The Dark Side of Groups

Abstract

The purpose of this article is to develop our understanding of the gang aspects of work organizations. By applying a psychoanalytic lens, we formulate the ideas of the “gang at work” and “intraorganizational ganging dynamics,” thereby initiating a research stream on the “dark side of groups.” We illustrate our conceptual development by drawing on the Enron case thereby contributing unique group-level insights that complement other analyses of the phenomenon. We conclude by identifying areas for further research and arguing that gang phenomena may also have been present among many of the key organizations at the centre of the credit crisis, such as Lehman Brothers.