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In search of the Nazi personality

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Summary

This article examines the Nazi Rorschach responses that were collected during the Nuremberg trials in the aftermath of World War II. Two psychologists, Gustave Gilbert and Douglas Kelley, analyzed the data differently and wrote separate books to argue for their interpretations of the results. Later, Molly Harrower sought to have 10 independent experts weigh in on the evidence, but none of them were willing to do so. Harrower eventually conducted a double-blind study to compare the responses of the Nazis to those of clergy and hospital patients and concluded that the Nazi leaders were seemingly no different from average Americans. The article discusses further analysis of the Nazi Rorschachs and the continued debate regarding the Nazi personality.

Q&As

What were the psychological tools used by Allied forces to profile Nazi leaders?
The psychological tools used by Allied forces to profile Nazi leaders were the Thematic Apperception Test, Rorschach Inkblot Test and the German translation of the Wechsler-Bellevue Intelligence Test.

What were the differing interpretations of the psychological data collected by Gustave Gilbert and Douglas Kelley?
Gustave Gilbert concluded that there were three different personality types in the group that could all be classified under a psychopathic personality: schizoid, narcissistic and paranoid types, and thus their pathology led them to engage in their horrific actions. Douglas Kelley, however, claimed that all of the war criminals were legally sane and argued that a Nazi-style government would be possible even in America because it was a "socio-cultural disease" and not a product of insane leaders.

What did Molly Harrower seek to do with the Nazi Rorschach results?
Molly Harrower sought to get 10 independent experts to weigh in on the evidence and interpret the Nazis' results.

What did Harrower's findings suggest about the Nazi leaders?
Harrower's findings suggested that Nazi leaders were seemingly no different from average Americans and showed no signs of mental disturbance.

What methodological problems have been identified in the examination of the Nazi Rorschachs?
Methodological problems that have been identified in the examination of the Nazi Rorschachs include language difficulties, the inherent power dynamic between the examiners as victors and test subjects as prisoners, and issues with the tests' administration.

AI Comments

👍 This article provides a great overview of the psychological studies conducted on the Nazi war criminals and is a very informative read.

👎 The article fails to really draw any meaningful conclusions from the psychological studies conducted on the Nazi war criminals and doesn't offer any solutions.

AI Discussion

Me: It's about the psychological testing of Nazi war criminals in Nuremberg prison after World War II. It talks about how psychologists Gustave Gilbert, PhD, and psychiatrist Douglas Kelley, MD conducted psychological tests on the Nazis such as Thematic Apperception Test, Rorschach Inkblot Test and the German translation of the Wechsler-Bellevue Intelligence Test to understand the Nazi personality. The article goes on to discuss the different interpretations of the results by Gilbert and Kelley and the impact that their findings have had on our understanding of the Nazi personality.

Friend: That's really interesting. What implications do you think this article has?

Me: Well, the article shows how our understanding of the Nazi personality can be complex and ever-evolving. It also shows how psychological testing can be used to gain insight into the motives and behavior of people even in extreme circumstances. It also highlights the importance of understanding the socio-cultural context in which these people lived, and how that context can shape their beliefs and actions. Finally, it emphasizes the moral implications of blind obedience to authority and the importance of teaching critical thinking to prevent similar atrocities from occurring.

Action items

Research the socio-cultural context of the Nazi leadership to gain a better understanding of the motivations behind their actions.
Read the books written by Gustave Gilbert and Douglas Kelley to gain insight into their interpretations of the Nazi Rorschach responses.
Visit the Archives of the History of American Psychology at the University of Akron to explore Molly Harrower's papers and her collaborative book "The Quest for the Nazi Personality".

Technical terms

Thematic Apperception Test (TAT): A projective psychological test used to assess a person's patterns of thought, attitudes, observational capacity, and emotional responses to ambiguous test materials.
Rorschach Inkblot Test: A projective psychological test used to assess a person's personality characteristics and emotional functioning. It is a set of 10 inkblots that are presented to the test subject, who is asked to describe what they see in each one.
Wechsler-Bellevue Intelligence Test: A psychological test used to measure a person's cognitive abilities, including verbal comprehension, perceptual organization, working memory, and processing speed.
Psychopathic Personality: A personality disorder characterized by a lack of empathy, a disregard for social norms, and a tendency to engage in impulsive and reckless behavior.
Socio-Cultural Context: The social and cultural environment in which a person lives, including the values, beliefs, and customs of the society.
Double-Blind Procedure: A research method in which neither the participants nor the researchers know which participants are in the control group and which are in the experimental group.