According to a fascinating Horizon programme last night, today’s business environment is ideal for psychopaths and, despite deep psychological flaws, they are often seen as charismatic leaders who know how to ‘talk the talk’.

Hmmm – who knew?

I won’t name names but I can think of a few such candidates for psychological evaluation from my time in the workplace over the last 25 years, most of whom come from across the pond.

The programme gave an excellent insight into genetic research over the last decade that shows a particular gene type (called the Warrior gene) is prevalent in psychopaths but made it clear that it is the environment in which they live that determines if or when psychopathic behaviour will manifest itself.  

This reminds me of articles I’ve read in the past, relating to the US in particular, which is often described as a nation suffering from psychopathy …

…Psychopathic behavior seems to be on the rise because of the very nature of American capitalistic society. The great hustlers, charmers, and self-promoters in the sales fields are perfect examples of where the psychopath can thrive. The entertainment industry, the sports industry, the corporate world in a Capitalistic system, are all areas where psychopaths naturally rise to the top. Those who are not genetic psychopaths, are induced to behave like psychopaths simply to survive.

As a society gets larger and more competitive, individuals become more anonymous and more Machiavellian. Social stratification and segregation leads to feelings of inferiority, pessimism and depression among the have-nots, and this promotes the use of “cheating strategies” in life which then makes the environment more adaptive for psychopathy in general.

Psychopathic behavior among non-genetic psychopaths could be viewed as a functional method of obtaining desirable resources, increasing an individual’s status in a local group, and even a means of providing stimulation that socially and financially successful people find in acceptable physical and intellectual challenges.