Trump’s Personality and IQ Evaluated by Psychotherapist

President Trump’s Personality Evaluation 
by a Psychotherapist

by Samuel Orrin Sewell, PhD - http://bestselfusa.com/

Genius is defined as “Exceptional intellectual ability capable of looking beyond known facts. Such intellectual giants can do things with their minds that can’t even be described to ordinary people.” 

“It is as if a special type of creativeness, being an expression of a healthy personality, is projected out upon the world, touching every activity in which the person is engaged.”  

Let’s start with a discussion about President Trump’s unusual personality.

Abraham Maslow, the American Psychologist and Philosopher best known for his self-actualization theory of psychology, spent most of his professional career trying to identify what was right with people, rather than looking at pathology. Maslow did extensive research to define the traits of a “self actualized” person. My wife and professional partner is also a high IQ person. She makes the point that a better term is “self actualizing,” correctly pointing out that there isn’t a state of personality to be achieved, but rather the individual is in the ongoing process of becoming his best self.

Donald Trump’s observable behavior informs us about the degree to which he is “self actualizing.” Quote from a Psychology Professor under whom I once studied; “People are not who you think they are. People are not who they think they are. People are what they do. That is why this is called a behavioral science." Forget the labels. They are all misleading. Pay attention to the behavior.

Here are some examples of the Traits of a Self Actualized Person, from Maslow’s own research:

·       They resist enculturation. 

Self-actualizers tend to be nonconformists, since they are inner-directed people. If a cultural norm is contrary to their personal values, they simply will not adhere to it. They are almost always loners, or leaders. They are never joiners. 

·       Those comments by Maslow seem to accurately describe one of President Trump’s personality styles. He isn’t a Democrat, he isn’t a Republican, he’s a self actualized president who doesn’t even like being a politician. To use a metaphor, he may be “a leader of the band” but he never joins a band.

·       As a teenager, Trump attended New York Military Academy (NYMA), which is a college preparatory boarding school. It is one of the oldest military schools in the United States. He had unorthodox but acceptable compliance to the strict discipline of the military academy and was promoted not only to the rank of captain during his senior year, but then also as an honorary member of the academy staff. The staff sometimes complained about his rebellious nature, but he ended up being a leader of the entire prestigious “A Company” of the academy. Many top leaders in the military are also graduates of the New York Military Academy, a very prominent school where President Trump was at the top of his class. NYMA has sometimes been called an academy for geniuses and boasts many successful graduates, such as  Donald B. Smith, Class of 1965, general in U.S. Army, Stephen Sondheim, Class of 1946, Tony-, Grammy-, Oscar- and Pulitzer-winning composer and lyricist and Francis Ford Coppola, Class of 1956, Oscar-winning film director. Because self actualized people are not motivated to be part of the group, they are often unpopular but almost always triumphant winners.

AS A BOY

AS A TEENAGER

As Captain Trump, Commander of “A” Company

·       They are creative.

Maslow found this trait in all of the self-actualizers. “This is a universal characteristic of all the people studied or observed. There are no exceptions. This creativeness appears in some of our subjects in other than the usual forms of writing books, composing music, or producing artistic objects. It is as if this special type of creativeness, being an expression of healthy personality, is projected out upon the world, touching any activity in which the person is engaged. In this sense there can be creative shoemakers, carpenters or clerks. This creativity comes from the fact that self-actualizers are more open to experience, and are more spontaneous in their feelings.”

Yes, President Trump is always coming up with creative ways of seeing, defining and solving problems. He seems to shoot from the hip, as some people say, as he frequently does not follow the script and seems to deviate from what the teleprompter tells him to say.

·       They are autonomous, and therefore tend to be independent of their environment.

 Maslow expresses that because self-actualizers see the bigger picture, rather than being motivated by bureaucratic detail, they are more dependent upon their own inner world than on the outer world. Rule makers seek compliance from others to provide their main need gratification. For them, it can come only from other human beings. But growth motivated self-actualizers may actually be hampered by others. For them, determinants of satisfaction, and the good life are inner and individual, not social. They have become strong enough to be independent of the opinions of other people, good or bad, or even of their affection. The honors, status, rewards, popularity, prestige and love which others can bestow have become less important than self-development and inner growth. For self-actualizers, the gratification comes from the freedom of self management.

President Trump frequently says that he doesn’t plan what he is going to say. It is obvious that his strategy is simply to be authentic. People often complain that he does not comply with the advice of his staff.

·       They have a strong ethical sense.

Although their notions of right and wrong are often unconventional, self-actualizers nonetheless almost always know the ethical implications of their own actions.

Right and wrong (good and evil) are part of every decision the president makes. He seriously considers what will happen next after he makes a decision, and factors that into his decision making

·       They tend to accept democratic values.

Self-actualizers do not respond to individuals on the basis of race, religion, status or gender. They tend to befriend anyone of suitable character, regardless of class, education, political belief, color. As a matter of fact, it often seems as if they are not even aware of these differences, which are for the average person so obvious and important. 

President Trump is as likely to exhibit the same personal respect for his chauffeur or secretary that he does for construction workers or CEOs. The union workers who build the Trump construction projects are on a first-name, friendly basis with the man who pays for the project.

“I guess I didn’t notice.”

By Samuel Orrin Sewell

Many years ago I leaned a very important life skill from a precious, petite little blonde five year old girl. I was a guest in the home and I was talking to Julie’s grandmother when the phone rang. It was Julie calling to ask if she could bring a friend home to play after school. Grandma said yes, and a few minutes later Julie came walking up the front sidewalk holding hands with a little black girl.

Grandma didn’t gasp at the sight but she did say, “Oh my gosh, it’s a colored child.” Julie and her friend played for about two hours, and Grandma was nice about it, fixing treats and drinks for Julie and her little guest.

It had been arranged that the little black girl’s mother would pick her up at 5 PM. Julie and her friend held hands and skipped down the front sidewalk to deliver her guest to the waiting mother. 

When Julie came into the kitchen Grandma pulled Julie up on her lap and asked, “Why didn’t you tell Grandma that your little friend was colored?” Julie looked confused for a second or two and then replied, “I guess I didn’t notice.”

·       They tend to identify with all of mankind.

The concerns that self-actualizers have for other people extend not only only to their friends and family, but also to all people in all cultures throughout the world. Their feelings of compassionate brotherhood extend also to individuals who are aggressive, inconsiderate, or otherwise foolish. Self-actualizers have a genuine desire to help the human race.

President Trump consistently shows a universality of concern for all people. It should be no surprise that he advocates for all Americans. That is why employment, economy, education and other advancements are available to all genders and ethnic groups under his administration. Do you remember that he did not follow the advice of his military leaders and refused to authorize the strike on Iranian military because 150 people would be killed?

·       They exhibit spontaneity, simplicity and naturalness.

Self-actualizers tend to be true to their feelings; they express what they are experiencing. They do not hide behind a mask, and do not act in accordance with social roles. They are true to themselves, speaking candidly and authentically.

Gee, it’s obvious that President Trump fits this description given by Maslow. One of the traits that makes him so popular with voters is that he is “authentic.”

We have mentioned only some of the traits confirming President Trump as a self-actualized person. However, let it suffice to observe that Donald Trump is a brilliant man with a healthy personality. It should be pointed out that “self-actualizing” people are not what most human resources departments are seeking. Most executives want employees who will follow the manual and fit into the corporate culture. That does not describe Donald Trump. 

Maybe the voters of America share some of the same biases as executives. Perhaps the very type of leadership our country needs at this point in history is a rebel genius with self-actualized traits. Lord knows we have tried enough of the other kind of leader.

1.       COMMENT

  October 8, 2016

Triple Nine Society cutoff is 146 and above on SD15 tests i.e. beyond 3 standard deviations above the mean. Trump has said he's been tested around 155, and that sounds reasonable to me. But he puts his ability to work much more effectively than most people with a high IQ, or most people at schools as selective as Wharton.

Trump may be a genius, but personality is more important.

The most well-known high IQ society is Mensa. To join Mensa one must score in the top 2% of a standardized IQ test. That really isn’t all that outstanding. One out of 50 people have IQs high enough to join Mensa. 

Numerical IQ scores are not an accurate indicator of intelligence. For instance a score of 72 on the U.S. Navy GCT test is about equal to score of 150 on the WAIS (Wechsler Adult Intelligence Scale.) Percentile IQ scores are a more informative measurement.

Back during the 2004 presidential election I wrote an article that shook up the major news networks and the New York Times. I was able to document that George Bush had a higher IQ score and better grades than John Kerry. That research was fully documented. I am a life member of Mensa, and I am a psychotherapist as well as being a gifted youth coordinator, so I have a credible background for evaluating Intelligence Quotients., even though my opinions are speculative. While did not find documentation of President’s Trump’s IQ, I have a keen eye for evaluating gifted people with similar traits, and my evaluations are nearly always very close to accurate even though they are speculative. 

Please keep in mind that IQ is a measure of intellect, not character. I commented on President’s Trump’s character in the comments above concerning self actualized behavior

Donald Trump graduated from the Wharton School at the University of Pennsylvania in 1968, with a Bachelor of Science degree in economics and anthropology. Mensa does not accept SAT scores from after 1994. However Mr Trump was a student at Wharton when it was possible to derive an accurate IQ score from known SAT scores.  Given the usual requirements for admission to a top school like Wharton, I estimate that Mr. Trump has an IQ well into the 150 range.

The standard description of this level of intelligence is “Genius - Exceptional intellectual ability and capable of looking beyond known facts.” However, the percentile rating is more revealing than the raw score. A 150s IQ ranks high into the 99.9^th percentile. That means that Donald Trump is likely smarter than 99.9 percent (that is one in 1000) of the people on planet earth. Not only does Trump qualify for membership in Mensa but he could probably join the Triple Nine Society.

People with this kind of intellectual ability can do things with their minds that can’t even be described to ordinary people. Remember that quote from the above paragraph, “capable of looking beyond known facts?” These highly intelligent minds process and organize data into uniquely distinctive solutions and insights, and the gifted individual is not even consciously aware of the process. Brilliant people like President Trump experience those cartoon light bulbs going on over their heads on a regular basis. I would not be surprised if Mr Trump’s IQ actually measures significantly higher than the estimate mentioned above.

Enough about how smart Mr. Trump is. I actually was motivated to write this article because of the personality traits that are revealed in President Trump’s behavior. His character traits are every bit as fascinating and foretelling of success in his endeavors as his intellect. It is a rare and valuable gift to find a leader blessed with both.

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