Psychopaths and the impetus to power
Please note: The date and location of this event have changed. Original bookings remain valid.
Join us for a captivating talk from ARU's Dr Clive Boddy, a pioneer in the field, as he delves into the rise of 'corporate psychopaths' within organisations and politics. Explore how their uncaring attitude, driven by a lack of conscience and emotion, propels them to the top through ruthless self-promotion.
Dr Boddy has researched the subject of corporate psychopaths – people whose uncaring attitude towards others is driven by a lack of conscience and emotion – for almost 20 years.
During the talk, Clive will draw on his own and other researchers' work to explain how corporate and political psychopaths rise to the top through ruthless self-promotion, and how they act when they get there.
Dr Boddy will also explain the dangers of psychopaths in corporate and political organisations, and how their traits are associated with crimes against humanity, betrayal, fraud and destruction of organisations.
His research also explains how these individuals are not always as easy to identify as presumed, and how it has taken time for academia to believe in the phenomenon of the corporate rather than criminal psychopath.
Dr Boddy has been a Professor of Leadership and a Professor of Management, and has published more academic research papers on the effects of corporate psychopaths on employees, organisations and society than anyone else. His work is in the top 1% most referred to by other business and ethics researchers globally.
Dr Boddy said: "It took a long time for people to recognise that psychopathy in the corporate world was a genuine concept, because most previous research was carried out within the sphere of the criminal world and the paradigm was that psychopaths were violent and semi-insane criminals and definitely not charming and poised senior corporate executives.
"However, corporate psychopaths are real and they are among us and, unchecked, they can do a lot of damage to organisations, society, and even global sustainability."
"The quest for money, power and control is what drives the corporate psychopath and they are ruthless and efficient in gaining these."
"If the psychopathic are allowed to continue to lead humanity in corporate and political organisations, then the likelihood of nuclear war is much higher and meeting grand societal challenges such as equality and global sustainability will be jeopardised. As we stand at a tipping point for the future, humanity must choose between uncaring and caring leadership."
This event will be taking place in MAB117 at Anglia Ruskin University, Chelmsford.