Terrorism: Leader-Follower Object Relationships

The following abstracts present an object relations perspective on terrorist leaders and terrorist followers, the principal theorist writing the articles being Jerrold Post, MD, a psychiatrist who is a professor of political psychology at George Washington University in Washington, DC.

Henry (or anyone), I would appreciate your interpretation or comments on how you view these leader-follower dynamics from an Adlerian perspective.

Thank you,

Carroll

Post, Jerrold M. Narcissism and the quest for political power. In Ellman, Carolyn S. (Ed); Reppen, Joseph (Ed). (1997). Omnipotent fantasies and the vulnerable self. The library of clinical psychoanalysis. (pp. 195-232). Northvale, NJ, US: Jason Aronson, Inc. xv, 275pp.

The author explores the relationship between narcissism and power, and illustrates this with material from leaders of the 20th century. He reminds us that if leaders with narcissistic characteristics were taken from the ranks of the public we would have very few leaders left, further suggesting that the differences between individuals with severe narcissistic personality and full-blown character disorders are only difference of degree.

The author defines narcissistic personality disorder, emphasizing the traits that have particular relevance for political behavior. He summarizes both H. Kohut's and O. Kernberg's psychoanalytic inquiries into narcissism.

He also explores the charismatic leader-follower relationship, emphasizing the lock and key fit between the "mirror-hungry" leader and the "ideal-hungry" follower. He distinguishes between reparative charismatics, exemplified by Ataturk, the founder of the modern state of Turkey, and destructive charismatics, exemplified by Hitler. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2000 APA, all rights reserved)

Post, Jerrold M. Saddam Hussein of Iraq: A political psychology profile. In
Blumberg, Herbert H. (Ed); French, Christopher C. (Ed). (1994). The Persian Gulf War: Views from the social and behavioral sciences. (pp. 191-203). Lanham, MD; Lanham, MD: University Press of America; University Press of America. v, 631pp.

(from the introduction) [Provides a] psychological profile of Saddam [Hussein] / points out [that] it is historically rare for events of such international significance to be provoked by the actions of a single individual / questions the characterization of Saddam as "the madman of the Middle East," pointing out that acceptance of this simplistic diagnosis by decision-makers would be a serious mistake

(from the chapter) It is this political personality constellation--messianic ambition for unlimited power, absence of conscience, unconstrained aggression, and a paranoid outlook--which makes Saddam so dangerous / conceptualized as malignant narcissism, this is the personality configuration of the destructive charismatic, who unifies and rallies his downtrodden supporters by blaming outside enemies (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2000 APA, all rights reserved)

Post, Jerrold M. Dreams of glory and the life cycle: Reflections on the life course of
narcissistic leaders. In Braungart, Richard G. (Ed); Braungart, Margaret M. (Ed). (1993). Life course and generational politics. (pp. 49-60). Lanham, MD: University Press of America. 211pp.

Knowledge gained from studies of the psychology of the adult life cycle is applied to the life course of narcissistic political leaders / the driving force of the Dream [i.e., aspirations of glory] is emphasized, and the importance of the mentor, both in giving shape to the Dream and as a later source of frustration, is stressed

On the one hand, dreams of glory can push talented individuals to greatness, but the frustration of such dreams can lead to intense psychological pressures, particularly during the key transitions of adulthood / moreover, the approach of the end of life, through old age or serious illness, may be particularly threatening to narcissistic leaders with messianic goals

Influences of early adult psychology on leadership behavior / impact of mid-life transition / effects of death's approach (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2000 APA, all rights reserved)

Post, Jerrold M. Current concepts of the narcissistic personality: Implications for political psychology. Political Psychology. Vol 14(1) Mar 1993, 99-121. Blackwell Publishers, US

The decision making of the narcissistic leader, especially crisis decision making, is often impaired. The narcissistic leader has difficulty accepting criticism or new information, contributing to sycophantic advisory circles. Moreover, she/he may be overly optimistic concerning her/his possibility of success and underrate the adversary. An understanding of charismatic leader-follower relationships is enriched by understanding narcissistic transferences. Charismatic leaders often manifest the "mirror-hungry" personality, which is attractive to "ideal-hungry" personalities. The impact of the life cycle of the narcissistic leader is also explored, drawing attention particularly to the heroic myth and frustrated dreams of glory. Malignant narcissism, narcissistic rage, and cognition and belief systems of the narcissist are also examined. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2000 APA, all rights reserved)

Post, Jerrold M. Terrorist psycho-logic: Terrorist behavior as a product of psychological forces. In Reich, Walter (Ed). (1990). Origins of terrorism: Psychologies, ideologies, theologies, states of mind. Woodrow Wilson Center series. (pp. 25-40). New York, NY, US; New York, NY, US: Cambridge University Press; Cambridge University Press. xi, 289pp.

Argues for a special logic that characterizes terrorists' reasoning processes, a logic from which this chapter draws its title--"terrorist psycho-logic" / argues that political terrorists are driven to commit acts of violence as a consequence of psychological forces, and that their special psycho-logic is constructed to rationalize acts they
are psychologically compelled to commit thus the principle argument of this essay is that individuals are drawn to the patch of terrorism in order to commit acts of violence, and their special logic, which is grounded in their psychology and reflected in their rhetoric, becomes the justification for their violent acts (PsycINFO
Database Record (c) 2000 APA, all rights reserved)

Post, Jerrold M. Narcissism and the charismatic leader-follower relationship. Political Psychology. Vol 7(4) Dec 1986, 675-688. Blackwell Publishers, US

Suggests that the development and phenomenology of the narcissistic personality have significant implications for understanding the nature of charismatic leader-follower relationships. For the charismatic leader, formation of the injured self results in a mirror-hungry personality pattern characterized by a grandiose self and a hunger for confirming and admiring responses to counteract an inner sense of worthlessness and lack of self-esteem. To nourish the self, such leaders display themselves and
continually seek new audiences from whom to elicit attention and recognition. In the follower, the injured self results in an ideal-hungry personality that can feel worthwhile only by relating to persons who are admired for their prestige, power, intelligence, or moral stature. Because this inner void cannot be filled, ideal-hungry followers eventually become disillusioned with the previously idealized object and attach themselves to a new hero. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2000

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