Effective altruism and the dark side of entrepreneurship

Frontiers in Psychology

Psychology

Zhan Su¹  Muhammad Mohiuddin¹  Michael Olumekor² 

[1] Department of Management, Faculty of Business Administration, Laval University, Quebec, QC, Canada;Graduate School of Economics and Management, Ural Federal University, Yekaterinburg, Sverdlovsk Oblast, Russia;

关键词: effective altruism;    dark triad behavior;    dark personality;    entrepreneurship;    Machiavellianism;    narcissism;    psychopathy;   

DOI  :  10.3389/fpsyg.2023.1247331

 received in 2023-06-28, accepted in 2023-09-21,  发布年份 2023

来源: Frontiers

【 摘 要 】

PurposeEffective Altruism (EA) has become one of the most prominent socio-philosophical movements of recent years. EA is also facing intense scrutiny due to the business practices of some of its most prominent adherents. On the other hand, the dark triad traits of Machiavellianism, narcissism and psychopathy have been getting increasing attention in entrepreneurship research. There is growing evidence that these traits can motivate entrepreneurial intention. We therefore sought to investigate if there was a connection between the entrepreneurship discourse in EA and traits corresponding to dark triad behavior.Design/methodology/approachUsing a discursive analytic method, we investigated the discursive threads on entrepreneurship in EA over a 10-year period.FindingsWhile we believe EA brings a much-needed perspective to the overall debate on doing good, we found ample evidence that it might have promoted the sort of dark triad behavior which some evidence suggests can lead to financial success, but can equally lead to the type of morally bankrupt, unethical and even illegal practices of some entrepreneurs. We also discovered a somewhat temporal dimension in EA’s discourse on entrepreneurship, beginning with discourse encouraging some risk taking and entrepreneurship, before moving on to discourses on the benefits of having a smart and illicit character, and ending with a focus on aggressive risk taking.OriginalityThe findings contribute to the still nascent debate on dark personality traits in entrepreneurship, and enriches the theoretical advancement of the field. However, our research differs from prior studies which were almost exclusively focused on the firm. Instead, we examine this phenomenon within a highly influential belief system/philosophical movement.

【 授权许可】

Unknown   
Copyright © 2023 Olumekor, Mohiuddin and Su.