Connections Between Career Choices and Trauma Survival Styles

Are Specific Industries/Institutions Self-Selecting and Amplifying of Typical Personality Traits?

One of the books which I most highly recommend for everyone is “Healing Developmental Trauma: How Early Trauma Affects Self-Regulation, Self-Image, and the Capacity for Relationships” by Dr Laurence Heller and Dr Aline LaPierre. In the book, the authors postulate five Trauma Survival Styles. These are different sets of “personality traits” or modes of behaviour/ways of attending to world that can emerge due to developmental issues and environmental failures in early life, e.g. childhood trauma or Adverse Childhood Experience. I summarize the main themes of each of these five Survival Styles in my article

Personality Types, Traits, Tests and Chronic Illness

Also, for a summary of the different forms of adverse early experiences, and how they have lasting effects, including on how we manifest in the world as adults, see my article

Adverse Experiences, Stressful Episodes and Chronic Diseases

Intriguingly, for each Survival Style, Heller and LaPierre suggest the types of jobs/professions/careers which folks with that style tend to be most attracted to. Having learned so much about how trauma and "personality types" are related myself, I too have noticed some over-arching generalized correlations with specific coping strategies and professions. Indeed, many times in my previous articles, I have noted how specific industries or institutions have become self-selecting and amplifying of people displaying certain styles, and how in turn, these trauma-selecting and trauma-inducing institutions are now traumatizing the rest of us, e.g.

How to Avoid a Hybrid Orwellian-Huxleyian Dystopia

I've especially noted this in my own original academic career choice - how University professors, as a sweeping generalization, tend to display extreme manifestations of the “Connection” Survival Style. I would go further, and say that the academic system has become so skewed, that it now takes these extreme coping strategies in order to survive and thrive in that specific competitive career/work environment:

The Ebony Tower

Here, we summarize what the book says about some of the links between careers and the different Trauma Survival Styles. Of course, any one person may have none or multiple of these styles too, and these are just sweeping over-arching generalizations no doubt with exceptions galore (but my hypothesis is that the exceptions are likely to find it harder to survive and advance in the the corresponding career). However, as first-pass rules, I do feel their may be something in these ideas and they are very intriguing.

1. Connection

“People with ‘Connection’ issues, because of inadequate sense of self, tend to try and anchor themselves in their roles as scientist, judge, doctor, as when functioning in a well-defined role, they feel comfortable and know what the rules are, while being outside their role can feel frightening.”

2. Attunement

“People with ‘Attunement’ issues, given their propensity to take care of others, are disproportionately represented in service professions such as psychotherapy, nursing and social work: identifying as givers, yet having difficulty attuning to their own needs, over time they can become burned out and bitter.”

3. Trust

“People with ‘Trust’ issues seek power and control, tend to be competitive and believe that getting to the top will satisfy their needs - empire builders in both negative and positive contexts - can be visionaries and dynamic leaders or manipulative and ruthless in achieving their ends.”

4. Autonomy

“People with ‘Autonomy’ issues are often kind and openhearted, but they have difficulty setting limits and establishing boundaries. As a result, they easily feel put upon and secretly resentful. They prize loyalty and are good friends, but they are so focused on avoiding conflict and pleasing others that they are not forthcoming about negative feelings they may have. As such, it is hard to know where one stands with them.”

Although Heller and LaPierre don’t link the Autonomy Style with particular careers. from what they say, it indicates to me that such folks are likely to end up trapped in the lower ranks of jobs where they are told what do and are very closely managed and supervised, such as office work or the civil service.

5. Love-Sexuality

“People with ‘Love-Sexuality’ issues are the winners and doers of the world, the sports heroes, cheerleaders, top actors, however, regardless of how attractive or accomplished they appear, they rarely live up to their own high expectations - since they base their self-esteem on their looks or achievements, their self-worth is conditional: underneath, they feel highly flawed.”

Psychopaths

Heller and LaPierre don’t talk in terms of psychopathy, and we shouldn’t connect their observations of Trauma Survival Style with psychopathy or sociopathy at all. However, yesterday I watched a fascinating podcast with Prof. Kevin Dutton, author of “The Wisdom of Psychopaths”. Prof. Dutton found that specific professions also generally scored higher on a test for psychopathic personality traits. The top ranking careers were:

1. CEOs;

2. lawyers;

3. TV/media;

4. salespeople;

5. surgeons;

6. journalists;

7. the police;

8. the clergy;

9. chefs;

10. civil servants.

Note that Prof. Dutton says that the only reason that politicians don’t appear on the list, is simply because not enough of them filled in the survey to get accurate statistics for that career!