1/25 biz leaders may be psychopathic ~ really?! New York psychologist Paul Babiak

Ever watched American Psycho the movie?

The study, conducted by the New York psychologist Paul Babiak, suggests that they disguise the condition by hiding behind their high status, playing up their charm and by manipulating others.

Favorable environmental factors such as a happy childhood mean they can function in a workplace rather than channeling their energies in more violent or destructive ways. Revealing the results in a BBC Horizon documentary, Babiak said: "Psychopaths really aren't the kind of person you think they are.

"In fact, you could be living with or married to one for 20 years or more and not know that person is a psychopath.

"We have identified individuals that might be labeled 'the successful psychopath'. "Part of the problem is that the very things we're looking for in our leaders, the psychopath can easily mimic. "Their natural tendency is to be charming. Take that charm and couch it in the right business language and it sounds like charismatic leadership."

Babiak designed a 111-point questionnaire with Professor Bob Hare, of the University of British Columbia in Canada, a renowned expert in psychopathy. Hare believes about 1% of Americans can be described as psychopaths.

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Interesting article.
Heh, I wonder how many politicians are psychopaths.  I'd imagine a percentage of close to, I dunno, 100%. :)
depends on the level of political hostility(s)?

I don't find it surprising at all if you consider what it takes to be an executive of a major corporation. A corporation, based on US law, is akin to a person (I disagree with this, but whatever...). A corporation's sole purpose in "life" is to create wealth for it's shareholders. Therefore, if a corporation was actually a human person, it would be one devoid of compassion, remorse or social empathy whose focus is only on money, i.e. a psychopath. In order to control a psychopath, one must also be a psychopath. And how easy it is to be a corporate psychopath when there are few if any legal punishments to correct your behavior.

This is why we have corporations responsible for polluting large amounts of public land, air and water. Responsible for poor product safety leaving tens of thousands of people dead in the name of profits (BP, GM, Pacific Gas and Electric, etc...)


Sure there are likely some unique cases, but I think that there is a disproportionate amount of psychopaths leading corps as compared to how many there are in general society.

lol. eh? to control one gotta be one? does not compute do tell.

Corporate executives are essentially the "brain" of a corporation. Corporations don't control themselves. In order to control a corporation, your main goal has to be profits. Maximizing profit is how you get to become a corporate executive. Even the most "moral" executives often cut corners on community benefits to maximize profits.



Cases in point I noted above, but there are thousands of cases where safety has been placed below profitability. Thousands have died. Google Union Carbide Bhopal, tens of thousands dead from cutting corners for profits.

Google Triangle Shirt Company, etc.
I know those stories from LinkTv.

Sociopaths with too much influence = negative indeed

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