Abstract:
Sanctions and rewards can only imperfectly control the behaviour of individuals occupying important public roles in society. Recruiting individuals with the right dispositions thus matters greatly. Self-nomination for those particular jobs has deleterious effects on recruitment, because the same dispositions that make one fit the job also make one reluctant to seek it. Conversely, problematic dispositions that make others unsuited for the job also lead them to seek it. Excessive use of force by police might be partially explained by the fact that people predisposed to violence offer themselves for the force, for example. Historically, various mechanisms were used to prevent those overeager from gaining certain positions or to encourage those reluctant to accept them. The selection of the Speaker of the House of Commons in medieval England and the selection of public officeholders in Renaissance Venice are a good case in point. There are modern analogues to those solutions that could be used more widely.