The psychopathic trait successful presidents have in common
A character trait in psychopaths has been identified by scientists as a common thread in successful US presidents.
Fearless dominance, which is linked to less social and physical apprehensiveness, boosts leadership, persuasiveness, crisis management and congressional relations, according to new research. Theodore Roosevelt, regarded as one of the most influential US leaders even though he was in office more than a hundred years ago, ranked highest for this type of personality followed by John F Kennedy, Franklin D Roosevelt and Ronald Reagan.
Then came Rutherford Hayes, Zachary Taylor, Bill Clinton, Martin Van Buren, Andrew Jackson and George W Bush. Fearless and dominant people are often a paradoxical mix of charm and nastiness. Cool and calm under pressure, they not easily rattled. They lack the same kind of anticipatory anxiety that most people have so are not put off from taking dangerous actions.
They are usually intelligent and wealthy, relishing directing other people's activities and basking in their admiration.
Psychologist Professor Scott Lilienfeld, of Emory University, Atlanta, said: 'Certain psychopathic traits may be like a double edged sword. 'Fearless dominance, for example, may contribute to reckless criminality and violence, or to skillful leadership in the face of a crisis.' They are sexually adventurous and often takes risks.
It's not that they can't feel fear or anxiety, but it takes a much more extreme situation to elicit those emotions.
They live for the thrill, the excitement and the adrenaline rush and are attracted to jobs such as a fireman or policeman.
If you were assembling a Special Forces team, you would want to screen for people high in fearless dominance.
Prof Lilienfeld said: 'The way many people think about mental illness is too cut-and-dried 'Certainly, fullblown psychopathy is maladaptive and undesirable.
'But what makes the psychopathic personality so interesting is that it is not defined by a single trait, but a constellation of traits.' A clinical psychopath encompasses myriad characteristics, such as fearless social dominance, self-centered impulsivity, superficial charm, guiltlessness, callousness, dishonesty and immunity to anxiety.
Each of these traits lies along a continuum, and all individuals may exhibit one of more of these traits to some degree. Prof Lilienfeld explained: 'You can think of it like height and weight. Everyone has some degree of both, and they are continuously distributed in the population.'
The results of the analysis raise the possibility that the boldness often associated with psychopathy may confer advantages over a variety of occupations involving power and prestige, from politics to business, law, athletics and the military.
The findings also add to the debate over the idea of the so-called 'successful psychopath,' an individual with psychopathic traits who rises to a position of power in the workplace.
Prof Lilienfeld said: 'We believe more research is needed into the implications of boldness for leadership in general.'
The analysis found the link between fearless dominance and political performance was linear but Prof Lilienfeld added that at the extremes, boldness may veer into a form of recklessness that would be detrimental.