Moral and Reptilian Charisma

A charisma measure based on Weber s theory was
developed and tested. Three studies were conducted
in order to assess whether charisma has one or more
dimensions, and explore the extent to which charisma
is a property of the leader, the audience, their
relationship or the situation. In Study 1, ratings
of speeches of well-known politicians yielded two
factors. Moral charisma emphasizes pride in and
respect for the leader s task and calling, whereas
reptilian charisma involves the leader s emotional
power, vitality, and vigor. In Study 2, Ps rated the
most or least charismatic person they knew. In Study
3, coders rated 200 speech segments lasting ten
seconds each. All three studies demonstrated that
charisma has two dimensions, a moral and a
reptilian. The studies further help understanding
the diverse styles of various charismatic leaders
and also of nonleaders. When judgments of charisma
could be done, partitioning the variance of charisma
indicated that it largely resides in the leader and
his or her relationship with the audience.

Autorentext

Georgios Triantis, Ph.D. He is Assistant Professor and Chair of the Communication Department at the University of Indianapolis, Athens Campus.Ross Buck is Professor of Communication Sciences and Psychology at the University of Connecticut. He is author of Human Motivation and Emotion and The Communication of Emotion.

Klappentext

A charisma measure based on Weber's theory was developed and tested. Three studies were conducted in order to assess whether charisma has one or more dimensions, and explore the extent to which charisma is a property of the leader, the audience, their relationship or the situation. In Study 1, ratings of speeches of well-known politicians yielded two factors. Moral charisma emphasizes pride in and respect for the leader's task and calling, whereas reptilian charisma involves the leader's emotional power, vitality, and vigor. In Study 2, Ps rated the most or least charismatic person they knew. In Study 3, coders rated 200 speech segments lasting ten seconds each. All three studies demonstrated that charisma has two dimensions, a moral and a reptilian. The studies further help understanding the diverse styles of various charismatic leaders and also of nonleaders. When judgments of charisma could be done, partitioning the variance of charisma indicated that it largely resides in the leader and his or her relationship with the audience.