The story

It's the simplest question in the world, but it was the one repeated over and over Monday after the staggering news broke about Gov. Eliot Spitzer: What in heaven's name was the man thinking?

Yet if the New York governor is proved to have been involved in a prostitution ring, it would hardly be the first time a powerful, brilliant person in public life has done something dizzyingly self-destructive.

Why do otherwise smart, successful people do such risky things? For psychologists and political analysts who found themselves dissecting the Spitzer story, it was a question of the chicken or the egg: In such situations, does the risky behavior precede the powerful job? Or does something about being in power cause the behavior? Read full article »

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