3 ways to deal with a power-hungry co-worker: 'They really want to have some control or authority'
Botthersome co-workers take many forms: the one with no boundaries, the one who hijacks meetings, the one who won't stop complaining.
But one of the most anxiety-inducing types of colleagues is the "workplace vigilante."
A workplace vigilante is a sort of hall monitor of the office. They take it upon themselves to enforce rules that oftentimes management doesn't even really care about.
Katy DeCelles is an organizational behavior professor at the University of Toronto who researches conflict, emotion, morality, and aggression. In 2017 she co-authored a paper entitled "Vigilantes at Work: Examining the Frequency of Dark Knight Employees."
"Vigilantes tend to be people who believe themselves to be more moral than the average person," she says. "And most people think that, but it's much stronger and more rigid [in a workplace vigilante]."
They aren't your boss, but they sure do act like it. "They are people who really want to have some kind of control or authority," she says.
Being in the office with a workplace vigilante can make you dread coming in at all. But there are ways to handle a "Dwight-like" personality to minimize both stress and annoyance, says DeCelles.
3 ways to deal with a 'Dark Knight' co-worker
1. Cover your bases
"If there is something that could be construed in a bad way or used against you, be sure you have clarity with the person who is in power over you on that issue," DeCelles says.
For example, if you know you can't regularly attend the company all-hands, clarify with your manager why this is the case and ensure it's okay. This way, if your hypervigilant co-worker brings it up, your boss will be in-the-know.
2. Speak up to them directly
They might not realize how often they are commenting on your work. Or, they might not realize that you're noticing how often they are commenting on your work.
Either way, there is nothing wrong with giving them a short, informal explanation, DeCelles says.
For example, if you perform a task in a way they perceive as wrong, you can simply say, "Oh thanks for your help, but my manager actually said this is just fine."
3. Talk to your colleagues
If your co-worker does not let up, talk to other colleagues to see if they've noticed similar behavior. More likely than not, DeCelles says, they have.
"If someone is monitoring the environment, it's not just you," she says.
Going to HR, you have a much stronger case against the workplace vigilante if you can show this is a pattern of behavior, as opposed to an interpersonal dispute.
It also might give you peace of mind knowing that rarely does this personality type win an employee any affection, DeCelles says.
"I think over time people get to realize that this is generally something that is going on in that person rather than something going on with the accused," she says. "Eventually you get to figure out who the 'Dwight' is and kind of discount their claims."
Get CNBC's free report, 11 Ways to Tell if We're in a Recession, where Kelly Evans reviews the top indicators that a recession is coming or has already begun.