Language Use and Personality during Crises: Analyses of Mayor Rudolph Giuliani's Press Conferences

Abstract

During his years as mayor of New York City, Rudolph Giuliani was perceived as undergoing changes in personality as a result of a number of personal crises and, later, the terrorist attacks on the World Trade Center on September 11, 2001. One method by which to study individual differences is to explore the natural use of language of an individual. Giuliani's use of language was measured from 35 of his press conferences between his election in 1993 and late 2001. Significant changes in his linguistic style were found in the ways he identified with others, expressed emotions, and exhibited cognitive complexity. Implications for using an analysis of linguistic styles to understand personality are discussed.