The primary objective of the proposed research is to establish whether the distribution of resources within organizations incentivizes different types of leadership strategies, such that higher levels of vertical inequality attract and favor self-serving rather than group-serving leaders. The end result is that inequality leads to self-serving leadership. The project examines features of modern organizations that facilitate the emergence of self-serving leadership and the downstream consequences for organizations and their members. Finally, the project explores circumstances that disrupt these proposed effects of inequality. This research will provide a clear template for when and how inequality leads to self-serving leadership, and strategies organizations can adopt to minimize such effects.