February
23, 2017 "Information
Clearing House"
- -
Last October, before he was elected President of
the U.S., I, among others, put forward the
hypothesis that Mr. Donald Trump was a
narcissist. Trump fulfills practically all the
criteria included in the classification of
narcissism established by the Diagnostic and
Statistical Manual of Mental Disorders (DSM-5).
This is the standard classification of mental
disorders used by mental health professionals in
many countries all over the world.
Grandiosity; fantasies of power and personal
attractiveness; self-perception of being unique;
needing constant admiration form others; sense
of entitlement; exploitation of others for
personal gain; intensely envious of others and
pompous and arrogant demeanor are the symptoms
included in this syndrome. His behavior at the
time, which became even more evident since
becoming President, only confirmed this
hypothesis.
More recently, however, John D. Garner, a
practicing psychotherapist who advised
psychiatric residents at Johns Hopkins
University Medical School, went a step further
and stated that Trump has “malignant narcissism”
which is different from narcissistic personality
disorder and which is incurable. “We have seen
enough public behavior by Donald Trump now that
we can make this diagnosis indisputably,” says
Garner.
Not everybody agrees with this assumption,
however. Rep. Chuck Fleishmann, R-Tenn. states
that Trump is “passionate” and “vocal” in his
approach to the presidency. According to
Fleishmann, “Many traditional politicians get
elected with one persona and one set of values
and rhetoric and then get here and then morph
into something else,” which is not the case of
Trump, he concludes.
Psychiatrists don’t generally analyze public
figures. During Barry Goldwater’s 1964 run for
the presidency, Fact magazine published a
special issue titled “The Unconscious of a
Conservative: A special issue on the mind of
Barry Goldwater.” The article prompted the
American Psychiatric Association to issue what
it called the “Goldwater Rule” that says: “It is
unethical for a psychiatrist to offer a
professional opinion unless he or she has
conducted an examination.”
Although many psychologists and psychiatrists
accept that their work could never be done
without direct contact with the subject of their
analysis, there are enough manifestations of
Trump’s public persona and character to allow
for his psychological characterization, since
this is an issue that is of a deep concern for
everyone.
In that regard, one could say that Trump’s
psychological characteristics are also
consistent with a person with Antisocial
Personality Disorder (ASPD), which is
characterized by a pattern of disregard for, or
violation of, the rights of others. Also
apparent in this disorder is a history of legal
problems and of impulsive and aggressive
behavior.
Individuals with this disorder generally have no
compunction in exploiting others in harmful ways
for their own gain and pleasure. They frequently
manipulate and deceive other people through a
façade of wit and superficial charm, or even
through intimidation and violence.
What makes this disorder particularly dangerous
is that among its other characteristics those
who have it are often reckless and impulsive,
and fail to consider the consequences of their
actions. In addition, they are often aggressive
and manifest a lopsided temper, lashing out with
violence to what they perceive is a provocation.
Robert Caro, President Lyndon Johnson great
biographer, said, “Although the cliché says that
power always corrupts, what is seldom said…is
that power always reveals.” Anyone who has
observed President Trump’s actions since
assuming the presidency cannot fail but notice
his increasingly impulsive decisions, his
notable frustration at not receiving the
response that he expected and a failure to admit
that he has been wrong or apologizing when
harming others.
What we have is a situation where the most
powerful person in the world is tainted by
personality characteristics that can be of
serious harm to world peace. The extent to which
these harmful characteristics can be controlled
may well decide the future of the world.
Dr. Cesar Chelala is an international public
health consultant.
Donald Trump, 1998 - BBC HARDtalk
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