An assessment of construct proliferation within destructive leadership research

Leadership research has been of considerable scholarly and practical interest for millennia. Over the past few decades, destructive leadership has become of special interest due to its detrimental impacts on followers and organizations. The recent fascination with destructive leadership has driven a tremendous amount of research in a relatively short period of time. However, this growth has generated a body of research that is disconnected because the many different destructive leadership styles and behaviors identified have created construct proliferation. Ultimately, construct proliferation threatens the cohesion and utility of knowledge within the destructive leadership literature. Our motivation for this chapter is to provide guidance regarding how researchers, reviewers, and practitioners can navigate the overabundance of constructs within destructive leadership research. Overall, our review of destructive leadership constructs and measures creates a path forward using the current foundation of destructive leadership knowledge as this field navigates the challenges created by construct proliferation.