PSY 3063 Health Psychology
Psychopathy among CEOs
So who, or what are psychopaths? Basically, they are people who
use manipulation, violence and intimidation to control others and
satisfy selfish needs. They can be intelligent and highly
charismatic, but display a chronic inability to feel guilt, remorse
or anxiety about any of their actions.
In Jon Ronsons book, The Psychopath Test, the incidence of
psychopath among CEOs is about 4%, which is four times what it is
in the population at large. In fact, CEOs are more likely to
exhibit psychopathic traits than folks with any other job
title.
According to Forbes, CEO is actually the number 1 profession
where theres a highest proportion of psychopaths.
Not all psychopaths are violent and vicious, but that doesnt
make them any less toxic, especially in a work environment,
particularly when theyre the boss. But, why is there such a
disproportionate amount of CEOs who are psychopaths? There are a
few explanations.
1. They understand how to use people for the most
gainPsychopaths have a tendency to understand the assets that
individuals bring to the table. They can sum people up easily in
terms of their strengths and weaknesses, easily detaching from more
nuanced or interpersonal aspects of their character.
2. Theyre master manipulatorsPsychopaths are cunning, and they
use their manipulation skills to get people to do things they might
not normally do. They usually use charm at first, which can be very
hard to see through at first, and then guilt, or even force, to get
people to act the way they want them to.
3. They think theyre specialAn inflated sense of self-worth is a
primary feature of psychopath. These people often possess a grand
view of their talents and potential, and this kind of confidence
might help propel them into leadership positions.
4. Stoic, emotional self-control helps them thriveAn ability to
stay calm and emotionally level under pressure is a helpful trait
for CEOs. Pressure doesnt impact psychopaths the way it does
others. Perhaps its because they lack the empathy, or perhaps its
because of their lack of remorse and guilt; either way psychopaths
stay calm even when most everyone else falls apart. And, that makes
them stand out in the business world.
There is a theory that corporate psychopaths were instrumental
in causing the 2007-08 global financial crisis. He claims that the
same corporate psychopaths who probably caused the crisis by
self-seeking greed and avarice are now advising government on how
to get out of the crisis.
Psychologist Oliver James has described the credit crunch as a
mass outbreak of corporate psychopathy which resulted in something
that very nearly crashed the whole world economy.
