The Psychology of Presidential Decisions
A core responsibility of leaders is to erase the gap between what people say behind their backs and to their faces.
I hope it goes without saying that I stand against violence in all forms. Full stop.
For the record, I’m registered as an independent voter. If it were up to me, we wouldn’t have political parties at all—we would cast votes issue by issue. Then we would elect leaders not based on ideology, but rather by judging their character and competence to implement the policies supported by the people.
As a result, I don’t often post about politics. However, I make exceptions when my expertise as an organizational psychologist is relevant to current events. After watching the aftermath of the first presidential debate, I’ve written two articles:
1. The Reason People Are Not Telling Biden the Truth
A major barrier to wise decisions is groupthink. Weak leaders stifle dissent and leave themselves weaker. Strong leaders welcome dissent and make themselves stronger.
2. There’s A Name for the Trap Biden Faces
Too often, instead of rethinking questionable decisions, leaders fall victim to escalation of commitment. More than sunk costs, it’s a matter of ego and emotions: it feels better to be a fighter than a quitter. But walking away from a losing battle is not a failure of grit—it’s a triumph of wisdom.
3. To put American politics in a broader global context, I talked with my favorite thinker on geopolitics, Ian Bremmer. He introduced me to the notion that just as economies go through boom and bust cycles, political systems can too: Apple | Spotify | Transcript
For those of you looking for something lighter, I had a delightful conversation with linguist Anne Curzan about grammar pet peeves, Gen-Z slang, and the joy of being a word nerd: Apple | Spotify | Transcript
In solidarity,
Adam
I don't subscribe to The New York Times so I can't open the articles in your links. Judging by the words and cartoon in this newsletter, it seems as though you're saying that Biden surrounds himself with yes men, which leads to bad decisions. I agree with that view, but since you don't mention Trump, you seem to let him off the hook for that same failing. Trump seems to stifle dissent more than most politicians. You say that you're registered as an independent voter, but mentioning only Biden's failing and not Trump's even greater failing makes you seem biased to me, especially considering the timing of this newsletter.
People pay too much attention to politicians and don't take the time to research how government works. On election day they vote and wear their little "I Voted" sticker and that's as far as their active participation goes. Then they blame the politicians when things turn into a mess. Most people spend too much time watching football or Tik Tok but they don't ask questions and learn about what the politicians they elect are doing.