Obama the compassionate
Posted by Trix on Jan 22 2009
As President Obama begins his presidency, I wonder if the successes of his campaign and inaugural address are built on his understanding as a community organizer, that shifting power away from an individual, and onto many people builds strong, healthy and compassionate relationships – between citizens and government, between political parties and between nations of the world.
A recent study done by a team of Psychologists at the University of California, published in Psychological Science examined the influence of personal sense of power on the desire to help others. The researchers conducted the study by pairing individuals with partners who told them stories of emotional suffering and pain, and measured various responses to those interactions.
The findings of the study suggest that those who have a higher sense of power feel less compassionate and distressed when others are suffering compared to individuals who have a lower sense of power. The study also found that “high-power individuals reported a weaker desire to get to know and establish a friendship with their partner. In other words, powerful people were not motivated to establish a relationship with distressed individuals. This idea is supported by the fact that the distressed participants reported less of a social connection with high-power partners compared to low-power partners.”
I would be curious to see Obama’s results on the questionnaire to see how he rated himself on self-perception of power. From his campaign to his first days in office, his speeches have stated that it is up to all of us to use our individual power to get the country back on its feet. It is perhaps his recognition that the power on which to build our country’s success is spread out amongst everyone, and not solely in his hands, that makes us feel so connected to him.
So if we all feel so connected to our President and he is compassionate to all of our situations, then we’re at a good starting point. But at the same time, in this joyous new beginning, we must remember that he’s not the only one with influence over the direction of this country. Regardless of where Obama falls, our current economic policy paradigm is built on the idea of corporate power. And the results of the study match reality – people don’t feel connected to those institutions that supply their retirement, health insurance and salaries. What if Obama took his understanding of power and helped Americans in these economic challenges, not by helping corporations who fundamentally don’t share his view of power, but by investing in build bonds on the proximate level – supporting local businesses, communities, friends and families. If together we prioritize strengthening local alliances and distributing power equally, then we can build the compassionate relationships necessary to rely on each other to live a good life, regardless of what happens to corporations.
(inspired by No Impact Man)