The Psychological Assessment of Political Leadersapplied in table 14.1 to half-standard-deviation intervals above and
below the mean score of the norming group for each VICS index.
The VICS scores for Clinton's philosophical beliefs in table 14.1
show that he views the nature of the political universe (P-i) as
extremely friendly, greater than two standard deviations above the
average leader. He is also extremely optimistic about the prospects
for realizing fundamental political goals (P-2). Clinton sees the
political future (P-3) as very low in predictability, but he believes
that he has a very high degree of control over historical development
compared to others (P-4). Finally, Clinton's assessment of the role of
chance in politics is average (P-5).
The VICS scores for Clinton's instrumental beliefs in table 14.1
indicate that Clinton believes that an extremely cooperative direc-
tion is the best strategy (I-i) in the political universe, coupled with
extremely cooperative tactics (1-2). His general risk orientation (1-3)
is average, meaning he is no more risk acceptant or risk averse than
other leaders. Clinton's propensity to shift between cooperative and
conflictual tactics (I-4a) is extremely low, and his propensity to shift
between word and deed tactics is average (I-4b). The utility of means
indices (1-5) show that his reliance on appeal/support and reward tac-
tics is extremely high, along with a very high reliance on promises.
His reliance on oppose/resist and threaten tactics is extremely low,
and his propensity to punish is definitely low compared to other
leaders.
Overall, the key VICS scores for Self and Other in table 14.1 indi-
cate that Clinton believes in an extremely cooperative approach to
strategy (I-i) and attributes a very high level of control (P-4a) to
himself in the political universe. He sees the political universe as
extremely cooperative (P-i) and attributes a very low level of control
(P-4b) to others in the political universe. These dual images of Self
and Other and a low propensity to shift between conflict and cooper-
ation (I-4a) suggest that his strategies and tactics will be relatively
consistent.
The standard deviation scores for the key indices in table 14.1 also
allow us to locate Clinton in Holsti's revised typology of operational
codes and to extrapolate some predictions about his likely strategic
and tactical interaction patterns. The strategies and tactics in the
four quadrants in figure 14.1 represent the likely interaction patterns