Dark Triad, Promotion and Wages: A study for understanding power harassment

This paper focuses on the "dark triad" (Machiavellianism, psychopathy, and narcissism) observed in managers as a contributing factor to power harassment in Japanese companies and analyzes its relationship with promotion and wages. Empirical analysis using the RIETI Survey (2019) revealed that individuals with particularly strong Machiavellian tendencies were more likely to be promoted to managerial levels or higher and that they also tended to earn higher wages. However, after promotion to managerial levels or higher, no clear correlation was found between these personality traits and further promotion or wage increases. Furthermore, managers with a high degree of Machiavellianism are often found in workplaces facing labor shortages and highly competitive environments, where they tend to exercise strong persuasion and influence while also favoring command-based management styles. The combination of these characteristics and such workplace environments creates a structure where power harassment is more likely to occur. The findings suggest that, as a measure against power harassment, it is important not only to conduct harassment training, but also to understand the personality traits associated with harassment and to make efforts to address them.