# per capita, which professions have the most assholes **URL:** \ **Category:** In My Humble Opinion\ **Created:** [April 8, 2014, 1:45am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/per-capita-which-professions-have-the-most-assholes/685605 "2014-04-08T01:45:55Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 20\ **Page:** 1
**Author:** ![Wesley\_Clark](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/wesley_clark/32/20581_2.png) [@Wesley\_Clark](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Wesley_Clark)\ **Post date:** [April 8, 2014, 1:45am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/per-capita-which-professions-have-the-most-assholes/685605/1 "2014-04-08T01:45:55Z")
Title says it all. I assume security positions (law enforcement, judicial law, military, intelligence) have the most and some of the worst. I don’t know if criminal is considered a class of profession, but that is probably as high if not higher. I’ve heard health care is pretty bad, but I really don’t know. I wonder what has the least. Part of me would assume something humanitarian but I’m sure those fields are full of burnouts, stress and low wages. All of which would lead to assholism. ---
**Author:** ![Orr\_G](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/o/ee59a6/32.png) [@Orr\_G](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Orr_G)\ **Post date:** [April 8, 2014, 1:54am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/per-capita-which-professions-have-the-most-assholes/685605/2 "2014-04-08T01:54:35Z")
Not to be a dick about it, but you might need to define “asshole”. I’ve heard more than once that Day Traders are pretty much all assholes. ---
**Author:** ![Wesley\_Clark](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/wesley_clark/32/20581_2.png) [@Wesley\_Clark](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Wesley_Clark)\ **Post date:** [April 8, 2014, 2:10am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/per-capita-which-professions-have-the-most-assholes/685605/3 "2014-04-08T02:10:32Z")
Verbally/emotionally/physically abusive, bullying behavior (esp towards those considered easy targets), condescending, smug, contemptuous, two faced, malicious plotters, etc. ---
**Author:** ![Eva\_Luna](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/e/e495f1/32.png) [@Eva\_Luna](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Eva_Luna)\ **Post date:** [April 8, 2014, 2:16am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/per-capita-which-professions-have-the-most-assholes/685605/4 "2014-04-08T02:16:13Z")
Investment bankers. With a single known exception, they all think they’re the center of the universe. ---
**Author:** ![Wesley\_Clark](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/wesley_clark/32/20581_2.png) [@Wesley\_Clark](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Wesley_Clark)\ **Post date:** [April 8, 2014, 2:25am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/per-capita-which-professions-have-the-most-assholes/685605/5 "2014-04-08T02:25:55Z")
I hadn’t considered high finance, but I could see that field being full of narcissists. I wonder if fields like beautician are terrible for this. ---
**Author:** ![Carol\_the\_Impaler](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/c/6a8cbe/32.png) [@Carol\_the\_Impaler](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Carol_the_Impaler)\ **Post date:** [April 8, 2014, 2:34am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/per-capita-which-professions-have-the-most-assholes/685605/6 "2014-04-08T02:34:17Z")
> [@Wesley\_Clark](#): > > Verbally/emotionally/physically abusive, bullying behavior (esp towards those considered easy targets), condescending, smug, contemptuous, two faced, malicious plotters, etc. With this as the definition, then I’d have to say sales executive. ---
**Author:** ![Count\_Blucher](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/c/c5a1d2/32.png) [@Count\_Blucher](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Count_Blucher)\ **Post date:** [April 8, 2014, 2:43am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/per-capita-which-professions-have-the-most-assholes/685605/7 "2014-04-08T02:43:28Z")
Comedy? Talk-Radio? Hard to say, really. ---
**Author:** ![Jackmannii](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/jackmannii/32/311_2.png) [@Jackmannii](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Jackmannii)\ **Post date:** [April 8, 2014, 2:59am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/per-capita-which-professions-have-the-most-assholes/685605/8 "2014-04-08T02:59:39Z")
Urologists. (I know you immediately thought of proctologists, but we’re speaking of _being_, not viewing.) ---
**Author:** ![Namkcalb](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/n/c89c15/32.png) [@Namkcalb](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Namkcalb)\ **Post date:** [April 8, 2014, 3:29am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/per-capita-which-professions-have-the-most-assholes/685605/9 "2014-04-08T03:29:50Z")
What about debt collectors? Being sympathetic and understanding would be a massive detriment to their job performance. ---
**Author:** ![Hector\_St\_Clare](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/h/b5ac83/32.png) [@Hector\_St\_Clare](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Hector_St_Clare)\ **Post date:** [April 8, 2014, 3:33am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/per-capita-which-professions-have-the-most-assholes/685605/10 "2014-04-08T03:33:49Z")
The clergy. I’m not actually kidding, nor am I making a snarky jab at religion (I’m a Christian). Apparently sociopaths like to manipulate people, and they gravitate to jobs like the clergy where they can find trusting parishioners to manipulate. Christian clergy include a disproportionate number of sociopaths. ---
**Author:** ![Happy\_Fun\_Ball](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/happy_fun_ball/32/17664_2.png) [@Happy\_Fun\_Ball](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Happy_Fun_Ball)\ **Post date:** [April 8, 2014, 3:34am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/per-capita-which-professions-have-the-most-assholes/685605/11 "2014-04-08T03:34:34Z")
> [@Eva\_Luna](#): > > Investment bankers. With a single known exception, they all think they’re the center of the universe. Yah, I have known a couple; they are not bad as in evil, but they are incredibly self centered. ---
**Author:** ![Hector\_St\_Clare](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/h/b5ac83/32.png) [@Hector\_St\_Clare](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Hector_St_Clare)\ **Post date:** [April 8, 2014, 3:35am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/per-capita-which-professions-have-the-most-assholes/685605/12 "2014-04-08T03:35:21Z")
> [@Wesley\_Clark](#): > > I hadn’t considered high finance, but I could see that field being full of narcissists. > > I wonder if fields like beautician are terrible for this. I’d trust the average beautician more than the average financier, high powered lawyer, bishop, or Congressman. ---
**Author:** ![ThisUsernameIsForbidden](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/t/b4bc9f/32.png) [@ThisUsernameIsForbidden](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/ThisUsernameIsForbidden)\ **Post date:** [April 8, 2014, 4:11am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/per-capita-which-professions-have-the-most-assholes/685605/13 "2014-04-08T04:11:59Z")
Many positions are such that, once you have endured working for an asshole, you get to move up the foodchain and be the asshole. Mid-level managers of many sorts. ---
**Author:** ![Ambivalid](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/a5b964/32.png) [@Ambivalid](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Ambivalid)\ **Post date:** [April 8, 2014, 4:15am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/per-capita-which-professions-have-the-most-assholes/685605/14 "2014-04-08T04:15:53Z")
Politics. ---
**Author:** ![PastTense](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/pasttense/32/14550_2.png) [@PastTense](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/PastTense)\ **Post date:** [April 8, 2014, 4:52am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/per-capita-which-professions-have-the-most-assholes/685605/15 "2014-04-08T04:52:43Z")
Prison guards? ---
**Author:** ![The\_Second\_Stone](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/t/bbe5ce/32.png) [@The\_Second\_Stone](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/The_Second_Stone)\ **Post date:** [April 8, 2014, 5:19am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/per-capita-which-professions-have-the-most-assholes/685605/16 "2014-04-08T05:19:44Z")
Right wing talk jockey Lawyers Time share salesassholes ---
**Author:** ![buddha\_david](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/b/ee7513/32.png) [@buddha\_david](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/buddha_david)\ **Post date:** [April 8, 2014, 6:02am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/per-capita-which-professions-have-the-most-assholes/685605/17 "2014-04-08T06:02:08Z")
During one of my college-era jobs, I used to pass within spitting distance of major movie producers, A-list actors, and other Hollywood people all the time. There is zero shortage of assholes in Hollywood. In fact, if any part of the world endures an Asshole Drought, we could build a pipeline from Hollywood to siphon some off and the town wouldn’t notice any difference. ---
**Author:** ![kk\_fusion](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/kk_fusion/32/15276_2.png) [@kk\_fusion](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/kk_fusion)\ **Post date:** [April 8, 2014, 7:18am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/per-capita-which-professions-have-the-most-assholes/685605/18 "2014-04-08T07:18:54Z")
Another vote for financial “services”. Medical folks are often misanthropes, but not necessarily assholes. ---
**Author:** ![TriPolar](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/tripolar/32/3008_2.png) [@TriPolar](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/TriPolar)\ **Post date:** [April 8, 2014, 9:12am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/per-capita-which-professions-have-the-most-assholes/685605/19 "2014-04-08T09:12:14Z")
DMV clerk ---
**Author:** ![gracer](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/g/8e7dd6/32.png) [@gracer](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/gracer)\ **Post date:** [April 8, 2014, 9:20am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/per-capita-which-professions-have-the-most-assholes/685605/20 "2014-04-08T09:20:31Z")
> [@Wesley\_Clark](#): > > I hadn’t considered high finance, but I could see that field being full of narcissists. > > I wonder if fields like beautician are terrible for this. Not IME, and in Brazil every other woman is a beautician if you include hair and nails in the definition, so I knew a lot when I lived there. In fact, it might possibly be the profession with the sweetest people? They just want to make people feel good about themselves, make people walk out looking nice. They know their job isn’t high status so they don’t have a huge ego. They listen to people’s problems while they work. The ones I knew genuinely cared. [Next page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/per-capita-which-professions-have-the-most-assholes/685605.md?page=2)