Donald Trump has been the topic of a lot of amateur psychology in recent months.
A lot of people have used the term narcissist freely. John Oliver has labelled him a “damaged, sociopathic narcissist.” Both conservative and liberal columnists have written that Trump is showing signs of mental illness.
Trump Shows Signs Of Mental Illness By Inventing Imaginary Sanders Supporters Who Support Him @politicususa https://t.co/NeTcF7MqJy #p2 #ctl
— PoliticusUSA (@politicususa) July 29, 2016
The Toronto Star is reporting that Trump’s increasingly erratic behavior has even qualified psychology experts raising red flags.
Early in the campaign, Harvard psychologist Howard Gardner said that Trump is “remarkably narcissistic,” a view that was repeated by other psychologists. Dr. George Simon, a psychologist who does training in personality disorders, said that he plans to use clips of Trump in his classes, rather than having to rely on actors to portray narcissistic patients.
The fact that well known psychologists are willing to publicly state their concerns about Trump’s mental state is a testament to how worried they are about him being in the Oval Office. The American Psychological Association (APA) states that it is unethical for a professional to diagnose a patient who has not been personally evaluated.
However, a lot of psychologists have been willing to make a tentative diagnosis based on the evidence that Trump has so publicly presented.
I recently wrote that in my best professional judgement as a retired speech/language pathologist, I am willing to say that Donald Trump shows all the signs of an expressive language disorder. These mental health professionals are making the same type of judgement based on his behavior and language.
According to the Mayo Clinic, the definition of narcissism is this:
“Narcissistic personality disorder is a mental disorder in which people have an inflated sense of their own importance, a deep need for admiration and a lack of empathy for others. But behind this mask of ultraconfidence lies a fragile self-esteem that’s vulnerable to the slightest criticism.”
Some psychologists are uncomfortable with the idea of diagnosing Trump with a disorder, and especially with the off hand use of the word “crazy” in reference to his behavior. People who have been diagnosed with serious mental illnesses are already struggling with the stigma, and adding Trump to the mix doesn’t help that situation.
Dan Adams is a psychology professor at Northwestern University who believes that many people who hold high office experience a good deal of narcissism. He didn’t want to give a diagnosis for Trump, but said:
“It does seem to be the case that he’s kind of off the map.”
Clinical psychologist Ben Michaelis explained that Trump shows strong signs of a serious personality disorder. He said:
“In the field we use clusters of personality disorders. Narcissism is in cluster B, which means it has similarities with histrionic personality disorder, borderline personality disorder, and antisocial personality disorder. There are similarities between them. Regardless of how you feel about John McCain, the man served—and suffered. Narcissism is an extreme defense against one’s own feelings of worthlessness. To degrade people is really part of a cluster-B personality disorder: it’s antisocial and shows a lack of remorse for other people. The way to make it O.K. to attack someone verbally, psychologically, or physically is to lower them. That’s what he’s doing.”
Whether or not Donald Trump carries a diagnosis of Narcissistic Personality Disorder or something else, what is very clear is that every day more professionals in psychology are willing to state that there is something truly unbalanced and unsafe about this guy.
He absolutely cannot be elected President.
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