive  to  psychopaths  because  of  the   collective  trust  that  members  of  these  groups  have  in  one  another.      

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This  type  of  fraud  is  disturbing  because  of  the  ease  with  which  a  social  predator   infiltrates,  cons,  and  manipulates  affinity  groups.       Patrons  are  influential  executives  who  take  talented  employees  “under  their  wing”   and  help  them  progress  through  the  organization.  Once  this  patronage  is   established,  it  is  difficult  to  overcome.  With  a  patron  on  their  side,  psychopaths   could  do  almost  no  wrong.       There  are  plenty  of  coworkers  and  managers  who  have  little  to  offer  in  the  way  of   influence,  assets,  or  potential  support.  Being  ignored,  these  individuals  are  in  a  good   position  to  see  what  is  actually  going  on.  They  may  realize  that  the  psychopath  is  not   who  he  or  she  pretends  to  be,  and  may  even  witness  the  manipulation  of  others.       Two  factors  were  important:  the  extensive  use  of  clever  impression  management   techniques,  and  the  use  of  secrecy.       Specifically,  their  game  plans  involved  manipulating  communication  networks  to   enhance  their  own  reputation,  to  disparage  others,  and  to  create  conflicts  and   rivalries  among  organization  members,  thereby  keeping  them  from  sharing   information  that  might  uncover  the  deceit.       Psychopathic  workers  very  often  were  identified  as  the  source  of  departmental   conflicts,  in  many  cases,  purposely  setting  people  up  in  conflict  with  each  other.  “She   tells  some  people  one  story,  and  then  a  totally  different  story  to  others.  Sometimes   she’ll  tell  one  person  that  ‘so-­‐and-­‐so  said  this  about  you’  and  then  do  the  same  thing   with  the  other,”  said  one  exasperated  peer.       Clearly,  the  detractors  despised  these  individuals,  and  the  supporters  almost   worshipped  them.  It  was  as  if  employees  were  describing  two  entirely  different   people.  In  a  great  number  of  these  situations,  it  seemed  that  the  psychopath  could   switch  from  warm  and  friendly  to  cold,  distant,  and  almost  hostile  depending  on   with  whom  they  were  interacting.      

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This  dramatic  shift  from  friendly  coworker  to  cold,  dispassionate  stranger  is  a   consistent  element  of  psychopathic  behavior,  and  affects  victims  in  predictable   ways—ways  that  may  work  to  the  benefit  of  the  psychopath.       The  tables  are  turned  because  the  credibility  of  the  complaining  employee  has   already  been  “managed”  and  undermined.     Those  working  with  the  employee  who  was  defeated  see  the  demoralizing  effects  up   close  and  conclude  it  is  not  worth  fighting  the  psychopath.       Such  ethical  relativism  is  part  of  the  reason  psychopathic  and  other  unprincipled   “entrepreneurs”  find  it  so  easy  to  line  their  pockets  with  the  unwitting  contributions   of  those  whose  ethical  standards  are  more  fixed.     A  culture  of  secrecy  in  an  organization  makes  it  much  easier  for  pretenders  to  hide   and  much  harder  for  management  to  catch  them  in  their  lies,       Bullies  are  not  as  sophisticated  or  as  smooth  as  the  manipulative  type,  as  they  rely   on  coercion,  abuse,  humiliation,  harassment,  aggression,  and  fear  to  get  their  way.       psychopathic  bullies  do  not  feel  remorse,  guilt,  or  empathy.  They  lack  any  insight   into  their  own  behavior,  and  seem  unwilling  or  unable  to  moderate  it,  even  when  it   is  to  their  own  advantage.       They  are  adept  at  manipulating  people—pulling  the  strings—from  a  distance,  in   order  to  get  those  directly  under  their  control  to  abuse  or  bully  those  lower  down  in   the  organization.       To  the  puppetmaster,  both  the  intermediary  (the  “puppet”)  and  the  ultimate  victim   are  expendable  since  neither  is  viewed  as  a  real,  individual  person.        

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Psychopaths  do  not  understand  what  others  mean  by  their  “feelings,”  yet  they  will   attempt  to  mimic  them  on  demand.     This  often  leads  to  superficial  expressions  or  even  exaggerations  of  emotion   inappropriate  to  the  event  being  described.       The  key  is  to  look  for  emotions  appropriate  to  the  story  being  told,  and  to  be   sensitive  to  how  realistic  (as  opposed  to  superficial)  these  emotional  expressions   appear.       Psychopathic  responses  to  perceived  “lower-­‐status”  interviewers  may  include   condescension,  flirting,  disparaging  side  comments,  and  displays  of  entitlement,   among  other  things.       But  psychopaths  tend  to  overreact  in  response  to  perceived  personal  insults  or   insufficient  demonstration  of  respect  for  their  authority.       Excessive  or  incongruous  compliments  and  flattery  should  be  a  signal  for  you  to  pay   critical  attention  to  what  is  coming  next.  Ask  yourself,  “What  does  this  person  really   want  of  me?”       The  astute  psychopath  will  then  listen  to  you  spill  your  guts  about  things,  events,   and  people,  thereby  ingratiating  himself  with  you  and  providing  information  that   can  potentially  be  used  to  manipulate  you  later  on  in  the  relationship.       Psychopaths  are  adept  at  identifying  those  things  that  you  like  least  about  yourself,   and  at  using  them  as  currency  in  their  dealings  with  you.       Many  victims  become  racked  with  self-­‐doubt,  blaming  themselves  for  whatever  has   happened.  Others  deny  that  there  is  any  problem  at  all.  In  each  case,  doubts  and   concerns  about  the  psychopaths  in  their  lives  are  converted  into  doubts  about   themselves.    

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  The  reality  is  that  there  is  no  evidence  that  psychopaths  derive  any   benefit  from  treatment  or  management  programs.       Should  you  try  to  complain  about  your  psychopathic  coworker  or  boss,  you  may   very  likely  find  that  the  waters  have  been  poisoned  against  you,  and  every  effort  you   make  to  remedy  the  situation  may  be  seen  as  confirmation  of  the  “problem   employee”  reputation  that  you  now  have.       One  psychopathic  technique  is  to  create  conflict  among  staff  members.  Claiming  that   one  person  said  something  negative  or  derogatory  about  another  is  a  common   approach.       Recall  that  a  successful  corporate  psychopath  will  already  have  established  a  strong   influence  network,  and  may  already  have  planted  seeds  of  doubt  about  your   competence  and  loyalty.