The Neural Seesaw
Why aren’t leaders always selected with social ability in mind?
One of the reasons for this is that our
mental representation of what a leader looks like is at odds with what actually makes for a successful
leader.
Robert Lord has studied perceptions of leaders for decades.
In one review of more than two
dozen studies, he examined
the characteristics that people associated with leaders
, in order to identify
which traits came to mind most frequently.
He found that “intelligence,” “dominance,” and
“masculinity” were consistently
rated highly; social skills didn’t make the cut.
People think of leaders
as smart and forceful, rather than as socially skilled.
This perception no doubt influences hiring
decisions.