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“Ability to Function Despite Imminent Catastrophe.”
NASA’s recommended astronaut attribute list includes an Ability to Relate to Others with Sensitivity, Regard, and Empathy. Adaptability, Flexibility, Fairness. Sense of Humor.
An Ability to Form Stable and Quality Interpersonal Relationships.
Assertiveness has to be “Appropriate” and Risk-Taking Behavior has to be “Healthy.”
Or as Patricia Santy, NASA’s first staff psychiatrist, put it in Choosing the Right Stuff, “narcissism, arrogance, and interpersonal insensitivity.” “Who,” she asks, “would want to work with a person like that?”
All through the space station era, the ideal astronaut has been an exceptionally high-achieving adult who takes direction and follows rules like an exceptionally well-behaved child.
