Kamala Harris 2024

The Political Personality of 2024

Democratic Presidential Nominee

Kamala Harris

U.S. senator Kamala Harris announced her candidacy for president on January 21, 2019 and withdrew from the race on December 3, 2019, prior to the first-in-the-nation Iowa caucuses and New Hampshire primary. She endorsed former vice president Joe Biden for president on March 8, 2020. On August 11, 2020, Democratic presidential nominee Biden announced his selection of Harris as his vice-presidential running mate in the 2020 presidential election. On July 21, 2024, President Biden abandoned his 2024 reelection bid for president and endorsed Vice President Harris for the Democratic presidential nomination.

Research paper

The Personality Profile and Leadership Style of U.S. Vice President and 2024 Democratic Presidential Nominee Kamala Harris. Unit for the Study of Personality in Politics, St. John’s University/College of St. Benedict, November 5, 2024. Abstract and link for full-text (32 pages; PDF) download at Digital Commons: https://digitalcommons.csbsju.edu/psychology_pubs/146/

Abstract

Kamala Harris’s primary personality patterns were found to be Outgoing/congenial and Dominant/asserting, supplemented by secondary Reticent/circumspect and Ambitious/confident patterns and a subsidiary Accommodating/cooperative tendency.

Outgoing individuals are cordial and strive to be popular with others. Dominant individuals enjoy the power to direct others and to evoke compliance and respect. Reticent individuals are circumspect, risk averse personalities sensitive to criticism. Ambitious individuals are socially poised and project self-confidence. Accommodating personalities are inclined to act in a cooperative, conciliatory manner.

In summary, Harris’s personality composite can be characterized as a guardedly dominant extravert — guarded by virtue of a substantial degree of circumspection infused in her basic Outgoing–Dominant personality composite.

Harris’s major personality strength as a chief executive is her confident, outgoing assertiveness. Her major personality-based limitation (rooted in an outgoing tendency operating in concert with low conscientiousness) is likely to be insufficient attention to detail, a diminished capacity for sustained focus, and occasional lapses in emotional restraint. She could potentially be hampered by apprehension or unease in high-stakes public settings, rooted in a secondary reticent pattern.

The Personality Profile of Vice President Kamala Harris in Office

August 3, 2024

A psychological analysis of U.S. vice president Kamala Harris — presumptive Democratic vice-presidential nominee in the 2024 U.S. presidential election — by Noelia Maldonado-Garcia, Sierra Joseph, and Aubrey Immelman, Ph.D., at the Unit for the Study of Personality in Politics revealed that Vice President Harris’s primary personality pattern during her time in office has been Dominant/asserting and Ambitious/confident, complemented by secondary Outgoing/congenial and Accommodating/cooperative patterns and subsidiary Reticent/circumspect features.

Presidential Electability Index range: 10–23

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Abstract

The poster presents the results of an analysis of the personality of U.S. vice president Kamala during her time in office, from the conceptual perspective of personologist Theodore Millon.

Psychodiagnostically relevant data about Harris were collected from biographical sources and media reports and synthesized into a personality profile using the Millon Inventory of Diagnostic Criteria (MIDC), which yields 34 normal and maladaptive personality classifications congruent with DSM-III-R, DSM-IV, and DSM-5-TR.

The personality profile yielded by the MIDC was analyzed in accordance with interpretive guidelines provided in the MIDC and Millon Index of Personality Styles manuals.

Harris’s primary personality patterns were found to be Dominant/asserting and Ambitious/confident, complemented by secondary Outgoing/congenial and Accommodating/cooperative patterns and subsidiary Reticent/circumspect features. Notably, she scored low on conscientiousness.

A previous study, conducted prior to the 2020 election, found Harris’s primary personality pattern to be Dominant/asserting, complemented by secondary Ambitious/confident and Outgoing/congenial patterns and subsidiary Accommodating/cooperative features.

Dominant individuals enjoy the power to direct others and to evoke obedience and respect; they are tough and unsentimental and often make effective leaders. Ambitious individuals are bold, competitive, and self-assured; they easily assume leadership roles, expect others to recognize their special qualities, and sometimes act as though entitled. Outgoing individuals thrive on being the center of social events and have confidence in their social abilities, though they may come across as inauthentic and shallow in their thinking and reasoning. Reticent individuals tend to be socially inhibited, value privacy, and are sensitive to criticism.

Harris’s major personality strength in a political role is her outgoing, confident assertiveness, which conveys personal charisma. Her major personality-based shortcoming (due to a combination of high extraversion and low conscientiousness) is a predisposition to superficial thinking, flightiness in reasoning, and speaking in impressionistic generalities.

As an extraverted, relatively unconscientious leader, Harris is expected to be more relationship- than task-oriented, meaning she is unlikely to excel in crafting public policy, which creates the need to surround herself with competent advisors to fulfill that role.

As a candidate for high-level public office, the picture of Harris emerging from the present at-a-distance psychological evaluation is that of a politician who is quite poised, engaging, and charming in supportive environments such as town halls and rallies with friendly audiences, but who may feel apprehensive or insecure in settings where she expects to be challenged or confronted by tough or probing questioning, such as debates and interviews. Under those conditions, she may become less articulate and prone to using laughter to diffuse the tension or redirect the conversation, which may be publicly perceived as a lack of seriousness or gravitas.

Noelia Maldonado-Garcia and Sierra Joseph with their poster, “The Personality Profile of Vice President Kamala Harris in Office,” presented at the Summer Research Celebration, College of St. Benedict, August 1, 2024.

Projecting the Winner of the 2024 Presidential Election

The Presidential Electability Index

Presidential Electability Index (political impact) scores
for selected 2024 U.S. presidential candidates

July 24, 2024

The Millon Inventory of Diagnostic Criteria-based Presidential Electability Index (PEI), which employs publicly perceived candidate personality traits as the predictor variable has accurately predicted — before Super Tuesday — the outcome of every presidential election from 1996 to 2016. The 2020 projection was withdrawn prior to the election because of the unusual, pandemic-related circumstances (including unconventional voting procedures such as unsolicited mail-in ballots) under which the election was conducted.

On August 14, 2023 the Unit for the Study of Personality in Politics announced that the PEI projected Donald Trump would defeat incumbent president Joe Biden in the 2024 presidential election. The PEI also projects that Trump would defeat presumptive Democratic nominee Kamala Harris.

Donald Trump
Presidential Electability Index
Range: 64–84

PEI = 64–84 (74 ±10); dysfunctionality adjusted = 45*

Scale:	1A	1B	2	3	4	5A	5B	6	7	8
Lower limit:	22	14	22	20	0	0	2	0	0	0
Upper limit:	28	22	30	26	1	0	9	3	0	1
Adjusted:	15	14	15	15	0	0	2	0	0	0

Lower limit PEI: [Extraversion (scale 3) = 20] + [Narcissism (scale 2) = 22] + [Dominance (scale 1A) = 22] – [Introversion (scale 8) = 0] – [Conscientiousness (scale 6) = 0] = 64 – 0 = 64

Upper limit PEI: [Extraversion (scale 3) = 26] + [Narcissism (scale 2) = 30] + [Dominance (scale 1A) = 28] – [Introversion (scale 8) = 0] – [Conscientiousness (scale 6) = (3 – 3) = 0] = 84 – 0 = 84

* Dysfunctionality adjusted PEI = [Extraversion (scale 3) = (20 – 5) = 15] + [Narcissism (scale 2) = (22 – 7) = 15] + [Dominance (scale 1A) = (22 – 7) = 15] – [Introversion (scale 8) = 0] – [Conscientiousness (scale 6) = 0] = 45 – 0 = 45

Kamala Harris
Presidential Electability Index
Range: 18–31

PEI = 18–31 (24.5 ±6.5)

Scale:	1A	1B	2	3	4	5A	5B	6	7	8
Lower bound:	7	0	4	7	3	0	1	1	5	0
Upper bound:	11	1	7	13	5	0	2	3	10	0

Lower limit PEI = [Extraversion (scale 3) = 7] + [Narcissism (scale 2) = 4] + [Dominance (scale 1A) = 7] – [Introversion (scale 8) = 0] – [Conscientiousness (scale 6) = (1 – 1) = 0] = 18 – 0 = 18

Upper limit PEI = [Extraversion (scale 3) = 13] + [Narcissism (scale 2) = 7] + [Dominance (scale 1A) = 11] – [Introversion (scale 8) = 0] – [Conscientiousness (scale 6) = (3 – 3) = 0] = 31 – 0 = 31

New York Times interactive: Rating 10 Democrats in matchups with Trump (July 22, 2024)

Projecting the Winner of the 2024 Presidential Election: The Presidential Electability Index
August 12, 2024

Donald Trump
Presidential Electability Index
Range: 64–84 (74 ±10); dysfunctionality adjusted 45
Joe Biden
Presidential Electability Index
Range: 21–33 (27 ±6)
Kamala Harris
https://digitalcommons.csbsju.edu/psychology_pubs/146
Range: 18–31 (24.5 ±6.5)

Earlier Study

The Political Personality of 2020

Democratic Vice-Presidential Nominee

Kamala Harris

August 30, 2020

A psychological analysis of U.S. senator Kamala Harris — Democratic vice-presidential nominee in the 2020 U.S. presidential election — by Anne Marie Griebie, Yitao Zhang, and Aubrey Immelman, Ph.D., at the Unit for the Study of Personality in Politics revealed that Sen. Harris’s primary personality pattern is Dominant/asserting, complemented by secondary Ambitious/confident and Outgoing/congenial patterns. Typologically, Harris may be characterized as a high-dominance charismatic.

Presidential Electability Index range: 22-36

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Abstract

The poster presents the results of an indirect assessment of the personality of U.S. senator Kamala Harris, Democratic vice-presidential nominee in the 2020 U.S. presidential election, from the conceptual perspective of personologist Theodore Millon.

The personality profile yielded by the MIDC was analyzed in accordance with interpretive guidelines provided in the MIDC and Millon Index of Personality Styles manuals. Harris’s primary personality pattern was found to be Dominant/asserting (a measure of aggressiveness), complemented by secondary Ambitious/confident and Outgoing/congenial patterns — measures of narcissism and extraversion, respectively.

In summary, Harris’s personality composite can be characterized as high-dominance charismatic — charismatic by virtue of the elevated Ambitious–Outgoing amalgam.

Dominant individuals enjoy the power to direct others and to evoke obedience and respect; they are tough and unsentimental and often make effective leaders. Ambitious individuals are bold, competitive, and self-assured; they easily assume leadership roles, expect others to recognize their special qualities, and sometimes act as though entitled. Outgoing individuals are dramatic attention-getters who thrive on being the center of social events, go out of their way to be popular with others, and have confidence in their social abilities.

Harris’s major personality strengths in a political role are her confident assertiveness and personal charisma. Her major personality-based shortcoming is likely to be a predisposition to occasional lapses in emotional restraint or self-discipline.

Research paper

The Political Personality of 2020 Democratic Vice-Presidential Nominee Kamala Harris. Working paper, Unit for the Study of Personality in Politics, St. John’s University/College of St. Benedict, September 2020. Abstract and link for full-text (27 pages; PDF) download at Digital Commons: https://digitalcommons.csbsju.edu/psychology_pubs/131/

Annie Griebie concisely explains the conceptual framework, methodology, and results of the assessment of Sen. Kamala Harris’s personality and leadership style. (9:53)

Follow-Up Pilot Study 1 — Vice President Kamala Harris in Office

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Elise Vomacka presents her research poster on “The Personality Profile of U.S. Vice President Kamala Harris in Office” at the Minnesota Undergraduate Psychology Conference, Macalester College, St. Paul, Minnesota, April 30, 2022.

Follow-Up Pilot Study 2 — Vice President Kamala Harris in Office

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Kenedi-Alexis Mullings presents her research poster on “The Personality Profile of U.S. Vice President Kamala Harris in Office” at the Minnesota Undergraduate Psychology Conference, Bethel University, Arden Hills, Minnesota, April 29, 2023.

Biden’s choice of Kamala Harris as VP candidate ‘unprecedented’ (William Roberts, Al Jazeera, Aug. 11, 2020) — Biden is an outgoing and accommodating personality, which should allow him to mesh well with Harris, said Aubrey Immelman, a professor of political psychology at the College of Saint Benedict and Saint John’s University in Minnesota. His deliberation and thoughtful process suggest Biden was able to develop “personal chemistry” with her. It is quite likely as well that Harris’s friendship with Biden’s late son Beau also helped. And she may well have been a consensus pick among his close advisers, including his wife Jill Biden, as well as Barack and Michelle Obama. “Metaphorically, Biden is led more by ‘heart’ than by ‘head’,” Immelman told Al Jazeera.

As VP Debate Nears, Experts View Kamala Harris’s Personality

John Martin-Joy M.D.

October 5, 2020

Excerpts

In the vice-presidential debate on October 7, Harris will go up against sitting vice president Mike Pence [link added].

Yet in contrast to Donald Trump [link added], little has been said about Kamala Harris by mental health professionals. What is known about her personality? …

In the world of personality assessment, psychologist Aubrey Immelman of the College of St. Benedict and St. John’s University has been researching and rating candidates for decades. Drawing on the work of Theodore Millon [link added], Immelman and his group have developed a personality metric that uses open sources and empirical ratings to assess, at a distance, the personality of major presidential candidates, “as publicly perceived.” …

How does Harris look to Immelman?

In her empirical ratings, Harris scored highly on the traits of “dominant,” “narcissistic/confident,” and “outgoing.” This assertive and charismatic pattern, Immelman predicted last year [link added], made Harris, with Biden, one of the top two most electable candidates then running in the Democratic primary. (Outgoing, dominant candidates often do better than conscientious/dutiful ones, who may have trouble “reading” others and are less happy while working the room.)

As Biden’s ratings show, he too is outgoing. But he emerges as more of an accommodator or conciliator than Harris. How would the two get along in office?

In a recent e-mail interview, Immelman told me that if Harris is elected as vice president, Harris might well outshine Biden. More ambitious than he is, Harris “may play a prominent role” in any Biden administration. Indeed, Immelman ventures to suggest that the “cooperative and loyal” Biden is better suited to being vice president than president. …

What about the upcoming vice presidential debate between Harris and Mike Pence? Immelman cautions that he had less information to work with in assessing Pence. But the vice president’s ratings show high scores on conscientiousness.

Pence’s major asset in the debate, Immelman predicts, “will be his attention to detail” in articulating and supporting Trump’s positions.

A conscientious style may be helpful in office, Immelman said, especially in the executive branch. But it is not so helpful in campaigning. A conscientious personality can come across as rigid, preachy, and even boring—a potential hazard for the vice president on October 7.

“I think Harris will have the edge,” Immelman told me. In his view, Harris’s gregarious personality, confidence, and dominance are likely to throw the cautious Pence off guard. This will be especially true if the debate is “free-wheeling” and “less structured” in format.

Despite his findings, Immelman acknowledges some uncertainty. “The area that gives me the most pause,” said Immelman, is that Harris “is somewhat lacking in ‘gravitas’ – a shortcoming not evident in Pence. Harris sometimes has a slightly unserious tone, even when addressing serious matters.” For Immelman, this makes for incongruence between the content of what Harris says and the facial expression and body language she employs when she says it.

Full report at Psychology Today

What Kind of Political Leader is Kamala Harris?

By Philipp Söker

August 17, 2020

Excerpts

[…]

The ‘leadership trait analysis’ developed by Margaret G. Hermann presents seven characteristics that explain and predict leaders’ domestic and foreign policy-making. This method, which comes from political psychology, uses an ‘at-a-distance’ technique. Computer-assisted analysis of an individual’s speeches and interviews with respect to a ‘norming group’ of other Western heads of government determines various leadership characteristics and assesses a specific political leadership style. The Democratic V.P. nominee’s style can indicate how she will manage crises.

[…]

Kamala Harris has a collegial, directive leadership style. ‘Collegiality’ suggests openness to group-wide mediation efforts and consensus-building to manage crises. A collegial leader acknowledges constraints, takes into account information gained during the decision-making process and cultivates relationships. Harris’s ‘directive’ style suggests that when confronted with real political constraints, she sometimes challenges constraints in order to improve her position vis-à-vis third parties.

With her context-dependent focus on relationships, Kamala Harris can be expected to approach crises pragmatically. She is likely to counter growing societal polarisation by reconciling the needs of her electorate with those of the Republican camp. Harris’s management style suggests that she approaches complex crises in a practical, goal-oriented manner and would work domestically and internationally for joint responsibility and shared accountability. During the hearings about a possible seat on the Supreme Court for Brett M. Kavanaugh, Harris demonstrated political instinct and confidence in her ability to influence decision-making.

Joe Biden also has a collegial, directive leadership style. Both candidates strive to return to the status quo under President Barack Obama – with improvements in selected policy areas that include Harris’s new take on police reform. She differs from Biden by more than a standard deviation in only one of seven leadership characteristics [see Note]. Harris’s significantly lower ‘conceptual complexity’ means that she can be expected to have difficulty in fully understanding ambiguity. Such leaders tend to trust their intuition and are likely to choose the first option.

[…]

Philipp Söker is lecturer at the Institut for Political Science (IPW) at the University of Heidelberg.

Note: Margaret G. Hermann’s seven dimensions of personality-based leadership traits are (1) belief in the ability to control events, (2) need for power, (3) self-confidence, (4) conceptual complexity, (5) task/problem (vs. relationship) focus, (6) ingroup bias, and (7) distrust of others.

Related interest

Formal Announcement of 2020 Presidential Candidacy

Kamala Harris declares candidacy, evoking King and joining diverse field (Astead W. Herndon, New York Times, Jan. 21, 2019) — Senator Kamala Harris, the California Democrat and barrier-breaking prosecutor who became the second black woman to serve in the United States Senate, declared her candidacy for president on Monday, joining an increasingly crowded and diverse field in what promises to be a wide-open nomination process. …

U.S. Sen. Kamala Harris officially announces 2020 presidential bid

Sen. Kamala Harris takes the stage at about 57:00

Notable media report

How Kamala Harris’s campaign unraveled (Jonathan Martin, Astead W. Herndon, and Alexander Burns, New York Times, Nov. 29, 2019) — [T]here is only one candidate who rocketed to the top tier and then plummeted in early state polls to the low single digits: Ms. Harris. … It was her abundant political skills — strong on the stump, a warm manner with voters and ferocity with the opposition that seemed to spell trouble for Mr. Trump — that convinced many Democrats of Ms. Harris’s potential. … Some of Ms. Harris’s aides said she had better instincts than her brain trust. One official recalled that during the flight from Oakland to Iowa on the night she announced her campaign in January, Ms. Harris told senior members of her campaign team that she wanted to “go stealth.” However, instead of pursuing retail politics and introducing herself to voters in more intimate settings, as Ms. Harris suggested she preferred, her senior aides determined it was more important to cement herself in the top tier and play for “big, television moments,” as one put it. … The organizational unsteadiness of Ms. Harris’s campaign reflects a longtime personal trait, according to allies: she is a candidate who seeks input from a stable of advisers, but her personal political convictions can be unclear. …