DJT's cabinet: Why it could contain so many alleged sexual predators [View all]

Jennifer L. Berdahl, Professor of Sociology, University of British Columbia

Research may help explain why so many of Trump’s cabinet picks are accused of sexual abuse — the behaviour aligns with the ideology of male dominance integral to the world view of Trump and his voters.

People who voted for Trump had a variety of reasons for their choice, but one thing they seemingly have in common is the embrace of a cultural ideology known as hegemonic masculinity. It legitimizes the dominance of a ruling group of men over women and over marginalized men (for example, those who are poor, working class, immigrant, racialized, queer or disabled).

This ideology celebrates characteristics associated with men in power, which in the U.S. includes whiteness, wealth and virility. Most of all, however, this ideology reveres dominance, reviles “weakness” (doubt, empathy or emotions other than pride and anger) and embraces being ruthless (crushing the competition by any means necessary).

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Not only are psychopaths more common in such cultures — both perhaps because they are drawn to them and because they help shape them — but psychopaths fit perfectly with the characteristics of hegemonic masculinity so valued and rewarded in these cultures: a lack of empathy and remorse, and a penchant for ruthless ambition.

And so we find ourselves in the current predicament, with an incoming U.S. president and his potential cabinet sharing a track record of sexual abuse allegations and cover-ups. The individual and organizational characteristics that accompany such behaviour don’t bode well for the world.

https://theconversation.com/a-trump-cabinet-full-of-alleged-sexual-predators-heres-why-it-makes-perfect-sense-244374Research