Designing Organizational Charlatan Behavior in Government Organizations Using Interpretive Structural Equations

Document Type : Research Paper

Authors

1 Associate Professor, Department of Business Administration, Faculty of Economics and Management, Lorestan University, Khorramabad, Iran

2 PhD student in Human Resource Management, Faculty of Management and Economics, Lorestan University, Khorramabad, Iran

3 Master's student, Public Administration, Organizational Behavior Management, Boroujerd Azad University

Abstract
Organizational charlatan behavior, as a destructive phenomenon in professional environments, is a deceptive and self-deprecating behavior in which employees exaggerate their knowledge and competencies in order to gain organizational benefits and maintain their position without having actual performance. Given the vital importance of government environments, this study aimed to design a structural model and explain the hierarchical relationships of factors affecting charlatan behavior in Iranian government organizations. The statistical population of the study included 20 senior managers and human resource managers of government organizations who were selected through purposive sampling. Qualitative data were extracted through interviews and the interpretive structural equation modeling (ISM) method was used to model causal relationships between four levels of components (including contexts, intervening factors, behavioral dimensions, and outcomes). The results of the ISM analysis showed that factors such as dramatic commitment and role-playing, and "false claims and self-promotion" are rooted at high levels and play a central role in the continuation of this behavior. This comprehensive structural model fills the existing methodological gap and provides a documented framework for human resource managers to develop preventive and counterproductive strategies based on the root causes

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Articles in Press, Accepted Manuscript
Available Online from 11 July 2026

  • Receive Date 15 December 2025
  • Revise Date 13 June 2026
  • Accept Date 01 July 2026