There was a formal study conducted from 2005-2008 that asked people to list 3 words describing what a leader had positively contributed to their lives. The top answers were trust , compassion , stability and hope . Since the study had been completed for business purposes, the researchers were surprised by the results. They had expected words like vision, purpose and wisdom to top the list, but what people seem to appreciate most is a stronger emotional commitment from their leaders. Why is this? And where does this "need" for emotional availability come from? Well, if you ask me--and you didn't--I would say the answer is based in our Paleoithic past. There is a part of me that observes the world the way a cavedweller might have. I call this part "Cavegirl Claire." Claire's story started about 70,000 years ago in a tribe lead by a cave dweller called Jerome. Jerome was a fair and confident leader, but he was not the only person with important respon...
Explaining fandom from an evolutionary point of view.