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Businesses The Almighty Buck Science

Could Testing Block Psychopaths From Senior Management? 422

Freshly Exhumed writes "Dr. Clive Boddy believes that increasingly fluid corporate career paths have helped psychopaths conceal their disruptive workplace behavior and ascend to previously unattainable levels of authority. Boddy points out psychopaths are primarily attracted to money, status and power, currently found in unparalleled abundance in the global banking sector. As if to prove the point, many of the world's money traders self identify as the "masters of the universe." Solution? Screening with psychological tests. Who would pay for it? The insurance industry." The tech world has plenty of company heads who've been called psychopaths, too — but would you want to actually change that?
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Could Testing Block Psychopaths From Senior Management?

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  • by Anonymous Coward on Thursday November 22, 2012 @05:17PM (#42068503)
    Would be great to see such a test for forum or internet users. Imagine how useful youtube comments would be if the psychopaths couldn't register.
  • by 93 Escort Wagon ( 326346 ) on Thursday November 22, 2012 @05:46PM (#42068695)

    As an American, I don't believe "Europe" and "Canada" are real places. I read about it on Snopes or someplace.

  • by Anonymous Coward on Thursday November 22, 2012 @05:58PM (#42068769)

    Unlikley. Americans don't read. If you think you heard about it, It must have been on TV.

  • by guttentag ( 313541 ) on Thursday November 22, 2012 @06:59PM (#42069167) Journal
    If you block the psychopaths with the goal of blocking people who are attracted to money, status and power, who will be left to run the corporations? Corporations are set up to attract people who are attracted to those things... It's an incentive system. If you disqualify people who want those things, then all you really have left are the INTJs [keirsey.com], also known as the "mastermind" personality type:

    Although they are highly capable leaders, Masterminds are not at all eager to take command, preferring to stay in the background until others demonstrate their inability to lead. Once they take charge, however, they are thoroughgoing pragmatists. Masterminds are certain that efficiency is indispensable in a well-run organization, and if they encounter inefficiency -- any waste of human and material resources -- they are quick to realign operations and reassign personnel. Masterminds do not feel bound by established rules and procedures, and traditional authority does not impress them, nor do slogans or catchwords. Only ideas that make sense to them are adopted; those that don't, aren't, no matter who thought of them. Remember, their aim is always maximum efficiency.

    By definition, INTJs do not want power. They want results and efficiency. If they take power, they try to get out from under it as soon as they can. But do you really want to replace the psychopaths with masterminds? The only group whose personality type is usually preceded by the adjective "evil?" Doesn't sound like a good plan to me.

  • by fahrbot-bot ( 874524 ) on Thursday November 22, 2012 @07:52PM (#42069551)
    I'd be happy if we can block them from moderating /. Is there a test for that? :-)
  • Could it? (Score:5, Funny)

    by pitchpipe ( 708843 ) on Thursday November 22, 2012 @08:19PM (#42069697)
    Could A Block B From C?
    • A)
    • Testing
    • Monitoring
    • Banning
    • Killing
    • Condoms
    • B)
    • Terrorists
    • Sperm
    • Germs
    • Pedophiles
    • Psychopaths
    • C)
    • Senior Management
    • The Bloodstream
    • The Anus
    • Airplanes
    • Your Mom

    I daresay it could, but probably not. At anyrate I'm more frightened by sharks.

  • by JustOK ( 667959 ) on Thursday November 22, 2012 @08:48PM (#42069877) Journal

    if you had some, it might.

The key elements in human thinking are not numbers but labels of fuzzy sets. -- L. Zadeh

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