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POL 313
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The Psychological Presidency |
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Barber's Pulse of Politics
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history on the presidency, we now need to explore the
role that the specific qualities of the man (or woman)
who occupies the office play in understanding presidential
power. (look at where personality
is on the presidential power paradigm!!) Remember (from approaches to the study of the
presidency), in the 1950s and 60s political science (indeed all of the social sciences) were
influenced by the behavioral movement ( James David Barber was
influenced by McClelland and decided to bring this
"psychological" approach to the study of the Presidency. While many have criticized Barber, his book (The Presidential Character: Predicting Performance
in the White House) is still considered a
"classic" and generates many good discussions. Personality: the relatively enduring qualities
observed in the behavior of individuals which are believed to play a
major role in determining that behavior (Allport) According to McClelland, there are 3 psychological
motives or drives: 1) the need for achievement 2) the need for power 3) the need for affiliation Presidential personality is patterned--- character, style and world view fit together in a
package: a) style---habitual way of performing three political
roles: 1) rhetoric 2) personal relations 3) homework b) world view----primary politically relevant
beliefs, conceptions of social causality, human nature, and the central moral conflicts of the time c) character---how he orients himself toward life;
self-esteem personality interacts with the power situation and
the climate of expectations The keys to understanding presidential character
are: 1) how much energy the person put into their work
(active/ passive) 2) how much they enjoy their work (positive/
negative) From these to variables, a four-fold typology is
developed:
Active-Positives: much activity and enjoyment of
it, flexible, high self-esteem, success in relating to
the environment Passive-Positives: receptive, compliant, and other
directed characters whose life is a search for "love" (being agreeable and cooperative rather than
assertive) Passive-Negatives: politics is seen as a duty-- lack of experience and flexibility to perform
effectively as a political leader; they withdraw to escape from
conflict; they emphasize vague principles Active-Negatives: relatively intense effort without much emotional reward for it; have problems in managing aggressive feelings--- life is a hard struggle to achieve and hold power; they are hampered by the condemnations of a
perfectionist conscience
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