The problem I have with such speculative analyses is that standard psychiatric categories have such an intense bias towards a certain notion of normalcy. Any behavior or ideation that is out of the ordinary in any way can become evidence of a disorder. If someone was actually having an intense period of inspired achievement accompanied by passionate emotions, wouldn’t it still register as “mania” or “hypomania”? In such a case, I might prefer a school of thought like Kazimierz Dabrowski—at least it acknowledges that there is such a thing as high achievement, with its own associated positive psychology.
In Elon’s case, if I was trying to understand his state of mind, I would start by looking for precedents in his business career, for the situation he currently faces. Perhaps with DOGE and the government audit, it’s a bit like when he first took over Twitter, and didn’t have a new system in place. Perhaps the bromance with Trump resembles times that he partnered with Peter Thiel… Anyway, if pop psychiatry starts becoming a drag, they can always have RFK Jr declare it to be a politicized pseudoscience!
The problem I have with such speculative analyses is that standard psychiatric categories have such an intense bias towards a certain notion of normalcy. Any behavior or ideation that is out of the ordinary in any way can become evidence of a disorder. If someone was actually having an intense period of inspired achievement accompanied by passionate emotions, wouldn’t it still register as “mania” or “hypomania”? In such a case, I might prefer a school of thought like Kazimierz Dabrowski—at least it acknowledges that there is such a thing as high achievement, with its own associated positive psychology.
In Elon’s case, if I was trying to understand his state of mind, I would start by looking for precedents in his business career, for the situation he currently faces. Perhaps with DOGE and the government audit, it’s a bit like when he first took over Twitter, and didn’t have a new system in place. Perhaps the bromance with Trump resembles times that he partnered with Peter Thiel… Anyway, if pop psychiatry starts becoming a drag, they can always have RFK Jr declare it to be a politicized pseudoscience!