Marie-Line Germain
Professor of Human Resources and Leadership Western Carolina University
- Cullowhee NC
Marie-Line Germain specializes in psychosocial risks, mental health in the workplace and personality disorders of corporate leaders.
Media
Social
Biography
Germain was selected as a Fulbright Specialist (U.S. Department of State) in 2017 in Ghana, Africa, where she provided guidance to a large Ghanaian university on furthering research initiatives.
Professor Germain has been a Visiting Professor-Scholar in China (twice), Finland, Japan, South Korea, and Ghana. In addition to her scholarship, Germain is an experienced consultant specialized in psychosocial risks, mental health in the workplace, and personality disorders of corporate leaders. She has served as a consultant to CAC 40 companies, emerging businesses, Fortune 50, government agencies, and nonprofits.
She has published nearly 40 peer-reviewed research articles, book chapters, and editorials and has given over 70 presentations in the U.S. and around the world. She is the author of three books: Narcissism at Work: Personality Disorders of Corporate Leaders (2017); Integrating Service-Learning and Consulting in Distance Education (2019), and Expertise at Work: Current and Emerging Trends (2021, with Dr. Robin S. Grenier).
She is a member of the Eastern Academy of Management and the Academy of Human Resource Development. She is the Junior Director of the Eastern Academy of Management International conference, an Editorial Board member of the journal Career Development International, and the Book Review Editor of the European Journal of Training and Development.
Germain has made numerous media appearances (television, radio, podcasts, and newspapers), including ESPN, WLOS-TV Channel News 13, the HuffPost, Refinery29, Fortune, Bloomberg Business, The Sunday Times (UK), and Dubrovnik-TV in Croatia. She has lived, studied and worked in France, Scotland and England.
Industry Expertise
Areas of Expertise
Education
Barry University
Ph.D.
Leadership and Human Resource Development
2006
Universite Paris-X
M.A.
Anglo-American Studies - British Urban Planning
1995
University of Stirling
B.A.
Anglo-American Studies
1993
Affiliations
- Eastern Academy of Management : Member
- Academy of Human Resource Development : Member
- Career Development International : Editorial Board member
- European Journal of Training and Development : Book Review Editor
Links
Languages
- English
- French
- German
- Spanish
Media Appearances
What Is A 'Communal Narcissist'?
MSN online
2025-04-11
“Communal narcissism is more covert in nature and centers around the narcissist’s desire to be perceived as a ‘Good Samaritan,’” said Marie-Line Germain, a professor of human resources and leadership at Western Carolina University and author of “Narcissism at Work: Personality Disorders of Corporate Leaders.”
There Are Different Types Of Narcissists. Any Of Them Sound Familiar?
MSN online
2025-04-03
“They may appear introverted, shy, withdrawn, vulnerable or self-deprecating, yet harbor feelings of superiority. Their manipulative behaviors are less apparent, often expressing entitlement and self-importance in passive-aggressive ways,” said Marie-Line Germain, a professor of human resources and leadership at Western Carolina University and author of “Narcissism at Work: Personality Disorders of Corporate Leaders.”
Covert narcissists often engage in the silent treatment and give backhanded compliments, she added. They may appear withdrawn, meek and anxious, and they can be hypersensitive to perceived criticism and hold onto grudges ― which allows their sense of victimhood to persist.
5 Signs Your Co-Worker Might Be A Narcissist (And How To Deal)
HuffPost online
2022-04-12
They are insecure and cannot handle criticism. They can make their failures seem like they’re your responsibility, hurting your self-esteem to boost their own. And according to Marie-Line Germain, a professor of human resources and leadership at Western Carolina University and author of “Narcissism at Work: Personality Disorders of Corporate Leaders,” narcissists often find “safe havens” in the workplace.
Signs Your Boss Might Be A Narcissist (And How To Deal With It)
HuffPost online
2021-09-15
“A healthy dose of narcissism means that someone has a reasonable amount of self-esteem or self-worth. That’s normal, that’s not pathological,” said Marie-Line Germain, a professor of human resources and leadership at Western Carolina University and author of “Narcissism at Work: Personality Disorders of Corporate Leaders.” “On the other hand, people with extreme narcissistic traits must remain the center of the world at all times, and so in the workplace, these individuals are damaging to their organization, the culture of the organization, the morale of employees.”
How to deal with a narcissistic boss
Raconteur online
2021-03-05
“What company would not want a hard-working, ambitious, confident, charismatic and charming top performer?” asks Marie-Line Germain, professor of human resources and leadership at Western Carolina University and author of Narcissism at Work: Personality Disorders of Corporate Leaders.
Is Elizabeth Holmes A Narcissist?
Refinery29 online
2019-03-18
People who have narcissistic personality disorder (NPD) tend to act with grandiosity and self-importance, with a fixation on unlimited success, control, brilliance, or beauty, among many other things, according to the Diagnostic and Statistical Manual (DSM), the manual used to diagnose mental disorders. In the workplace, this can include being verbally abusive, placing roadblocks on employees’ career paths, and downplaying employees’ work in front of others, explains Marie-Line Germain, PhD, associate professor of human resources and leadership at Western Carolina University, a campus of the University of North Carolina, and author of Narcissism at Work: Personality Disorders of Corporate Leaders. "[Narcissists] literally trap their victims," she says. "Once they get what they want from [employees] or if they call on them for their bad behaviors, they will discard them."
Women unhappy with NC gym owner's video focusing on their butts
13NEWSNOW.com online
2018-01-18
Several aspects of the controversy trouble Marie-Line Germain, an associate professor of human resources and leadership at Western Carolina University Department of Human Services. First of all, the women own their bodies, and images of them should not be used without specific, written permission, she said.
Articles
Using Developmental Relationships to Foster Trust in Effective Virtual Teams: Lessons in Emergency Preparedness from the COVID-19 Pandemic
HRD Perspectives on Developmental Relationships2022
Globalization and cost-saving initiatives undertaken by organizations continue to play an essential role in the transition from face-to-face to virtual team environments (Mancuso et al., in Advances in Developing Human Resources 12:681–699, 2010). This shift has been further exacerbated by the COVID-19 global pandemic crisis during which most organizations required a large part of their workforce to work from home (Hughes & Saunders. Handbook of research on remote work and worker well-being in the post-COVID-19 era. IGI Global, pp. 264–285, 2021).
The Impact of Changing Workforce Demographics and Dependency on Technology on Employers’ Need for Expert Skills
Expertise at Work2021
This chapter examines how workforce demographics and technology are impacting how human expertise is perceived and defined. First, it focuses on the changing composition of the U.S. workforce, which is increasingly more diverse compared to previous decades (in educational attainment, age, gender, and race). It looks at how this diversity has changed the typical profile of today’s CEOs and entrepreneurs.
An Introduction to Expertise at Work: Current and Emerging Trends
Expertise at Work2021
This chapter provides the reader with a framing of the book’s content. First, a brief overview of expertise is offered using definitions and scholarship that are continually referenced throughout the book. It also situates those constructs within the context of work and organizations. Next, each chapter is introduced to provide readers with an overview of how the authors of each chapter frame expertise within a particular domain or how they address a particular question related to expertise that is relevant to organizations.
Reshaping HRD in Light of the COVID-19 Pandemic: An Ethics of Care Approach
Advances in Developing Human Resources2020
The COVID-19 pandemic has shone a stark light on workplace inequities and injustices. Aside from disrupting daily routines and ways of working, the pandemic has unmasked significant and troubling differences in the treatment and status of productive and reproductive labor. As we recover from the pandemic, how can workplaces properly recognize and value the contribution of reproductive labor?
Web and Education as Disruptors of Traditional Education and Development of Future Students and Workers
Disruptive and Emerging Technology Trends Across Education and the Workplace2020
Over the past 30 years, the internet has evolved from being the web of content to being the web of thoughts and the web of things in business, communication, entertainment, and education. To stay competitive, higher education institutions have had to train students on the wide range of skills and experiences and to move to digital platforms to better meet the needs of students, employees, and organizations.
