Slate Money - Money Talks: Psychopathy and Success

In this episode of Slate Money's 'Money Talks,' host Elizabeth Spires interviews Dr. Leanne Tenbrink, an associate professor of psychology at the University of British Columbia, about her book 'Poisonous People' and her research on dark personality traits—particularly psychopathy—in high-stakes environments like hedge fund management. Drawing from a study of 100 hedge fund managers' public interviews, Tenbrink and her colleagues found that those exhibiting psychopathic traits such as manipulation, emotional shallowness, and impulsivity actually underperformed financially, earning about 1% less annually—a significant gap over time. This challenges the popular myth that psychopaths thrive in competitive business settings. The conversation explores how these traits are often mistaken for leadership qualities like confidence and decisiveness, especially during crises, and how they can create toxic workplace cultures that spread through organizations, particularly in tech and finance. Tenbrink emphasizes that while these traits are not destiny, they are stable over time and can be exacerbated by power and wealth. She offers practical strategies for surviving under such leaders—like establishing common ground, softening feedback, and setting written boundaries—and discusses the importance of early intervention and reward-based treatment for youth with these traits. The episode concludes with a critical reflection on how society often misattributes harmful behaviors to neurodiversity, while underscoring the massive societal costs of unchecked dark personalities, both economically and socially.