Quantifying the Behaviours and Work Engagement Impacts of Toxic Leaders

Summary

A widespread challenge in organizations is destructive or “toxic” leaders who cause many challenges for their direct reports. Toxic leaders are those at any level of the management who can be defined as narcissistic, authoritarian, self-promoting, abusive, and unpredictable,
characterized further by any ongoing covert or overt behaviours that harm employees’
engagement, productivity, and well-being.
This project seeks to capture an up-to-date understanding of toxic leadership behaviours and
their impact on employees’ work engagement, as it exists in the modern organizational, North American context.

Eligibility

Currently recruiting participants: Yes

Eligible ages: 18 to 65

Accepts healthy participants: Yes

Inclusion criteria:

Employees from various industries and levels, including individual contributors and those in management and senior leadership positions, who 1) are 18 years or older. 2) Are from North America (Canada or the US). 3) At some point in the last five years reported to a “toxic supervisor or leader” (defined as leaders who have displayed abusive, authoritarian, self-promoting, unpredictable, and narcissistic leadership patterns, or more broadly, ongoing covert or overt behaviours that harm employees’ engagement, productivity, and well-being). 4) Are not still working for that toxic supervisor/leader.

Exclusion criteria:

You are not eligible to participate if you 1) are under 18 years of age. 2) Have not worked for a toxic leader in the last five years. 3) Are currently working for a toxic leader. 4) Were employed under a toxic leader while you or your toxic leader resided outside of North America.

Participate

Fill out the following form if you want to participate in this research

Method of contact

Additional information

Contact information

As it is an anonymous survey, the link to access the survey is below: https://survey.ucalgary.ca/jfe/form/SV_7OOeWn2aNG59uRw Additionally participants may reach out to the Primary Investigator: Dr. Laura Hambley, Adjunct Professor, Faculty of Arts, Department of Psychology, University of Calgary Contact: (403) 819-7060, hambley@ucalgary.ca. Participants may also reach out to the student researcher: Lea Kalinovska, Student, Faculty of Arts, Department of Psychology, University of Calgary Contact: lea.kalinovska@ucalgary.ca.

Principal investigator:

Laura Hambley

Clinical trial:

No

REB-ID:

REB24-1725