However, the actions of such a person fail to live up to the lofty talk.Īnd in the same way as behavior on social media is driven by the persistent desire for instant approval, the decisions made by supervisors with a narcissistic streak are praised by yes-men and yes-women no matter how terrible they are. Many a supervisor who is eloquent but low on empathy and high on self-interest is keen to answer questions about how they react to criticism by saying something like, “Of course I can take criticism, and I approach things with the person’s best interests in mind.”Įmpty blather about ethics is often just a mishmash of consultant’s jargon and phrases from leadership guides. Good people in business tooĪn interesting equivalent is found in supervisory work. When the likes on Facebook just keep rolling in, the virtuous facade pays off. Other contributors to good person syndrome might be lack of self-knowledge and the addictive rewards of social media activity.
The main thing is keeping up appearances. In this respect, social desirability is very closely connected to good person syndrome. The problem is that this virtue signaling comes across in the person’s words, but not in their actions. Part of the illusion is just childish naivety, but another part is cold calculation. Some people place themselves above others when it comes to morality and virtue. This syndrome, or illusion, is often seen clearly when carrying out personality assessments. This might go a long way toward explaining good person syndrome. Psychologists who study personality have long recognized the human need to paint a virtuous, moral and upstanding image of ourselves.
Social desirability is a promising explanation for it. And just what kind of person in on the hunt for them? What motivates such behavior? More important than how things really are is how they appear.Īfter all, there are always plenty of brownie points just waiting to be collected. A very descriptive term for this phenomenon is virtue signaling. Nice person syndrome is a modern form of image management. High talk, low blows, as the Americans call it, is a psychologically interesting phenomenon. Sometimes, however, a person’s words and deeds contradict each other so much that behavioral scientists start to take an interest. This explains why both these things are so addictive.Ĭlimate change, immigration, vegetarianism and many other things provide the ideal forum for declaring “I’m a good person.” In public debate, even the worst arguments can be forgiven when they present the good side in a flattering light. Getting likes on Facebook is a dopamine hit for the good person like a shot of heroin for an addict. They keep quiet about the flying, but like to advertise their marches in defense of the planet.īut the truth comes out eventually: their main reason for participating in the march was to be able to share the experience on social media. And this same demonstrator has already flown 20 times this year. Do you know the kind of person who very visibly participates in demonstrations against climate change? The kind of person who drove to the demonstration.