As I await word of Donald Trump being booked in Atlanta at this moment, like many inquisitive souls, I wrote once again about the widespread disorder which has swept this land, in the following verse. I find it still rather perplexing where we find ourselves in this country, and I’m continuing to have a level of anxiety over it all. As therapy mostly I decided to write about this once again. Hopefully I have dredged up some new ideas, or seeds to ideas which may be helpful. I have posted excerpts from two mental health experts which I came across concerning aspects of our predicament. Hopefully you might learn something from them. First my verse.
And I searched X with the word insanity to see what might appear this day after a GOP debate. Here is what I found.
I came across this diagnosis of Donald Trump from November 2, 2020 by Dr. Daniel Winarick today on X. I’ve only placed the introduction to his writing, follow the link below for the article in its entirety. He discusses the “Goldwater Rule” in some depth within his writings which I found quite clear. Winarick also argues from a few days prior to the 2020 election that Trump’s disorder makes him incapable of adhering to a country’s constitution. I think this has been proven already, and that he shouldn’t have a second chance to substantiate our fears. Before the article, however, a post today by the Doctor on X is in the image below.
Donald Trump has DSM-5 Antisocial Personality Disorder (ASPD)
Dr. Daniel Winarick
@DrWinarick
7 min read
Nov 2, 2020
I am going to lay out the case for why Donald Trump meets criteria for ICD11/DSM-5 Antisocial Personality Disorder (ASPD). While many pundits and armchair psychiatrists as well as psychologists have labeled the President of the United States (POTUS) as narcissistic or, using Erich Fromm’s construct, a “malignant narcissism (MN).” I believe there is good reason to avoid these labels and to stick with a tried and true diagnosis in the context of mainstream academic psychiatry, namely ASPD. I will discuss some implications of POTUS meeting criteria for ASPD for society.
I came across this recent paper on the connection between narcissism and the believing of conspiracy theories. I edited some of the excerpts from the paper to include below. I found it to be quite understandable and certainly relevant to my verse which I wrote. The relationship of narcissism canceling our critical thinking despite education explained much to me. Of questions which I’ve had for some time in regards to intelligent people I’ve known who easily canceled out their thinking to hold rather conspiratorial ideas. First from X an image from Tylor Cosgrove’s posting of this work. I especially liked the concept of collective narcissism in perhaps explaining, or putting words to the MAGA movement. I found this following article very interesting to read and contemplate.
ORIGINAL RESEARCH article
Front. Psychol., 06 July 2023
Sec. Personality and Social Psychology
Volume 14 - 2023 |
Tylor J. Cosgrove
@Tylorcos1
Christopher P. Murphy
Introduction
‘Conspiracy theories’ are viewpoints that are negatively toned, revolving around malfeasance within a variety of higher power constructs. Recently, there has been a notable surge in interest and research dedicated to the study of conspiracy theories and individuals who hold such beliefs, revealing a range of adverse personal and societal consequences associated with their adoption . Consequently, inroads have been made into identifying the psychological processes and predictors of conspiracy theory belief, as well as factors that may mitigate these mechanisms.
Personality traits have been suggested to influence an individual’s willingness to endorse conspiracy theories, including anxiety, trust and dark triad traits. Narcissism has been found to be a particularly robust predictor, due to its ability to explain considerable variance in conspiracy theory endorsement. Research shows that narcissistic individuals often fall prey to dichotomous thinking; they prefer to deal in absolutes, viewing issues as ‘black or white.’ Conspiracy theories are often described to provide simple explanations for complex issues, and often find broader appeal in times of uncertainty, such as times of war, widespread disease, natural disasters and terrorism. This reduction in uncertainty has been referred to as an ‘existential’ motivation for conspiracy theory adoption. As such, conceptual sense can be made of why narcissistic individuals find appeal in the reductive explanations offered by many conspiracy theories.
Narcissism has also been linked to low levels of ‘intellectual humility.’ This indicates that narcissistic individuals are more likely to overestimate the accuracy of their own beliefs, and resist adjusting them in the face of conflicting information. Low intellectual humility has recently been identified as a predictor of susceptibility to fake news, pseudoscientific beliefs and conspiratorial ideation. This strong resistance to information that challenges existing beliefs and accepting conspiratorial information that supports current belief is referred to as the ‘epistemic’ motivation for conspiracy theory adoption. A positive relationship between narcissism and ‘counterfactual’ thinking, and a negative relationship between narcissism and critical thinking skills like cognitive reflection have also been established. In this study we explore specific factors that may mitigate these mechanisms, including education and critical thinking.
Education and critical thinking skills
In the literature of reducing conspiracy theory adoption, key factors identified are greater education and critical thinking skills. Several studies have established connections between higher levels of education and intelligence, cognitive ability and critical thinking skills. Moreover, a link between lower levels of education and conspiracy theory endorsement is also well established. However, the role of education and critical thinking skills such as cognitive reflection remain unexplored as protective factors in the personality, conspiracy belief relationship.
In investigating the link between education and conspiracy belief, tested mediation models to see which factors might explain the relationship. They found a dual mediation model to be significant in which analytic thinking and decreased belief in simple solutions mediated the relationship between education and conspiracy belief. Although historically the causality of education on cognitive ability has been challenged, recent research has rebutted the notion and found strong support for a causal link. A relationship between STEM (Science, Technology, Engineering, and Mathematics) education and decreased conspiracy belief has also been established, thought to be explained at least partially explained by pro-science outlook and critical thinking ability. These findings strongly suggest that education may protect against the link between the narcissistic desire for simplicity and conspiracy theory endorsement. As such, the current paper will focus on whether education and critical thinking skills mitigate the link between narcissism and conspiracy belief, and whether each facet of narcissism show differences in efficacy.
Grandiose/vulnerable narcissism
In the literature, grandiosity has historically been the hallmark of narcissism. It refers to a heightened self-image, a sense of entitlement, as well as manipulative and aggressive tendencies. Studies consistently show a link between grandiose narcissism and both generic conspiracy theory endorsement and COVID-19 specific conspiracy theory endorsement. Vulnerable narcissism shares core characteristics with grandiose narcissism of antagonism and entitlement, however is differentiated by *emotional dysregulation, insecurity, low self-esteem, and heightened self-consciousness. There has been limited research into the relationship between vulnerable narcissism and conspiracy theory endorsement, however current perspective is that their antagonistic, untrusting, and paranoid nature contributes to a predisposition to conspiracy theory endorsement.
*Emotional dysregulation is a brain-related symptom that means you have trouble managing your feelings and emotions. It's often a sign of conditions that affect your brain or differences in how your brain developed or works today. It's usually not a serious condition except when severe.
Narcissistic need for uniqueness/superiority
A more recent division of narcissism that has been discussed in the context of conspiracy theory adoption is a need for both uniqueness and superiority among others. These two needs align with the ‘social motivation.’ Conspiracy theories allow the adopter to feel privy to information that others are not and that they are morally righteous relative to the shadowy out-group supported by most conspiracy narratives. The rhetoric around conspiracy theories also often includes the notion of adopters being ‘awake’ or ‘enlightened.’ As such, narcissistic individuals may adopt conspiracy theories as a means of ‘standing out from the crowd’ and be perceived as unique, superior, important, and intelligent.
Collective narcissism
Beyond simplifying complex issues and providing feelings of superiority, conspiracy theories have also been proposed to function as a means of supporting identity and ideology. These are thought to include signaling group membership, morally condemning out-groups, and satisfying needs for belonging. These aspects of conspiracy theory belief have been attributed to facilitate increases in polarization, conflict, and intergroup prejudice. This socially driven motivation may help to explain findings that narcissism at the group level (collective narcissism) has also been found to be a robust predictor of conspiracy belief. Collective narcissism refers to the phenomenon of a group of individuals feeling as though their group of membership is superior to others and that they deserve recognition. It is unclear whether education and cognitive abilities protect against conspiracy theory adoption as means of signaling ideology or identity, however they will be assessed in the current study.
Conclusion
The findings discussed in the current study add to the growing understanding of the link between conspiracy theories and one of the most robust predictors of their adoption, narcissism. It appears from the findings across the two studies that although education plays an important protective role against conspiracy theory adoption for the general population, this effect does not appear to be evident for narcissistic individuals.
Based on the current findings, it is indicated that individuals with narcissistic tendencies may exhibit limited involvement in Bayesian reasoning, which involves the critical evaluation of information and the adjustment of beliefs based on new evidence. The results suggest that educational attainment and scientific literacy might not exert the intended influence on such individuals. Instead of engaging in neutral evaluation of evidence, narcissistic individuals are inclined to reinforce their own opinions, a tendency that aligns with their overconfident and defensive disposition.
To conclude, the findings from the current study help to explain the prominent connection between narcissism and conspiracy beliefs. They suggest that narcissistic individuals may be reluctant to engage in the cognitive processes that prevent the majority of individuals from adopting such beliefs. From the current analyses and previous literature, this appears likely to be explained by several factors, including a reluctance to consider information that does not align with existing opinions. Overconfidence is a hallmark of narcissists and conspiracy theorists alike. Both populations have a strong need to maintain their beliefs and may actively avoid or discount evidence that challenges their worldview, particularly when well educated. As such, strategies focused solely on education or providing accurate information (“debunking”) may not be sufficient. The current study’s findings suggest that interventions that target increasing cognitive reflection and intellectual humility may be more effective in reducing the relationship between narcissism and conspiracy beliefs.
Lastly, the narcissistic need for feelings of uniqueness and superiority also appears to partly explain the relationship with conspiracy beliefs. Narcissistic individuals may use conspiracy beliefs to boost their image of self and in-group. Embracing conspiracy beliefs can provide them with a sense of being part of an exclusive group that possesses special knowledge or insights that others are not privy to. Conspiracy theories are thought to also appeal to narcissistic individuals as a means of maintaining perceived victimhood of in-group and to justify moral condemnation of out-groups. Therefore, efforts aimed at reducing conspiracy beliefs should address the underlying psychological factors that contribute to a victimized mentality, such as promoting empathy, compassion, and a sense of connectedness.
Below are three quotes I found in an older publication Forty Thousand Sublime and Beautiful Thoughts from 1914, which seemed to be on point for this discussion and this very hour.
“The human intellect is the great truth - organ realities, as they exist, knowledge is the result of its acquaintance of the subjects of its study; and once with the things which it investigates.”
- Moses Harvey.
Moses Harvey FRSC FRGS (March 21, 1820 – September 3, 1901) was an Irish-born Newfoundland clergyman, essayist and naturalist. He was born in Armagh, Ireland, and died in St. John's, Newfoundland.
He wrote over 900 articles for the Montreal Gazette over a 24-year period, some under the pen name Delta. Harvey is the co-founder of the Evening Mercury newspaper.
Harvey studied many aspects of Newfoundland's natural history, most notably the habits of the giant squid. One species, Architeuthis harveyi, was named in recognition of his work. It was largely through his efforts that the giant squid became known to British and American zoologists.
“It is no proof of a man's understanding to be able to confirm whatever he pleases; but to be able to discern that what is true is true, and that what is false is false, this is the mark and character of intelligence.”
- Swedenborg.
Emanuel Swedenborg (born Emanuel Swedberg; 8 February 1688 – 29 March 1772) was a Swedish pluralistic-Christian theologian, scientist, philosopher and mystic. He became best known for his book on the afterlife, Heaven and Hell (1758).
Swedenborg had a prolific career as an inventor and scientist. In 1741, at 53, he entered into a spiritual phase in which he began to experience dreams and visions, notably on Easter Weekend, on 6 April 1744. His experiences culminated in a "spiritual awakening" in which he received a revelation that Jesus Christ had appointed him to write The Heavenly Doctrine to reform Christianity.
“Foolish men imagine that because judgment for an evil thing is delayed, there is no justice, but an accident alone, here below. Judgment for an evil thing is many times delayed some day or two, some century or two; but it is sure as life, it is sure as death!”
— Carlyle.
Thomas Carlyle (4 December 1795 – 5 February 1881) was a British essayist, historian, and philosopher from the Scottish Lowlands. A leading writer of the Victorian era, he exerted a profound influence on 19th-century art, literature, and philosophy.
Carlyle occupied a central position in Victorian culture, being considered not only, in the words of Ralph Waldo Emerson, the "undoubted head of English letters", but a "secular prophet". Posthumously, his reputation suffered as publications by his friend and disciple James Anthony Froude provoked controversy about Carlyle's personal life, particularly his marriage to Jane Welsh Carlyle. His reputation further declined in the 20th century, as the onsets of World War I and World War II brought forth accusations that he was a progenitor of both Prussianism and fascism. Since the 1950s, extensive scholarship in the field of Carlyle Studies has improved his standing, and he is now recognised as "one of the enduring monuments of our literature who, quite simply, cannot be spared."
So that is what I have for today, albeit of questionable value perhaps in these times. It’s just been announced on MSNBC that a mug shot was taken of #45. Thanks for reading.
80th posting, August 24, 2023