ABSTRACT
This chapter examines the development of lying, cheating, bullying, and narcissism, with a particular focus on the role of parenting. Styles of parenting that either promote or stifle moral reasoning, moral emotions, mechanisms of moral disengagement, and moral behavior are examined. As seen in this chapter, Trump's parents were overly indulgent and authoritarian in their style of parenting, which explains many of his character traits. However, as also discussed, early in his business career Trump was greatly influenced by other adults who modeled and reinforced his proclivity for lying, cheating, bullying, and narcissism. Several also taught him how to avoid punishment. Primary among the major influencers outside of the home were his business partner and father, Fred Trump, and his attorney and close friend Roy Cohn. Although to a lesser extent, Theodore Dobias, Roger Stone, and Norman Vincent Peale also influenced the building of Trump's moral character. Trump's father, Cohn, Dobias, and Stone taught him that “winning was everything,” one wins by dominating others, and that fear is the key to successful domination. Peale did not teach the same, but helped foster Trump's belief that God loved winners, including rich and famous ones. Trump was not a passive learner: He sought and absorbed what he wanted and created environments that have fostered and reinforced his lying, cheating, bullying, and narcissism. In those environments, he has used fearmongering as an effective tool for getting things done.
