Personalizing the presidency: Dilma Rousseff and a study of leadership personalities in Brazilian foreign policy

Burin, Tamiris; Ribeiro, Pedro Feliú

doi:10.1590/0034-7329202100108

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Article • Rev. bras. polít. int 64 (1) • 2021 • https://doi.org/10.1590/0034-7329202100108 copy

Personalizing the presidency: Dilma Rousseff and a study of leadership personalities in Brazilian foreign policy

Authorship SCIMAGO INSTITUTIONS RANKINGS

Abstract

Many important studies associate the presidential profile of Dilma Rousseff to the loss of domestic density and reach of Brazil’s foreign policy, a perspective not yet confirmed by psychological mechanisms of leadership behavior in foreign policy. We offer a contribution by exploring the Leadership Trait Analysis framework with which personality concepts and comparisons between Brazilian presidents are examined. Our main findings reveal that Rousseff has leadership traits in close proximity to the average of Brazilian presidents, although her distinctions on “respecting constrains” and “focusing on causes” style mirror much of the impressions raised by the literature over her presidency.

Keywords:
Dilma Rousseff; Foreign Policy; Leadership Trait Analysis; Brazil

Brazilian Leaders	Interviews	Responses	Words
Michel Temer (2016-2018)	43	434	95.331
Dilma Rousseff (2011-2016)	151	914	251.799
Lula da Silva (2003-2010)	498	3.702	931.138
F. H. Cardoso (1995-2002)	36	430	95.165
Itamar Franco (1992-1994)	8	59	15.757
Collor de Melo (1990-1992)	47	300	70.374
José Sarney (1985-1989)	14	93	22.627
Total	797	5.932	1.482.191

Traits	Description	Effects in foreign policy guidelines
Belief in the ability to control events	Perception of control and influence under the political environment.	Challengers Intends on defying or decisive positions, mostly risk takers and less committed to international standards.
Need for power	Emphasis on preserving or building one’s own political legacy.	Respecters Stays open to compromise, cautious of potential payoffs and respecters of international commitments.
Conceptual complexity	Tendency to distinguish the complexity of political contexts and events.	Closed to information Perceives binary frames of action or diplomatic exits and more likely to persuades others to act.
Self-confidence	Belief in self-importance and experience in dealing with the politics.	Open to information Recognizes non traditional alternatives and flexible or reversible decisions.
In-group bias	Tendency to group maintenance, estimating their country as superior.	Focus on causes/problem Engages in positions based on causes or a particular set of goals for policy achievements, even if isolated.
Distrust of others	Suspicion of and aggressiveness to domestic and international opposition.	Focus on relationships Willing to assume positions of mediator of crises and conflicts, seek to monitor supports and place themselves as actors able to build consensus.
Task orientation	Focus on own principles, goals and problem solving.

Traits	6 leaders	J. Sarney	F. Collor	I. Franco	F.H.C.	Lula da Silva	M. Temer
BACE	4.62^* * p<0.05.	0.01	1.63	4.76^* * p<0.05.	0.04	5.21^* * p<0.05.	25.3^* ***** p<0.001,
PWR	13.0^* ***** p<0.001,	10.1^ p<0.01,	6.79^ p<0.01,	0.35	8.26^ p<0.01,	9.22^ p<0.01,	5.65^* * p<0.05.
CC	0.31	6.8^ p<0.01,	6.86^ p<0.01,	0.25	18.6^* ***** p<0.001,	0.59	1.01
SC	0.34	0.75	0.20	8.61^ p<0.01,	1.45	1.59	0.34
IGB	0.42	0.05	0.38	0.48	2.79	1.22	0.55
DIS	1.18	1.41	12.4^* ***** p<0.001,	0.77	1.29	5.86^* * p<0.05.	3.37
TASK	24.4^* ***** p<0.001,	1.14	0.52	6.05^* * p<0.05.	9.55^ p<0.01,	17.2^* ***** p<0.001,	54.6^* ***** p<0.001,
	564	13	47	8	31	423	42

Centro de Estudos Globais da Universidade de Brasília Centro de Estudos Globais, Instituto de Relações Internacionais, Universidade de Brasília, Campus Universitário Darcy Ribeiro, Brasília - DF - 70910-900 - Brazil, Tel.: + 55 61 31073651 - Brasília - DF - Brazil
E-mail: rbpi@unb.br

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