Do selfish jerks get ahead?
Not necessarily. Being a selfish jerk won’t pave a path to success, new research suggests.
The study involved hundreds of participants who completed personality assessments when they were undergraduates or MBA students at three universities.
The researchers checked in with the same people about 14 years later to find out how well they’d done in their careers, and their co-workers were asked about the participants’ workplace behavior.
In general, people who were selfish, deceitful and aggressive weren’t more likely to have attained positions of authority than those who were generous, trustworthy and pleasant.
The findings don’t mean that jerks don’t attain high positions, but rather that they don’t get there faster than others, researchers said.
Apparently, any advantage that someone may get from being selfish, deceitful and aggressive is offset by their poor relationships with others.
– HealthDay
