‘‘Not all psychopaths are in prison. Some are in the Boardroom.’’

Ever wondered how that big bad boss managed to get to senior management without breaking a sweat?  Well it turns out that he may have an advantage - psychopathy.  Yep, you did read that right.  A recent study in the US had been examining the prevalence of psychopathic traits amongst managers, particularly those deemed as having the potential to continue up the career level.

The results showed that 8 of the 203 subjects, or 3.9%, had scores on a test of psychopathic traits that put them at the threshold for psychopathy. That compares with just 0.2% of the general population. An additional three study subjects had scores that were significantly higher, meaning their psychopathy was likely to be significantly worse.

So why, might you ask, have these personality traits enabled progression to this career level?  The researchers explain: "Lack of realistic life goals, while a clearly negative trait which often leads the psychopath toward a downward spiralling personal life, when couched in the appropriate business language, can be misinterpreted as strategic thinking or ‘‘visioning,’’ a rare and highly valued executive talent. Even those traits that reflect a severe lack of human feelings or emotional poverty (lack of remorse, guilt, empathy) can be put into service by corporate psychopaths, where being ‘‘tough’’ or ‘‘strong’’ (making hard, unpopular decisions) or ‘‘cool under fire’’ (not displaying emotions in the face of unpleasant circumstances) can work in their favour.

In sum, the very skills that make the psychopath so unpleasant (and sometimes abusive) in society can facilitate a career in business even in the face of negative performance ratings."