Weeding Out Corporate Psychopaths

There is emerging evidence that this frequency increases within the upper management of modern corporations. This is not surprising since personal ruthlessness and fixation on personal power have become seen as strong assets to large publicly traded corporations (which some authors believe have also become psychopathic).

I can't help wondering what the numbers would show about how many politicians exhibit "personal ruthlessness and fixation on personal power" and an inability to feel empathy toward others and care about the consequences of ones actions.

For instance, current GOP frontrunner Newt Gingrich once said:

I think one of the great problems we have in the Republican Party is that we don’t encourage you to be nasty. We encourage you to be neat, obedient, loyal and faithful and all those Boy Scout words, which would be great around a campfire but are lousy in politics.

Not the first time this came up. I listen to the CBC on SiriusXM and one of the shows they have is called Ideas. A few years ago, they did a 40 year retrospective of the show, airing clips of previous shows. One clip was of a psychologist in 1978 who was doing preliminary resaerch into these new-fangled multi-national corporations, before they even had that name. And one of the things he looked at was what would be the ideal type of person to run such an organization, what traits would he or she have. Among them were extreme narcissicism, lack of empthay, lack of attachments, aggressiveness, high levels of charm and so on. Basically, a sociopath.

And more recent studies have shown again and again, such as in negotiations, a sociopath has the advantage because they CAN read emotions, imply lack the ability to feel empathy, so they read you feelings, while being utterly devoid of any feeling except what is best for them, regardless of what that might do to you.

My first thoughts about this topic and after reading the seed article is Goldman Sachs. My bet is that the entire executive staff are psychopaths and the worst of the worst psychopath is Lloyd Blankfein, the CEO.

Remember the Senate hearings and Carl Levin asking Blankfein directly if he thought is was right for Wall Street executives to set up a meeting to sell bundles of loans to investors that they knew were junk. Blankfein gave Carl that usual weaselly smirk and asked him if he was talking about a hypothetical situation. In the next few minutes Carl pulled out the seized emails of Goldman Sachs executives to each other bragging about selling customers "cr@p bundles." Blankfein's expression changed to that of a deer caught in the headlights of a huge truck.

This entire case proceeded to court where Goldman Sachs got an out of court settlement/SEC fine of $550 million for derivatives fraud. That's the largest SEC fine in US History. Did Blankfein and his top psychopath executives were NOT fired, a loud and clear message from the psychopath multi billionaires of Wall Street that hire and fire CEOs and executives that white collar crime is OK as long as the profits are good. Goldman Sachs went on to make billions of dollars in the next few years. Last year, Lloyd Blankfein got a $14 million salary plus huge bonuses every quarter and stock options, a total compensation package probably in the $25 -$30 million range.

JP Morgan got busted for derivatives fraud, paid a $173 million SEC fine in an out of court settlement, and the CEO - Jamie Dimon was not fired. Last year, he got a total compensation of $27 million.

Last year, Angelo Mozilo, the CEO of Countrywide, was charged with predatory lending in eleven states. That case was taken to court and Mozilo was offered an out of court settlement, SEC fine of $63 million. Since Mozilo is worth over $600 million, he could pay the fine and still be rich. Because he got the out of court settlement, criminal charges were dropped. In short, he is free to do it all over again.

Wall Street rewards psychopath executives.

From the seeded article, more on the wealthy psychopaths and Party of political psychopaths who cheer the idea of letting the uninsured die early, versus ending tax loopholes and tax cuts for millionaires & billionaires, to pay for Medicare, social security and for a proper healthcare system.

Not violent criminals, but corporate psychopaths who nonetheless have a genetically inherited biochemical condition that prevents them from feeling normal human empathy.

Scientific research is revealing that 21st century financial institutions with a high rate of turnover and expanding global power have become highly attractive to psychopathic individuals to enrich themselves at the expense of others

If Corporations And The Rich Paid Taxes At The Same Level As The 1960s, The Debt Would Disappear

The “debt explosion has resulted not from big spending by the Democrats, but instead the Republican Party’s embrace, about three decades ago, of the insidious doctrine that deficits don’t matter if they result from tax cuts.”

David Stockman bombshell: How my Republican Party destroyed the American economy.

Dick Cheney's Reaganomics-on-steroids at work, which is the only way today's GOP know how to run the country.

Wall Street rewards psychopath executives.

It's a prerequisite in order to play, Match that with a degree in CEO supremacy 101 and your on your way.

In the end psychopaths'll lead us to ruin.

They've already taken us to edge. If we don't bring them under control they will finish job.

Tigers are fine, as long as they're caged.

I think one of the great problems we have in the Republican Party is that we don't encourage you to be nasty. We encourage you to be neat, obedient, loyal and faithful and all those Boy Scout words, which would be great around a campfire but are lousy in politics.

did he really say that?

this from the party that constantly attacks Obamas wife? despite, no matter how much Bush was hated the left didnt do this?

This from the party that sends out tweets about Obama about to ban aspirin cause it is white and it works?

This from the party that told china that obama was lying about the state of our economy?

This from the party whose main goal was to make Obama a one term president?

This from the party who have smashed all records in filibustering, they even filibustered a shout out to moms on mothers day which is free and happens every year.

This from a party who hecked a man in a wheel chair for dare wanting health care?

This from a party who attacked Obama for not going into libya and helping and then attacked Obama for going into libya and helping without killing a single american solider

crap I would hate to see the GOP get 'nasty". whats next, just marching around in klan uniforms carrying burning crosses while telling the middle class to go f themselves?

Beside psychopaths, sociopaths, and narcissists who else would deem the destruction of the environment and whole nations of human beings as acceptable collateral damage to their own self-gratification and aggrandizement?

Anyone that wishes these positions and this power must be suspect just from that symptom alone. Do we really want people that want that power to have that power? There is inherently wrong psychologically with anyone that wants that kind of power. Accepting it reluctantly, is one thing. Actively seeking it and going through countess machinations and manipulations to achieve it is a cry for intervention and mental health treatment.

FTA:

Perhaps investors at major financial institutions should require that senior level managers submit to established tests to ensure they are not psychopathic. This is not an issue of civil liberties since the precedent has already been well established regarding drug impairment in the workplace. Likewise, it is not a regulatory issue since private shareholders have every right to demand that executives demonstrate they are not biochemically impaired and therefore unable to carry out their fiduciary duties on behalf of investors. If corporate boards are hiring psychopaths as executive management, they are not carrying out their due diligence and could be held legally liable for their oversight.

I have to believe that the large investors want psychpaths as their corporate leaders. If they didn't the psychopaths wouldn't be there. It is easier to point the fingers at the CEO than it is to point the fingers at the major investors who have some power to demand some changes.

But hey welcome to Capitalism 101. When profit is the goal, profit driven psychopaths and sociopaths will always be at the top of the chain, because they don't care and they they will do what it takes to get what they want !!!

The solution is to regulate the business so that ethics is a major part of the program. Then start elinminating the evil ones from their power bases. Making them shown for what they are. A detriment to a free society based upon the fact that all people deserve to be given the opportunity to live and work for their own gain as long as they harm no others in doing so.

That is the way I see it.

From the seeded article, more on the wealthy psychopaths and Party of political psychopaths who cheer the idea of letting the uninsured die early, versus ending tax loopholes and tax cuts for millionaires & billionaires, to pay for Medicare, social security and for a proper healthcare system.

That is a good point.

Wealthy psychopaths will not allow the kind of testing mentioned in the article. It may be too late to make any headway.

Requiring this testing would also be very controversial. What about those caught on the edge of the dividing line between sociopath and not?

Politicians seem to be less of an issue because voters should be able to smell them out by their actions. That does not mean a psychopath or sociopath could not get elected, it's just less likely for them to have free rein because of the increased scrutiny not done on corporate execs. (This is a large scale statement. One guy/gal could sneak through I suppose.)

The only real way to root them out is for share holders and consumers to be aware that this exists. They can vote with their money. Even this would only work in a limited way as essential products can sometimes only be procured at one source.

I think the powers that be would quickly spin it to turn the testing into a McCarthy witch hunt. On the other hand......the explosion of social media on the internet gives people a view into others that was not possible before. Maybe informal intensive research can identify these people by looking at their profiles. It still may result in character assassination though.

Perhaps investors at major financial institutions should require that senior level managers submit to established tests to ensure they are not psychopathic.

I don't see that working. Any sociopath could pass the test with flying colors. That's their hallmark: they know right from wrong perfectly well, they just don't CARE.

those aren't psychopathic executives - they are forward thinkers who have the best interests of their SHAREHOLDERS at heart (never mind that they collect massive "bonuses" for generating massive amounts of money for their companies - whether "legal" or "illegal")

(do I really need to indicate my sarcasm?)

Well, there goes the economy. You weed them out and they leave with all the cash they stole from the people.

Shann,

I don't see that working. Any sociopath could pass the test with flying colors. That's their hallmark: they know right from wrong perfectly well, they just don't CARE.

I think you may be confusing the two.

sociopath is less organized in his or her demeanor; he or she might be nervous, easily agitated, and quick to display anger. A sociopath is more likely to spontaneously act out in inappropriate ways without thinking through the consequences.

The capacity to feel attachment and empathy towards another and to feel guilt and shame after doing something wrong is not associated with psychopathy; however it is suggested that sociopaths can emotionally attach to others, and feel badly when they hurt those individuals that they are attached to. The sociopath will still lack empathy and attachment toward the greater society and will not feel guilt in harming a stranger, or rebelling against laws, but does not lack empathy entirely, as is typical with the psychopath.

I think it would be much more unlikely that a sociopath would be in leadership because of their emotional lability and instability. Gaddafi was probably a sociopath.

For instance, current GOP frontrunner Newt Gingrich once said:

I think one of the great problems we have in the Republican Party is that we don’t encourage you to be nasty. We encourage you to be neat, obedient, loyal and faithful and all those Boy Scout words, which would be great around a campfire but are lousy in politics.

Gingrich certainly has perfected it!

I think it would be much more unlikely that a sociopath would be in leadership because of their emotional lability and instability. Gaddafi was probably a sociopath.

Is there a reliable test for either one of those things? That was my point.

I doubt that Gaddafi was a sociopath - more of a megalomaniac

I have had this opinion for years. In any eco-system, whether biologic or economic, the players are always the same. In the Ocean there are vegetarians, carnivores, bottom feeders, and predators. In each sub-class, like predators, there are bait and switch artists, anglers, sea snakes, barracudas; also, the seek and kill, like sharks/killer whales. The latter, in human terms, are almost always sociopaths or psychopaths. There really is no difference, if they wear camo and lie in wait or wear a business suit--same, same.

The only test I need to prove that they are indeed psychologically dangerous is the truth. I recently read a great article seeded by fellow newsviner GOZO-UNLIMITED * (LINK IS BELOW) from journalist Joan Veon (sadly now deceased) exposing what the intl. bankers are up to these days, namely the Rothschilds. There are a few videos included that really need to be watched in their entirety to really understand the scope of the implications. I also found another article that makes the disturbing point that Goldman Sachs is actually getting former employees appointed to government offices in Italy and elsewhere in Europe and I suspect this is being done to continue their consolidation of power to roll the entire world monetary system into one currency and establishing the "Bancor". Their orchestrated efforts and goals are becoming very close to becoming a reality and whether you regard this as a psychiatric flaw or not, it appears to me as simply greedy evil behavior and against humanity. I believe they are also preparing the world for the coming worldwide economic financial collapse, either as a pretext for starting a war with Iran or are planning to start a war with Iran as a pretext to world economic collapse. This pattern of deception and manipulation emerges as a "Shock Doctrine" tactic that strictly adheres to the "Hegelion Dialectic" . What is this ?

The Hegelian Dialectic is, in short, the critical process by which the ruling elite creates a problem, anticipating in advance the reaction that the population will have to the given crisis, and thus conditioning the people that a change is needed. When the population is properly conditioned, the desired agenda of the ruling elite is presented as the solution. The solution isn't intended to solve the problem, but rather to serve as the basis for a new problem or exacerbate the existing one.

When the newly inflamed difficulty reaches the boiling point of a crisis, it becomes the foundation upon which arguments may again be made for change. Hence, the process is repeated, over and over, moving society toward whatever end the planners have in mind. source: http://www.amerikanexpose.com/hegel/

We are being manipulated by this invisible power and have been for a very long time. See the following links and draw your own conclusions. I have intentionally organized the following based on the 3 Hegelian principles of PROBLEM CREATION - PUBLIC REACTION = ELITE'S SOLUTION

PROBLEMS CREATED:

• Listen to author and activist Naomi Klien explain "Shock Doctrine" in 2008 who unknowingly (at the time) correctly prophesized what led to what is going on right now with extraordinary accuracy. http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Knv9CXZI6hc

• Newsviner GOZO's* great seed on Joan Veon videos explaining what intl. Bankers have been up to. http://gozounlimited.newsvine.com/_news/2011/11/22/8957813-joan-veon-when-central-banks-rule-the-world-a-rothschild-scheme-for-the-enslavement-of-humanity-video

• More evidence that US Bankers and intl. bankers are controlling/manipulating world events. http://www.independent.co.uk/news/business/analysis-and-features/what-price-the-new-democracy-goldman-sachs-conquers-europe-6264091.html

• In a 2007 interview with "Democracy Now's" Amy Goodman, former General Wesley Clark reveals a 5 year US war plan. http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=SAS_q5TYkSg&feature=related

ANTICIPATED REACTION: Political and Social unrest =Arab spring, OWS, worldwide austerity measures, chaos, violence, death

THE ELITES SOLUTION: Placate and satisfy the world population (weary and broken by the years of social unrest, eager for peace and a return to normalcy) with promises to provide relief and stability through adopting the "New World Order" for the betterment of all mankind. When we acquiesce all power to them, it will obviously give the ruling elite the exclusive power to essentially control all of the world resources, finances, governments, and all production of goods and trade between people and nation states. It will also give them unrestrained power to dictate laws governing employment, privacy, health, transportation, distribution of food, agriculture, education, wages, living standards, the use of technology, procreation restrictions (forced population control), and every other single aspect of human life on the planet. This "New World Order" will not be democratic either, as they alone will decide everything for us ! A Fascist World ?

I don't know about you, but I am very wary (and pissed off) and unwilling to give an evil elite body of power the right to determine my destiny and life and that of future generations. We are at a major shift in Human progress ! How we the people of the world respond will determine the path and future for the entire planet !

rescue dogs62

I think it would be much more unlikely that a sociopath would be in leadership because of their emotional lability and instability. Gaddafi was probably a sociopath.

Gaddafi was one of the longest serving leaders in the world.

this from the party that constantly attacks Obamas wife? despite, no matter how much Bush was hated the left didnt do this?

When did the Republican party "attack" Obamas' wife? I don't recall them saying anything "nasty" about her.

This from the party that sends out tweets about Obama about to ban aspirin cause it is white and it works?

These tweets came from the entire Republican party or one individual Republican? Because I keep hearing how judging entire groups by the actions of a few is bad.

This from the party that told china that obama was lying about the state of our economy?

The Chinese don't have their own press, they get all their news from the Republican party press releases?

This from the party whose main goal was to make Obama a one term president?

I didn't realize that the Democratic party was really being nasty when they tried to unseat Bush after his first term. Now I know.

This from the party who have smashed all records in filibustering, they even filibustered a shout out to moms on mothers day which is free and happens every year.

Hmmm, filibusters are now considered nasty. I do recall Reid and company doing quite a bit of filibustering when Bush had the executive

This from a party who hecked a man in a wheel chair for dare wanting health care?

Chances are if he was in a wheel chair he had some medical coverage already. Now if he wanted the same health care that others pay through the nose for for free, that should engender a bit of heckling in my opinion.

This from a party who attacked Obama for not going into libya and helping and then attacked Obama for going into libya and helping without killing a single american solider

Again, these "attacks" were what you would define as nasty? What about the liberal "attacks" on Bush for Afghanistan? Did they fall under your same definition of "nasty" or is it only nasty if you don't like it?

crap I would hate to see the GOP get 'nasty". whats next, just marching around in klan uniforms carrying burning crosses while telling the middle class to go f themselves?

I'd love to see the GOP get just as nasty as the Democrats were the last 2 years of Bush, when they had the House and the Senate. And I don't recall anything even remotely KKK coming from the GOP of late, so that portrayal qualifies as a nasty attack that you are condemning...oh, but then double standards are perfectly acceptable from the liberal camp, aren't they?

I disagree with some of the arguments about stockholders interests being served by psychopaths.

Need hard evidence? Alan greenspan . Remmeber this guy. He is always used by the ring wing as a clever guy who has it all worked out. Now they hate him. Why? He said de-regulation does not work. Thats out of his own mouth. They hate him for it.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=bAH-o7oEiyY&feature=related

NOw he even says that CEO and management act against the Stockholders own interests.

We need this fixed and the american economy will chug along and pick up speed. Its unfixed and the economy goes no where because we have too many right wing nut jobs.

Why? We see the stocks plummet and the crazy pay continues. The corporate elites and banking families are in these corporations at the very top levels and its by inheritance. The directors do not care about stockholders wealth.

You need proof? Look at the stockmarket. ITs f+ked.

They act against there own self interests and are still there. How can they be there when they failed? There are a number of issues why.

One of the key issues is 401ks. They use to be 5.2 trillion in 2008, now 2.9 trillion in 2011. Why would the pension funds keep these bums? That needs to be resolved because the pension funds are acting against there own members.

Why would they? The problem is that the CEO and other big shots buy stock for the members of the pension fund. This stock affords the CEO on the pension fund and funds to vote on behalf of the 401ks. These voting is CEOs who are not for the USA or the members. We see the directors on these boards that are put in by the CEOs act against the stockholders. Its amazing that there are any corporations in the USA at all.

These people don't care. Its no there money. THey get rich off the peasants. Thats the problem. We have CEOs voting for CEOs. This needs to be stoped.

How? We need to regulate CEO pay because CEOs paying CEOs is not working. Its the biggest handicap in the USA. We need to fix it.

Its why the jobs go overseas. American innovation is hammered by giving all the money to these unproductive bean counters. They don't understand how to run a business and blame the poverty on a huge manure lot of lies.

Regulate CEO pay to save the USA.

Politicians seem to be less of an issue because voters should be able to smell them out by their actions. That does not mean a psychopath or sociopath could not get elected,

I don't agree. Sociopaths and Psychopaths tend to have high charisma. They are seen as decisive and natural leaders. This is in part because they don't display the same doubts and introspection that "plagues" the average person. They are exciting in their "differentness". The rebel without a cause or a clue, doesn't really matter, is looked up on as someone that is "doing" what all of us desire to do at times. They exude a confidence that most of us wish we could feel more often. And we confuse these traits with those of creativity and new ways of thinking. In people like Steve Jobs, it resulted in new and innovative additions to our quality of life. For people like Jamie Dimon it results in misery and suffering. One is positive and the other negative, but we still lack the ability to reliably predict which is which.

Tim,

I don't see Steve Jobs as either a sociopath, or a psychopath, there's a number of wealthy and successful people that aren't, but when you see people making amoral decisions, with no consideration or remorse for those they harm, then you have a psychopathy. These people can be charming and disarming, and draw people to them, which is why it makes some politicians successful, and some people rise through corporations, not because they're particularly bright, but they're ruthless.

Rescue dogs62 wrote:

I don't see Steve Jobs as either a sociopath, or a psychopath, there's a number of wealthy and successful people that aren't, but when you see people making amoral decisions, with no consideration or remorse for those they harm, then you have a psychopathy. These people can be charming and disarming, and draw people to them, which is why it makes some politicians successful, and some people rise through corporations, not because they're particularly bright, but they're ruthless.

Good point. And I agree with you. Jobs never worked for his benefit alone; he worked for his family, his company, his country. His quiet philanthropy is proof of this. The fact that he was a perfectionist and hard on those employees who didn't live up to his standards, doesn't mean he was a psychopath. Psychopaths are NOT perfectionists - they are self-seekers - always moving to grasp external benefit for themselves.

Bankers who would sell consumers mortgages at a low interest rate without informing them that the rates (and their payments) were scheduled to rise dramatically, so that the bank could take immediate payments from the customers and the government, and then take later payments when the mortgages failed, are psychopaths.

I don't see Steve Jobs as either a sociopath, or a psychopath,

And I didn't say he was. In fact, I pointed out how he fails to meet this threshold. He made his wealth by creating something new of value. He did not make his wealth by skimming off billions with no positive economic value like mortgage backed derivatives and false ratings. From looking at his management style there are indications of some social interaction issues, but that is far from being socio/psychopathic.

Sorry if I gave the impression that I included people like Jobs in with the socio/psychopaths.