Gruppovaia psikhologiia i psikhoanaliz liderstva

Abstract

The author of the chapter asks the question: what can psychoanalysis teach us about identifying the basis of 'leadership'? This can be illustrated by the example of former US President Donald Trump. Freud's theory of group psychology and ego analysis provide a conceptual means for clarifying the sense in which Trump can truly be described as a leader. According to Freud, what constitutes a cohesive group is inextricably linked to the «libidinal bond» between the leader and his followers, analogous to two «organized» groups, namely the Roman Catholic Church and the army. The unifying role of the leader in relation to the group also relies on a shared hatred of something external to the group. According to Naomi Klein, a factor in Trump's leadership is the peculiarities of his sadistic nature, deployed in relation to «Trump the Disciple», which provides a clue to formulating the unconscious grounds for identifying Trump's followers with him: since Trump «denies» castration (powerlessness) or lack, he embodies the imaginary «fullness of being» with which they identify themselves.