The Big Five, Dark Personality, Moral Disengagement and Counterproductive Behavior at Work

This study examines the relationship between Big Five personality traits, dark personality (i.e., Machiavellianism, narcissism, and psychopathy), and moral disengagement in relation to counterproductive behaviors at work (CWB). The sample consisted of 118 felons convicted of economic crimes (M = 43....

Full description

Saved in:
Bibliographic Details
Main Authors: María Patricia Navas, Tania París, Jorge Sobral, Silvia Moscoso
Format: Article
Language:English
Published: Colegio Oficial de Psicólogos de Madrid 2025-04-01
Series:Journal of Work and Organizational Psychology
Subjects:
Online Access: https://journals.copmadrid.org/jwop/art/jwop2025a4
Tags: Add Tag
No Tags, Be the first to tag this record!
_version_ 1850171257129009152
author María Patricia Navas
Tania París
Jorge Sobral
Silvia Moscoso
author_facet María Patricia Navas
Tania París
Jorge Sobral
Silvia Moscoso
author_sort María Patricia Navas
collection DOAJ
description This study examines the relationship between Big Five personality traits, dark personality (i.e., Machiavellianism, narcissism, and psychopathy), and moral disengagement in relation to counterproductive behaviors at work (CWB). The sample consisted of 118 felons convicted of economic crimes (M = 43.81, SD = 10.75). Results revealed a significant association between moral disengagement and dark personality traits and CWB. Moreover, the variance explained by the dark personality was notably higher than that accounted for by the Big Five model. Specifically, moral disengagement and psychopathy significantly increased the variance explained by the Big Five (ΔR² = .17). Additionally, Browne’s coefficient (∆Rcv² = .15) suggests that this increase is generalizable to larger, similar samples. These findings support previous research on the role of the Big Five, dark personality and moral disengagement in shaping workplace behavior and provide valuable insights for managers and HR professionals seeking to mitigate CWB.
format Article
id doaj-art-bc6b732ebe604dff8296989edfac5399
institution OA Journals
issn 1576-5962
2174-0534
language English
publishDate 2025-04-01
publisher Colegio Oficial de Psicólogos de Madrid
record_format Article
series Journal of Work and Organizational Psychology
spelling doaj-art-bc6b732ebe604dff8296989edfac53992025-08-20T02:20:18ZengColegio Oficial de Psicólogos de MadridJournal of Work and Organizational Psychology1576-59622174-05342025-04-01411273810.5093/jwop2025a411320559The Big Five, Dark Personality, Moral Disengagement and Counterproductive Behavior at WorkMaría Patricia Navas0Tania París1Jorge Sobral2Silvia Moscoso3University of Zaragoza, Zaragoza , Spain, University of Zaragoza, Spain.University of Santiago de Compostela, Santiago de Compostela , Spain, University of Santiago de Compostela, Spain.University of Santiago de Compostela, Santiago de Compostela , Spain, University of Santiago de Compostela, Spain.University of Santiago de Compostela, Santiago de Compostela , Spain, University of Santiago de Compostela, Spain.This study examines the relationship between Big Five personality traits, dark personality (i.e., Machiavellianism, narcissism, and psychopathy), and moral disengagement in relation to counterproductive behaviors at work (CWB). The sample consisted of 118 felons convicted of economic crimes (M = 43.81, SD = 10.75). Results revealed a significant association between moral disengagement and dark personality traits and CWB. Moreover, the variance explained by the dark personality was notably higher than that accounted for by the Big Five model. Specifically, moral disengagement and psychopathy significantly increased the variance explained by the Big Five (ΔR² = .17). Additionally, Browne’s coefficient (∆Rcv² = .15) suggests that this increase is generalizable to larger, similar samples. These findings support previous research on the role of the Big Five, dark personality and moral disengagement in shaping workplace behavior and provide valuable insights for managers and HR professionals seeking to mitigate CWB. https://journals.copmadrid.org/jwop/art/jwop2025a4 big fivedark personalitymoral disengagementcounterproductive behavior at work
spellingShingle María Patricia Navas
Tania París
Jorge Sobral
Silvia Moscoso
The Big Five, Dark Personality, Moral Disengagement and Counterproductive Behavior at Work
Journal of Work and Organizational Psychology
big five
dark personality
moral disengagement
counterproductive behavior at work
title The Big Five, Dark Personality, Moral Disengagement and Counterproductive Behavior at Work
title_full The Big Five, Dark Personality, Moral Disengagement and Counterproductive Behavior at Work
title_fullStr The Big Five, Dark Personality, Moral Disengagement and Counterproductive Behavior at Work
title_full_unstemmed The Big Five, Dark Personality, Moral Disengagement and Counterproductive Behavior at Work
title_short The Big Five, Dark Personality, Moral Disengagement and Counterproductive Behavior at Work
title_sort big five dark personality moral disengagement and counterproductive behavior at work
topic big five
dark personality
moral disengagement
counterproductive behavior at work
url https://journals.copmadrid.org/jwop/art/jwop2025a4
work_keys_str_mv AT mariapatricianavas thebigfivedarkpersonalitymoraldisengagementandcounterproductivebehavioratwork
AT taniaparis thebigfivedarkpersonalitymoraldisengagementandcounterproductivebehavioratwork
AT jorgesobral thebigfivedarkpersonalitymoraldisengagementandcounterproductivebehavioratwork
AT silviamoscoso thebigfivedarkpersonalitymoraldisengagementandcounterproductivebehavioratwork
AT mariapatricianavas bigfivedarkpersonalitymoraldisengagementandcounterproductivebehavioratwork
AT taniaparis bigfivedarkpersonalitymoraldisengagementandcounterproductivebehavioratwork
AT jorgesobral bigfivedarkpersonalitymoraldisengagementandcounterproductivebehavioratwork
AT silviamoscoso bigfivedarkpersonalitymoraldisengagementandcounterproductivebehavioratwork