SYSTEMATIC REVIEW article
Front. Psychol.
Sec. Organizational Psychology
Dark Triad Traits and Workplace Bullying: A Systematic Review and Meta-Analysis of Personality, Power, and Psychosocial Safety
Sophia Xin Sui 1
Sajida Malik 2
Niko Tiliopoulos 1
Lei Yu 3
1. The University of Adelaide, Adelaide, Australia
2. RMIT University College of Business and Law, Melbourne, Australia
3. Shandong University, Jinan, China
Select one of your emails
You have multiple emails registered with Frontiers:
Notify me on publication
Please enter your email address:
If you already have an account, please login
You don't have a Frontiers account ? You can register here
Abstract
Abstract Background Workplace bullying is a widespread and serious public health concern, affecting a substantial proportion of workers globally. While its consequences for mental and physical health are well established, consistent personality-based predictors of perpetration remain unclear. The Dark Triad personality traits, including Machiavellianism, narcissism, and psychopathy, are conceptually linked to interpersonal aggression but prior evidence is fragmented. Methods We conducted a systematic review and meta-analysis following Preferred Reporting Items for Systematic Reviews and Meta-Analyses 2020 guidelines (Open Science Framework (DOI:10.17605/OSF.IO/FWQ73). PubMed, PsycINFO, Embase, Scopus, and Web of Science were searched to 2 September 2025. Eligible studies reported associations between Dark Triad traits and workplace bullying perpetration among working-age participants. Random-effects models using Fisher's z-transformed correlations generated pooled effect sizes. Risk of bias was assessed using an adapted Joanna Briggs Institute checklist, and certainty of evidence graded with Grading of Recommendations, Assessment, Development and Evaluations. Findings 3 Of 89 records screened, 16 met inclusion criteria, and nine contributed to meta-analysis. All traits were positively associated with bullying perpetration. Psychopathy showed the strongest pooled correlation (r=0.53 [95% CI 0.28–0.71]), followed by narcissism (r=0.40 [95% CI 0.26–0.52]) and Machiavellianism (r=0.35 [95% CI 0.13–0.53]). Heterogeneity was substantial (I² >90%). Narrative synthesis indicated contextual moderators including organisational climate, justice perceptions, and identity threat—shaped trait expression. Interpretation Machiavellianism, narcissism, and psychopathy are robust predictors of workplace bullying perpetration, with psychopathy most strongly implicated. Preventive strategies should integrate personality-informed leadership development with organisational safeguards. Workplace bullying should be prioritised as an occupational hazard and public health issue. Funding None.
Summary
Keywords
Abusive supervision, Dark triad, Machiavellianism, Meta-analysis, narcissism, Organizational Psychology, perpetration, personality traits
Received
03 November 2025
Accepted
06 February 2026
Copyright
© 2026 Sui, Malik, Tiliopoulos and Yu. This is an open-access article distributed under the terms of the Creative Commons Attribution License (CC BY). The use, distribution or reproduction in other forums is permitted, provided the original author(s) or licensor are credited and that the original publication in this journal is cited, in accordance with accepted academic practice. No use, distribution or reproduction is permitted which does not comply with these terms.
*Correspondence: Sophia Xin Sui; Lei Yu
Disclaimer
All claims expressed in this article are solely those of the authors and do not necessarily represent those of their affiliated organizations, or those of the publisher, the editors and the reviewers. Any product that may be evaluated in this article or claim that may be made by its manufacturer is not guaranteed or endorsed by the publisher.