“So… As a psychologist, what do you think about Trump?”
It’s a tough question. Tougher than it might seem.
On one side, I am a person, with his own views, opinions, beliefs and biases.
Beliefs that are rooted in politeness, inclusion, critical analysis and evidence-based discussion, and many other facets seemingly missing from Trump.
On the other side, psychologists work to a code of ethics that relies on any party having informed consent of their data being processed, and to have the right to withdraw or amend that consent at any point.
This means that we should not discuss potential diagnoses of individuals (or their character or personality traits) without their implicit consent.
So, instead, I’d like to share some insights into one of my areas of interest: psychopathy.
Together with narcissism and Machiavellism, psychopathy makes up the ‘Dark Triad’ of personality traits.
Like all personality traits, these are not inherently good or bad. They’re contextual.
For example, being able to separate the emotion from a decision and be completely pragmatic is a behaviour of psychopathy. This is great if you’re in an accident and require a surgeon who can focus completely and unemotionally on the task at hand. But it might not be as much of a benefit in other situations.
Also, when personality traits are in the extreme, they can then become disorders.
Psychopathy has 20 identified factors, broadly grouped into four facets:
Interpersonal: How do we present to others?
This facet includes glibness/superficial charm, grandiose sense of self-worth, and pathological lying
Affective: What someone does or doesn’t feel
This area includes a lack of remorse, guilt or empathy, a failure to accept responsibility for one’s own actions, and emotional shallowness
Lifestyle: How do you live?
The need of stimulation or proneness to boredom, impulsivity and irresponsibility are factors in this facet
Antisocial: Our behaviour to others
As this facet impacts more obviously on society, the factors might feel more familiar: criminal versatility, juvenile delinquency, poor and/or early behavioural control
I’m not going to share my opinion or diagnosis of Trump.
But my views are that when people tell you who they are, you should believe them.
And when they show you who they are, absolutely believe them.
