Presidential Character Essay

517 Words3 Pages

The Presidential Character
Have you ever wondered what draws you towards or away from a certain presidential character? Is it their look, charm, or “go-getter” attitude? Is it their bad haircut, harsh views, or low self-esteem? The president is the “top dog” and our country’s leader to blame when things are bad and to worship when things go well. By being president, he/she impacts the world around him/her by their pattern of character, world views, and style. Citizens of the United States expect lots of traits from the president such as; reassurance, a demand of progress and action, and legitimacy. How does one live up to these expectations? You find out by their personality attributes. Political scientist, James David Barber, wanted to delve deeper into why this was. Currently, he has classified four different groups that the presidents can fall into when it comes to personality and their views. These groups include active-positive (adaptive), passive-positive (compliant), passive-negative (compulsive), and active-negative …show more content…

How they act and feel influences the whole nation. For example, President John F. Kennedy fell under the personality group of active-positive, meaning he was an adaptive person. His optimism and want for progress made him a nation’s favorite during the early sixties. In turn the nation was very optimistic and had a want for progress as well. This process has a kind of mirror effect. How a president acts during the political situation he is in during office shows his true presidential character. Under stress and pressure, one shows who he/she really is. One way to predict how a president will turn out once he is voted into office, is to go back to his childhood and see what makes him tick. The main development of the human personality happens when we are children, when we are most influenced by the world around