USPP

Unit for the Study of Personality in Politics

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Syllabus

SAINT JOHN’S UNIVERSITY/COLLEGE OF SAINT BENEDICT

Department of Psychology

Fall 1999

Syllabus for HONR 320-01A "Psychological Assessment of Presidential Candidates"

Prerequisites                                   PSYC 111 or POLS 111 or permission of instructor
Credits                                           4.0
Core designation                            Social sciences upper division (SSU)
Time                                              11:20-12:30 (days 1-3-5)VenueScience Center 315, SJU
Instructor                                       Aubrey Immelman, Ph.D.
Office                                            126 Science Center
Phone                                            363-3198 (office) or 240-6828 (home)
Internet                                          aimmelman@csbsju.edu
Consultations                                 After class or by appointment

Required texts                               

The Psychological Assessment of Presidential Candidates by Stanley S. Renshon.                                                                                                          Copyright © 1996 by New York University Press (hardcover) or © 1998 by Routledge, New York (paperback).

Presidential Personality and Performance by Alexander L. George and Juliet L. George. Copyright © 1998 by Westview Press, Boulder, CO.

Articles, papers, and research materials as assigned in class.

Recommended texts

Personality and Politics: Problems of Evidence, Inference, and Conceptualization by Fred I. Greenstein. Copyright © 1969 by Markham Publishing Company, Chicago.

Disorders of personality: DSM-IV and beyond (2nd ed) by Theodore Millon. Copyright © 1996 by John Wiley and Sons, Inc., New York.

Course Description

The course will examine conceptual and methodological perspectives on the psychological assessment of presidential candidates. This will serve as the foundation for a research project designed to assess the personalities of the major candidates in the 2000 presidential election, which in turn will provide a basis for predicting candidates’ leadership skills and potential performance with reference to the office of the presidency.

Course Content

General orientation to the study of personality in politics, including the need for systematic study of personality in politics, the state of the personality-in-politics literature, and objections to the study of personality in politics; conceptual and methodological issues; alternative approaches to the study of personality in politics; theoretical frameworks for the assessment of presidential character and personality; presidential management styles and models and the assessment of presidential performance; the concept of "psychological suitability"; ethical and professional issues in political personality assessment; the role of the media in presidential campaigns; practical application.

Learning Goals

Upon completion of the course, students will demonstrate:

Format of the Course

The class will have a seminar format. A reading schedule is included with this syllabus.

Class Policies and Procedures

Class Attendance Policy

From the 1998-2000 CSB/SJU Academic Catalog:

Students are required to attend all class meetings of courses for which they are registered. It is the student’s responsibility to contact an instructor – preferably in advance – [in the event] of a necessary absence. A student absent from class for any reason assumes the responsibility for making up work which has been missed. . . . An instructor may fail a student if the instructor determines that unwarranted absences preclude the student’s progress in class or indicate a serious lack of commitment" p. 28).

Absenteeism may result in dismissal or grade reduction at the discretion of the instructor.

Academic Honesty Policy

Familiarize yourself with the academic honesty and plagiarism policies of Saint John’s University and the College of Saint Benedict, as explicated in the 1998-2000 Academic Catalog (pp. 34-35). Sanctions for cheating, plagiarism, assisting others in such offenses, and other acts of academic dishonesty include grade reduction, academic failure, and expulsion.

Class Schedule

September 1         General orientation to the course

September 3         Profiling project planning

September 7         Introduction to the study of personality in politics

George & George (1998), Introduction (pp. 1-11).
Renshon (1996), Introduction: Frameworks of analysis (pp. 5-21).
Renshon (1998), Introduction: Does the president’s character still matter? (pp. 1-21).
Immelman (1998), The political personalities of 1996 U.S. presidential candidates Bill Clinton and Bob Dole (Leadership Quarterly, 9, 335-366).

September 9         The need for systematic study of personality in politics; the state of the personality-in-politics literature; objections to the study of                                 personality in politics

Greenstein (1969), Chapter 1: The study of personality and politics (pp. 1-32).
Greenstein (1969), Chapter 2: Objections to the study of personality and politics (pp. 33-62).

September 13       Conceptual and methodological issues

George & George (1998), Writing psychobiography: Some theoretical and methodological issues (pp. 55-75).
George & George (1998), Assessing presidential character (pp. 145-197).
Immelman (1993), The assessment of political personality: A psychodiagnostically relevant conceptualization and methodology (Political Psychology, 14, 725-741).

September 15         Psychoanalytically framed theories of character and personality

George & George (1998), Some uses of dynamic psychology in political biography: Case materials on Woodrow Wilson (pp. 23-53).
Renshon (1998), Chapter 7: Toward a framework for analyzing presidential performance: Some observations on a theory of character (pp. 179-204).
Immelman (1997), Review of High Hopes: The Clinton Presidency and the Politics of Ambition (Political Psychology, 18, 535-539).

September 17          Frameworks for assessing presidential performance

Renshon, 1998, Chapter 8: Toward a theory of character and presidential performance (pp. 205-230).
George & George (1998), Presidential management styles and models (pp. 199-280).

September 21          The notion of "psychological suitability"

Renshon, 1998, Chapter 1: The psychological suitability of presidents in an era of doubt (pp. 25-48).
Renshon, 1998, Chapter 2: Assessing the psychological suitability of presidential candidates: Ethical and theoretical dilemmas (pp. 49-71).

September 23           Ethical and professional issues in political personality assessment

Renshon, 1998, Chapter 5: Assessment at a distance: A cautionary case study of the 1964 presidential campaign [the 1964 FACT fiasco] (pp. 122-145).

September 27           The role of the media in presidential campaigns

Renshon, 1998, Chapter 12: The private lives of public officials: Observations, dilemmas, and guidelines (pp. 313-333).
Renshon, 1998, Chapter 13: Election campaigns as a tool for assessing the psychological suitability of presidential candidates (pp. 334-356).

September 29            Practical Applications, Part I

Renshon, 1998, Appendix 2: A model of character, dynamics, development, and implications for presidential performance (pp. 409-411).
Renshon, 1998, Chapter 14: Asking the right questions of presidential candidates: Some suggestions and guidelines (pp. 359-379).
Renshon, 1998, Chapter 15: Conclusion: The good enough president (pp. 380-400).
Renshon, 1998, Appendix 1: Some observations on method: Cases, data, and analysis (pp. 401-408).

October 1                    Practical Applications, Part II

Immelman (1999), Millon Inventory of Diagnostic Criteria: Manual (2nd ed.).
Immelman & Steinberg (1999), Millon Inventory of Diagnostic Criteria (2nd ed.).

October 5                    Finalize Project Teams and Subjects

October 7                    Writing newspaper opionion columns

Presented by Randy Krebs, editorial page editor, St. Cloud Times

October 12                   Launch "Campaign 2000 Presidential Profiling Project" of the Unit for the Study of Personality in Politics (USPP)

October 14                    Profiling project continues

October 18                    Profiling project continues

October 20                    Profiling project continues

October 22                    Profiling project continues

October 26                    Profiling project continues

October 28                    Profiling project continues

November 1                   Profiling project continues

November 3                   Profiling project continues

November 5                   Profiling project continues

November 9                   Profiling project continues

November 11                 Profiling project continues

November 15                 Profiling project continues

November 17                 Profiling project continues

November 19                 Profiling project continues

November 23                  Profiling project continues

November 30                  Profiling project continues

December 2                     Profiling project continues

December 6                     Profiling project continues

December 8                     Profiling project continues

December 10                   Profiling project continues

December 17    Final exam (Fri. 2:00-4:00 p.m.)

The above schedule and course procedures are subject to change in the event of special or extenuating circumstances

Bibliography

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Immelman, A. (1997). [Review of the book High hopes: The Clinton presidency and the politics of Ambition.] Political Psychology, 18, 535-539.

Immelman, A. (1998). The Clinton chronicle: Diary of a political psychologist. The Saint John’s Symposium, 16, 30-68.

Immelman, A. (1998). The political personalities of 1996 U.S. presidential candidates Bill Clinton and Bob Dole. Leadership Quarterly, 9, 335-366.

Immelman, A. (1999). Millon inventory of diagnostic criteria manual (2nd ed.). Unit for the Study of Personality in Politics, St. John’s University, Collegeville, Minn.

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Page maintained by Aubrey Immelman, USPP director and Suzanne Wetzel, USPP contributor

www.csbsju.edu/uspp/Resources/Syllabus.html

Last modified: 04/16/2000