Psychoanalytic Assessments of Character and Performanceequally present in all circumstances. Situations may call forth char-
acter elements or alternatively may inhibit them. Some situations
might be more highly resonant with a person's history or needs than
others and thus be more likely to engage character elements. Unfor-
tunately, the early understanding of character grew out of clinical
practice with its emphasis on disturbance of function. The view of
character as essentially the sum of a person's defensive mechanisms
or his or her deficient resolution of psychological or developmental
dilemmas does not provide a useful guide for the analysis of charac-
ter in our political leaders, who are not prone to reveal their inner-
most fears and characteristics and who indeed strive to present them-
selves in the best light possible. Moreover, focusing as it does on
explaining deficiencies and disruptions of psychological functioning,
this view of character does not provide much help, as most leaders
have substantial character strengths and skills.
How then can we better conceptualize character? We begin by
pointing out that character differs from other psychological features
in that it is pervasive across time, circumstance, and interior psy-
chology, including belief systems, information processes, and all the
other elements that orient individuals for work. Beliefs, attitudes,
and even neuroses typically represent only small parts of the total
personality system. Each may be relevant to, and therefore engaged
only in, limited areas of functioning. Character, on the other hand,
stands at the core of the personality system and is the basic founda-
tion upon which personality structures develop and operate. The
development and operation of character shape beliefs, information
processing, and ultimately styles of behavior. Character is, therefore,
deeply embedded in the most basic and important foundation of psy-
chological functioning.
From this perspective, character is not conceptualized as a leader's
supreme virtue or failing but rather as a set of psychological patterns
that he or she brings to every circumstance. Character, in this sense,
is the answer to the question of how we can best understand a leader's
psychology. It is the foundation of one's stance toward the world. It
reflects the fundamental elements at the core of people—their basic
ambitions, the ideals and values by which they live, and their rela-
tionships with others. Although character runs deep, knowledge of it
does not necessarily require leaders to expose themselves to psycho-