Niccolo Machiavelli Peter Constantine Popular Books

Niccolo Machiavelli Peter Constantine Biography & Facts

In the field of personality psychology, Machiavellianism (sometimes abbreviated as Mach) is the name of a personality trait construct characterized by interpersonal manipulation, indifference to morality, lack of empathy, and a strategic focus on self-interest. Psychologists Richard Christie and Florence Geis named the construct after Niccolò Machiavelli, as they used edited statements inspired by his works to study variations in human behaviors. Their Mach IV test, a 20-question, Likert-scale personality survey, became the standard self-assessment tool and scale of the Machiavellianism construct. Those who score high on the scale (High Machs) are more likely to have a high level of manipulativeness, deceitfulness and a cynical, unemotional temperament. It is one of the dark triad traits, along with the subclinical versions of narcissism and psychopathy. Origin of the construct Adapting Machiavelli for psychometric use In 1955, psychologist Richard Christie set out to study the thought processes and actions of those who manipulate others, such as political ideologues and religious extremists. He found that there was much literature on those who followed organizations and movements, but very little on those who led them. As Christie was developing a psychometric model for interpersonal manipulation, he was reminded of his encounter with Machiavelli's writings as an undergraduate, and wanted to use them in his research. In the 1960s, Christie and his colleagues would then develop a test using a selection of statements, including truncated and edited sentences that were similar to certain phrases found in Machiavelli's works such as The Prince and The Discourses on Livy as test items, naming the construct "Machiavellianism" after him. They wanted to assess whether or not those who were in agreement with the statements would behave differently than others who disagreed, specifically in regards to manipulative actions. Christie and his research partner Florence L. Geis published their results in their book, titled "Studies in Machiavellianism". Christie made light of the difficulty in adapting Machiavelli's writings into a non political test, joking that his advice was "better suited for Renaissance princes" than for college undergraduates. Christie used more colloquial, everyday wording when creating the scale items, as most taking the test would have difficulties understanding the questions in their original prose. While the construct is named after Machiavelli, it does not refer to the political theory espoused in his books. Christie makes clear that he used sentences from Machiavelli's works only as a sort of litmus test to study deceptive and manipulative behavior, and that his concern was not with Machiavelli's historical or political influence, stating specifically that: Historians disagree as to whether Machiavelli was a cynic who wrote political satire, a patriot, or the first modern political scientist. The present concern is not with Machiavelli as an historic figure, but as the source of ideas about those who manipulate others. Researcher and Psychology Today author Dale Hartley made this point more clear in his book, Machiavellians: Gulling The Rubes: When psychologists refer to the terms, Machiavellian or Machiavellianism, they do not mean Machiavelli's political advice. They refer instead to the underlying personality traits of cynicism, duplicity and scheming by which master manipulators conceive and execute their agendas. Mach IV Christie and Geis's Mach IV test, a 20-question, Likert-scale personality survey, became the standard self-report tool to measure one's level of Machiavellianism. Those who score highly on the scale are classified as high Machs, while those who score low are classified as low Machs. Using their scale, Christie and Geis conducted multiple experimental tests that showed that the interpersonal strategies and behavior of "high Machs" and "low Machs" differ. People scoring high on the scale tend to endorse manipulative statements, and behave accordingly, contrary to those who score lowly. People scoring high on the scale tend to endorse statements such as, "Never tell anyone the real reason you did something unless it is useful to do so," (No. 1) but not ones like, "Most people are basically good and kind" (No. 4), "There is no excuse for lying to someone else" (No. 7) or "Most people who get ahead in the world lead clean, moral lives" (No. 11) Their basic results have been widely replicated. Measured on the Mach IV scale, males score, on average, slightly higher on Machiavellianism than females. The Mach IV test influenced the creation of an assessment called the Dirty Dozen, which contains 12 items, and the Short Dark Triad, composed of 27 items. High vs Low Machiavellianism Like all personality traits, Machiavellianism is a characteristic that exists on a spectrum or continuum. Christie and others noted that High Machs were more likely to cheat in experimental games, manipulate others around them, and were generally detached in their interactions. This was opposed to the behavior of Low Machs, who found such behaviors immoral, and refrained from them. The higher one is on the Machiavellianism scale, the more likely they are to deceive and exploit at the expense of someone else, engage in unprincipled behavior, and have a lack of empathetic feelings. Core features In developing the construct studying manipulators, Christie theorized that they would possess the following characteristics: 1. A relative lack of affect in interpersonal relationships: Manipulators do not empathize with their victims. The more empathy one has, Christie says, the less likely one will manipulate a person to do their bidding. 2. A lack of concern for conventional morality: Christie asserts that the manipulator is not concerned with the morality of behaviors such as lying and cheating. 3. A lack of gross psychopathology: Christie states that manipulators usually have an instrumentalist view of the world, which shows a lack of psychosis or other mental impairments. 4. Low ideological commitment: Manipulators prefer to focus on getting things done pragmatically rather than focus on ideological allegiances. Christie states that while manipulators are to be found in organizations of differing ideals, they are more likely to be involved in tactics that achieve individual ends than inflexible idealistic ones. Five-Factor Model Under the recently devised Five-Factor Model of Machiavellianism, three characteristics underlie the construct: Antagonism: manipulativeness, cynicism, selfishness, callousness, and arrogance. Planfulness: deliberation and orderliness. Agency: achievement-striving, assertiveness, self-confidence, emotional invulnerability, activity and competence. Causes Genetic and environmental Several behavioral genetics studies on the dark triad have shown that Machiavellianism has both significantly genetic and environmental influences. Rese.... Discover the Niccolo Machiavelli Peter Constantine popular books. Find the top 100 most popular Niccolo Machiavelli Peter Constantine books.