Aggressive Leaders Are More Likely to Be Punished for Their Mistakes

Why do some leaders face greater backlash and harsher consequences for “honest mistakes,” while others are given the benefit of the doubt and let off the hook? New research points to one potential reason: it has to do with how the leader achieved his or her status. There are two ways leaders achieve status and wield influence in groups: either through dominance, by being assertive and forceful in getting their opinions across, or through prestige, by acting as a teacher and sharing knowledge. A series of studies found that leaders associated with dominance were punished more for transgressions of mistakes where fault was ambiguous (because they were viewed as more intentional and had less goodwill), in comparison to leaders associated with prestige.