Narcissism and Abusive Supervision: A Study Linking Personality Disorder Leading to Employees Counterproductive Outcomes in the HEIs

Narcissistic leadership in Malaysian Higher Education Institutions (HEIs) represents a critical antecedent to abusive supervision, triggering detrimental faculty outcomes that undermine institutional effectiveness. Drawing on Conservation of Resources (COR) theory, this study examines the role of supervisors’ narcissism that is manifested through authoritarianism and public humiliation and fuels abusive supervision, which subsequently depletes faculty resources and precipitates burnout, surface acting, and workplace gossip. Survey data from 400 faculty members across Malaysian public universities were analyzed using Structural Equation Modeling (SEM). Results confirm narcissism significantly predicts abusive supervision which in turn directly intensifies burnout, surface acting, and gossip tendencies. Critically, abusive supervision mediates supervisor’s narcissism effects on faculty member’s cynicism and surface acting, while gossip also mediates abusive supervision’s impact on faculty member’s cynicism. These findings reveal a resource depletion mechanism wherein narcissistic leaders’ aggression erodes faculty wellbeing and fosters counterproductive coping behaviors. The study urges Malaysian HEIs to implement leader accountability frameworks, restorative justice practices, and stress-reduction facilities to mitigate narcissism-driven abuse, aligning with national education reforms and sustainable institutional governance.