Psychologist's Point Of View About Survivor
Credit: CBS.com
We spoke with a social psychologist, Dr. Gene Ondrusek, about the Survivor series and its potential effect on the survivors and the viewing audience. Here's what he had to say:
Dr. Gene Ondrusek is chief psychologist for the Center for Executive Health at Scripps Hospital in La Jolla, California. A published author of numerous texts, he is also consulting psychologist for Survivor.
Take a look around you, and try and decide what creates personal success in this increasingly complex and rapidly changing world.
Is it still the mantra that your parents taught you? Work hard. Nose to the grindstone. Follow the rules.
Or is it more cynical than that? It's not what you know, it's who you know that counts. Get them before they get you.
Well, research overwhelmingly confirms that success in the work-a-day jungle depends more on your interpersonal skills and ability to get along with people than on your technical competence.
But how often do we get a chance to test our mettle in the social cauldron and find out for sure if we actually work and play well with others?
Surviving the Social Cauldron
Our castaways have boldly stepped forward to do just that. And a lot is riding on their choice to place themselves in a hostile physical environment, where bonding to survive and cooperating to flourish is only a part of the package. The ultimate survivor will most likely possess the ability to combine leadership skills with being a team player. To rise to the top, they will have to demonstrate conflict management without alienating or appearing aloof and detached. They will have to care. The capacity to master the subtle social politics, to assert without offending, and to adapt to changing dynamics will be critical.
Most importantly, the winner will embody a hard to define quality which makes others want to see them succeed and prosper. Others must be made to feel good knowing that they helped this individual prevail, even as they failed. We know that if your team wants you to succeed, it is more likely that you will. We all want to enjoy helping a deserving person rise to receive just recognition. We like winners who we want to win. And in an ever more individualistic society, the opportunity to participate in this is a welcome one, even if most of us have to sit back while others display their lives for all to see and judge.
