The Top Skill of Successful Predators

Source: Drawing by Katherine Ramsland, Ph.D.

Five years ago, I wrote a post on the need for a standard measure of predatory cunning. We have such devices for psychopathy, criminal responsibility, deviant personalities, and degrees of depravity. But we need to focus on the street smarts of successful predators—what I call their C-IQ. What are its distinctive components?

One element I repeatedly see from my study of this devious group is cognitive flexibility (CF). That is, they can quickly switch between different mental frames and reset their behavior to achieve their goals. As humans, we tend to be creatures of habit, which can lead to rigidity or inertia, but the nimble predator is not encumbered by such mental sets. They’re ready to move into something new if a situation demands it. In short, they have superior decision-making strategies.

How cognitive flexibility aids predators

A woman who was caught in a house when the owner was gone said she’d been jogging nearby and heard the alarm. Concerned, she’d entered to offer aid. But she wasn’t a friend or a neighbor. She’d worn the jogging outfit to support a benign narrative in case her B&E plan went south. When the alarm went off, and the police arrived, she switched to the other role. They couldn’t prove otherwise, so they let her go.

This kind of intelligence isn’t the crystalized type measured with IQ instruments, researchers Laureiro-Martinez and Brusoni tell us. Instead, “set-shifting” is an aspect of fluid intelligence. It’s the interface between free-form and deliberative thinking that allows someone to act on a plan while also considering others. Entrepreneurs are good at this. So are successful predators. They’re either gifted with—or they develop—the ability to view a situation from multiple perspectives. They have several strategies ready to hand. When blocked by an unexpected hurdle, they can problem-solve like a competitive racecar driver to stay in the race.

Some predators also possess the emotional disconnect characteristic of psychopaths. They don’t get bogged down by a commitment to integrity, morality, or truth. When there’s little regard for potential harm to others, it’s easier to compare any number of strategies that will achieve their goals. In fact, CF is instrumental in “cold cognition,” or rational thinking; thus, it aids in manipulating others with no distraction from emotional concerns.

Neuroimaging indicates that the aptitude for CF emerges from a network of brain connections in the frontal and striatal areas. One is related to higher cognitive processes, like decision-making, and the other is linked with motivation, specifically, reward. The greater the CF, say Laureiro-Martinez and Brusoni, the better the decision-making performance, including its pace. The more rapidly such super-thinkers can set-shift into productive courses of action, the more successful they will be.

So, how might we create a C-IQ assessment that includes degrees of CF?

The predators who most mesmerize us certainly display this perplexing resilience. They have a talent for rebounding from setbacks. It derives from their sense of superiority, so narcissism is key. They believe they’re “protected” and that something—perhaps their MacGyver-esque cleverness—will always save them. This gives them the confidence to take risks.

An assessment device for this aptitude would be performance-based. It could involve problem-solving strategies, but we’d have to include an appealing goal. The reward mechanism seems essential to predatory CF. They need a payoff. In essence, a C-IQ assessment instrument must capture the ability to envision and act on diverse goal-oriented strategies that blend the speed of intuitive thinking with the structure of deliberative thinking.

That’s a tall order! But if we can identify how the specific features of this skill work for predators, we’ll be better equipped to devise ways to protect ourselves.

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