Political Tension! Lets build bridges not walls!

It looks like we are in for another round of politically charged arguments and potential fall outs! Before you get involved, read this...

You can’t deny that it has been an eventful year, especially on the political front. In 2016, we saw the UK vote to leave the EU and Donald Trump win the US Presidential election by declaring he would, among other things, build a wall. As Trump was inaugurated into the most senior US position and is already implementing new policies, and taking some incredibly bold steps, it is safe to say there is currently a sense of political uncertainty, not to mention a lot of divided opinions. We’re seeing how these divisions can damage relationships and result in negative feelings towards those who didn’t agree with your vote. But it’s time to build some bridges, and that can only be done by trying to understand one another.

As CEO of Ensize UK, I have considered below, how our individual behaviour and personal values impact how we respond to the political landscape and those around us.

Recently, 44th US president, Barack Obama, packed up his things to make way in the White House for 45th president, Donald Trump. If you spark up a conversation with anyone about Obama and Trump, regardless of their political leanings, you can guarantee that they will tell you that these two men are polar opposites. Chalk and cheese. Nothing alike. However, despite their clear differences in terms of political policy and personality, they do share several behavioural attributes that have guided how they communicate and make political decisions.

Some behavioural profiling systems categorise people’s characteristics according to colour, so that we can easily see what traits are most prominent. If we take the Ensize model, which is partially based on an updated and modern 21st century version of William Moulton Marston’s DISC assessment, for our analysis of Obama and Trump, they could fall into four possible categories: dominance (red), influence (yellow), steadiness (green) and/or compliance (blue). Everyone has a ranging score across all four sectors, with some areas being more prominent than others, determining behaviour and communication style.

Cheese and crackers, not chalk and cheese

In the case of Trump and Obama, both are clearly dominant, influential leaders, a display of both red and yellow traits. They are both outgoing and sometimes outspoken, with the courage and drive to make and implement sometimes controversial decisions, typically traits of high red profiles. The high yellow score also makes them both very charismatic. This goes to show that there is major common ground between the two.

The differentiation begins with the fact that Obama also displays quite prominent steadiness, or green, behavioural traits. This addition to his profile demonstrates a desire for social inclusion and consideration, which has been apparent in a lot of his political policies. In comparison, Donald Trump shows very few steadiness attributes, so he approaches things from a more egotistical stance, which has often been displayed in recent months.

However, there are many other factors which influence the conduct of Trump, Obama and the voting public. What many behaviour profiling systems fail to acknowledge is that our behaviour is intrinsically linked to our individual values as a human being and what is happening in our life right now. At Ensize UK, we refer to these as a person’s Driving Forces, as they drive our behaviour. They are drawn from the work of Eduard Spranger and are the traits that lie under the surface and directly influence the aspects of our behaviour that are on display for all to see. 

Driving forces

It’s when we compare Trump and Obama’s driving forces that we can see where they really are poles apart. Many would say that Obama was preoccupied throughout his presidency with ethics, morals and a consideration for others, whereas Trump’s behaviour across the campaign trail could easily be described as displaying high power/influence and economical drivers.

So, it is easy to assume that many supporters of either leader would share similar driving forces and behaviours. Sharing driving forces with someone builds rapport, and lead to an increased likelihood that you would support someone in a situation like an election. However, at the heart of what has made the presidency campaign, and the results of Brexit, so emotive, is the fact that when there is a mismatch of driving forces people feel disengaged or even enraged.

Political fall-out

How people react to these feelings of frustration is also dependent upon their core behavioural characteristics. For example, people with high scores in dominance are independent and tend to not worry about what other people might think, whereas those with high influence scores, while also being independent, have a sense of optimism and a desire for everyone to be happy, despite differing opinions. In comparison, those with higher steadiness foundations may feel surprised or alarmed that others do not share their values, and would consider packing their bags to leave. While people with high compliance traits may not necessarily agree with the outcome, however, their basic behavioural values are founded upon a need for rules and diplomacy, which would lead them to determine that the outcome should be respected.

This difference in fundamental values and behaviour is a hard thing to comprehend, and it’s often this inability to comprehend why people would act a certain way that leads to arguments and protests. When someone challenges our values, the very essence of our identity, it can be very difficult to accept. Realising that we need to take into account the behaviour traits and driving forces of individuals around us is the one thing that can help us to understand one another and to create an environment where we can cohabit and move forward productively.

We cannot make assumptions about why someone voted in the way that they did, or treat them negatively as a result. There is no right or wrong in the subject of behaviour, just differences that we need to understand in order to communicate more effectively. Part of the problem post-Brexit and post-election has been the fact that opposing sides have demonstrated hated of one another, repelled themselves as far away from each other as possible. This goes beyond simple disagreement, and can only be explained as a clash of behavioural values and driving forces.

We are not chalk and cheese. We are not black and white. We are all varying degrees of red, yellow, green and blue, and we must look at what is driving the behaviour of people we live and work with to start and build bridges — let’s leave the walls to the politicians. 

This piece has been written based upon Barack Obama and Donald Trump’s public communications and behaviour, and has not been based upon a formal behavioural profile by Ensize UK.