A Global Threat: “Political Narcissism”!

The “First International Political Psychology Workshop” was organized by the Üsküdar University Political Psychology Application and Research Center. Held online, the workshop addressed topics such as ongoing studies in the field of political psychology in Türkiye, academic collaborations, institutional partnerships, and international visibility.

Prof. Nevzat Tarhan emphasized that political psychology should also focus on political narcissism, which has become a global threat. He stated, “There is ethnic narcissism in the events currently unfolding in the Middle East. Sometimes, it can manifest through glorifying national identity. Both historical traumas and achievements are being used for narcissistic purposes.”

Prof. Deniz Ülke Kaynak: “Time does not only have an economic or political spirit, but also a psychological one.”

The “First International Political Psychology Workshop,” organized by the Üsküdar University Political Psychology Application and Research Center, was conducted online. The workshop explored a wide range of topics, from the narcissistic traits of leaders to the rise of social anxiety, interdisciplinary collaborations, and academic publications and education. The main aim was to make political psychology more active and widespread in Türkiye.

Opening speeches were delivered by Prof. Nevzat Tarhan, President of the Supreme Üsküdar University, and Prof. Deniz Ülke Kaynak, Dean of the Faculty of Humanities and Social Sciences and Director of the Political Psychology Application and Research Center at Üsküdar University.

Prof. Nevzat Tarhan: “Brainstorming is important”

Referring to the purpose of founding the Political Psychology Center, Prof. Tarhan said, “Projects should emerge from here, various observations should be made, and international connections should be established. Our infrastructure and faculty have matured enough for this. I hope this workshop will later evolve into international congresses. At this point, brainstorming is important.”

“Political psychology should address political narcissism, which has become a global threat”

Stating that the narcissistic traits of leaders need to be studied within a scientific framework, Prof. Tarhan continued: “Political psychology should now address political narcissism, which has become a global threat. Last year, during Communication Days, we talked about digital narcissism. Digital narcissism was the main theme of the congress. Today, we will talk about leadership. We will discuss the narcissistic characteristics of leaders. It is necessary to speak about these within a scientific scope. For example, a parent can also be a narcissistic leader. It can be a company manager or a head of state. These individuals have common characteristics. They expect excessive praise. They constantly seek appreciation. They cannot tolerate criticism, become defensive and aggressive. They always take credit for success and blame others for failures. They have difficulty empathizing and act in a power-driven manner, which is the most dangerous trait. What we are currently witnessing in the Middle East involves ethnic narcissism. Sometimes it also involves the glorification of national identity. Both historical traumas and successes are being used for narcissistic purposes. The instrumentalization of this global narcissism is very dangerous, and as a result, it gives rise to collective narcissism.”

“We must act with the intention of seeking truth”

Prof. Tarhan emphasized the importance of seeking truth using a scientific methodology:
“We must act with the intention of seeking truth. The subject of the next congress could be about justice. Because the solution to narcissism is justice, which involves establishing fair balance and drawing fair boundaries. An approach similar to the psychology of justice could be adopted. We are going to tailor a framework and it may or may not fit everyone. However, we must attempt to measure, evaluate, and explain certain aspects.”

Prof. Deniz Ülke Kaynak: “We have seen that there are people from all over Türkiye working in this field”

Prof. Deniz Ülke Kaynak, Dean of the Faculty of Humanities and Social Sciences at Üsküdar University, said: “The main purpose of this workshop is not to talk about a specific theme, but rather to discuss how we can collaborate, support each other, and develop joint projects. We established our Political Psychology Center at Üsküdar University under the leadership of Prof. Nevzat Tarhan. He initially guided us. At that time, I had returned from Oxford and joined Üsküdar University specifically to establish this center. We founded the center in 2018 and have been conducting research and projects ever since. We have seen that there are academics from all over Türkiye working in this field. Today, colleagues, academics, and friends working in political psychology from various parts of the world will share valuable insights with us.”

“People have normalized anxiety”

Stressing the need to examine the roots of political behavior to understand societal mood, Prof. Kaynak said: “Time does not only have an economic or political spirit, but also a psychological spirit. In the current era, people are more pessimistic, more lonely, more alienated, more anxious, and have normalized this anxiety. There are mental illness budgets totaling trillions of dollars. The global cost of mental illnesses is projected to reach sixteen trillion dollars by 2030. It is currently five trillion dollars. This increase over the next five years suggests that humanity is heading into a serious psychological crisis. We will be talking about billions of people who cannot live without antidepressants. Understanding the collective mental state is essential, as it underlies our current political behavior.”

“Great contributions were made to our doctoral students”

Describing the work of the Political Psychology Center, Prof. Kaynak added: “Our doctoral students at the Political Psychology Center are mostly from the psychology department, since we offer a doctorate in psychology. Initially, when a political psychology course was introduced, there was some resistance. Students questioned its relevance. However, later they were very pleased. Some even changed their thesis topics and wrote articles. They reported that it helped them develop a new perspective, even when working directly with their patients. It contributed significantly to both psychology and doctoral education. As Üsküdar University Political Psychology Center, we have published four books. During the COVID period, we released two. Then we published another under the title ‘Psychopolitical Readings on Space.’ We combined sociology and political psychology. We continue editorial work. In the most recent book we wrote with Prof. Hadiye, ‘From Trauma to Triumph,’ we also mentioned our Political Psychology Center. We will continue publishing such works.”

Prof. Havva Kök Arslan: “Our goal is to raise good human beings”

Head of the Department of Political Science and International Relations (English) at the Faculty of Humanities and Social Sciences of Üsküdar University, Prof. Havva Kök Arslan, spoke within the scope of the workshop. Prof. Arslan stated, “Peace studies are a higher umbrella under which political psychology exists. In that context, it is not called political psychology but peace psychology. There is a normative stance there. Because neutrality is not possible in that field. It is said that being a good person and a peaceful person is essential. Therefore, our goal is to raise good individuals, to raise a good society, and from there to reach global peace. When there is too much focus on political psychology, we begin to question our own society. We ask why our leaders are the way they are, or why the leader of the United States behaves a certain way. However, we should look at the system that produces them. Political psychology seems to be just one of the tools. That is why I am trying to do different things at the strategic research center.”

Assoc. Prof. Hadiye Yılmaz Odabaşı: “Let us support each other in every way”

Head of the Department of History at the Faculty of Humanities and Social Sciences of Üsküdar University, Assoc. Prof. Hadiye Yılmaz Odabaşı said, “The field of political psychology is actually extremely interesting. Unfortunately, it is a field that has not truly developed in our country. However, as all of my colleagues have expressed, it is now well understood that many sciences cannot reach meaningful conclusions without psychology. Most of us are aware of this fact, yet no real steps have been taken in our country regarding this interdisciplinary field of political psychology. I believe we will continue on this path and accomplish many things. We organized this meeting for that purpose. Our discussions will continue. Our goal is to hold political psychology symposiums. Besides that, we would like to collaborate on publications. It is not easy to get political psychology articles published in journals. Therefore, let us support each other in every possible way. This is the main purpose of our center. With this meeting, I can see that there is indeed a desire and willingness in this regard. Hopefully, we will advance our field much further together.”

Asst. Prof. Hazal Ayas: “As the Department of Psychology, we will provide all possible support”

Head of the Department of Psychology at the Faculty of Humanities and Social Sciences of Üsküdar University, Asst. Prof. Hazal Ayas stated, “I actually work in the fields of clinical psychology and sports psychology. As Prof. Deniz also mentioned, I contributed a chapter on the psychopolitics of stadiums in the book Psychopolitical Readings on Space, which was produced by the Political Psychology Group. In that chapter, I touched upon both sports sociology and political psychology. Therefore, my familiarity with the field is much more limited compared to yours. In psychology, we study everything from personality theories to theories suggesting that birth order affects whether a child supports or opposes revolutions. In the field of sports psychology, we study leadership, motivation, and competition. None of these are completely independent from the topics you are discussing. Therefore, I am here to say that as the Department of Psychology, we are ready to provide all possible support. We are open to every kind of collaboration, and we will contribute to your efforts as much as we can.”

Prof. Alim Yılmaz: “Understanding the world through philosophy is not an easy matter”

Head of the Department of Political Science and Public Administration at Istanbul Medeniyet University, Prof. Alim Yılmaz said, “Understanding the world, human beings, and society through philosophy is not an easy task. Alongside philosophy, we have a serious need for psychological and sociological perspectives. During the period when I was doing my doctorate, postmodernist trends were in vogue. The main assumption of postmodernism is essentially an approach that highlights the agent. It is a perspective that emphasizes the individual as opposed to modernity. I have always tried to understand this. While doing so, my path naturally led me to social psychology. We try to understand the individual, the leader, and personality traits. In short, we call this structure. It can also be referred to as society, culture, tradition, history, or language. Therefore, it is necessary to understand all of this as a whole.”

Prof. Özlem Gümüş: “It is a beautiful feeling to be raising leaders here”

Prof. Özlem Gümüş, a faculty member at Louisiana State University, stated, “I teach courses on leadership studies in a doctoral program. I try to raise leaders. That is, I try to make an impact on students who are in leadership positions in every field in the United States. The age range is really broad. I have students ranging from their twenties to their sixties and seventies. I try to teach them leadership. There is not only political leadership. Therefore, I do not feel distant from political leadership either. Perhaps I am living in one of the societies that most needs to be corrected. For that reason, I am truly proud of the work I do. It is a beautiful feeling to be raising leaders here. In political leadership, we usually proceed through case studies. Since it is not possible to conduct research on hundreds of individuals who fit that profile, I try to proceed more through individuals and case studies.”

Üsküdar News Agency (ÜNA)