Is Your Boss a Psychopath?

Dogers writes "Robert Hare, creator of the Psychopathy Checklist, has recently been applying his test 'Is your boss a psychopath' to businessmen and has found some disturbing results. From the article: 'Why wouldn't we want to screen them? We screen police officers, teachers. Why not people who are going to handle billions of dollars?'. Citing Enron and Worldcom management as an example, it seems a reasonable argument. The same source also has a quiz (magazine produced it seems) which allows you to test your own boss, too!"

Comments

or the company you work for

[gregulrajani]

The Corporation
This documentary looks at a corporations from a psychologists perspective and finds that corporations are sociopaths
-best
-greg

Re:The question is why do they exist?

[kin_korn_karn]

Nitpick: Capitalism is not a type of government, it's an economic system. But, you're right, look at all the homocidal monarchs of years past, Saddam, etc.

However, capitalism gives mild psychopaths a legal outlet for their manipulative urges. It's understood today, and even encouraged, that to be successful in business you must screw people over. I majored in business administration and that's more or less what management classes are - they teach you how to manipulate people for the good of the Company. As with anything else, a natural aptitude for it will make you more successful.

Re:The question is why do they exist?

[TomSawyer]

And why, pray tell, did you include Guevarra in your little list [of psychopaths]?

I know, it's tough to come to terms that Hot Topic lead you astray. Guevara ran Cuba's gulags -- the real kind, not the three meals a day Git'mo kind that Amnesty International calls gulags. He also oversaw the temporary forced work camps. This is where the regular citizens were sent to broaden their horizons through sugar cane farming. Then there are the people that were murdered while he tried to sow insurrection in South America.

Sure, compared to Castro who eventually left Guevara to die, he's a pussy cat. Then there's a certain level of romanticizing from The Motorcycle Diaries. However, I wouldn't cut Hitler any slack because he killed many millions less than Stalin. Although I'm sure there's a romantic story lying somewhere in Hitler In Vienna.